News analysis with BESA
Mentors and role models crucial to improving diversity
The number of women coming into the engineering sector has risen sharply in recent years, but they are still heavily under-represented. A campaign run by BESA around this year’s International Women in Engineering Day (INWED) highlighted the importance of using mentors and role models to speed up the pace of change
W
omen now make up 16.5% of the engineering workforce compared to 10.5% in 2010 and the number of women
working in engineering roles rose to 936,000 from 562,000 in the last decade, according to research carried out by EngineeringUK. However, the proportion is still too low, according to Dr Hilary Leevers, chief executive of EngineeringUK, who pointed out that the research also found more women were likely to work in engineering roles outside of the engineering sector itself. “We hope that our analysis stimulates more
exploration of how we can do better – why are women more likely to work in engineering outside of the engineering sector than in it? What changes have happened in some areas of engineering to make them more attractive to women? What can we do to bring more female engineers back into engineering?” she asked. BESA featured a series of ‘guest blogs’ from
prominent women in engineering to help promote the range of exciting careers open to women in building services as part of this year’s INWED celebrations. They refl ected the initiative’s 2022 theme of highlighting the inspirational work women engineers do round the world to support “lives and livelihoods”.
Platform
“The profi le provided by INWED is as vital as ever because women remain hugely under-represented in many engineering professions – including ours,” said BESA vice president Claire Curran. “As the only platform of its kind, it plays an important role in encouraging more young women and girls to take up engineering careers. “Overall numbers of women coming into engineering are on the up, but progress is still slow. Our work around INWED highlighted the key part played by role models and mentors in the recruitment and retention of women.” Alexandra Knight, the founder of Stemazing – the
organisation she set up to inspire greater diversity in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) – said that negative stereotypes were still holding back diversity in engineering.
Left: Claire Curran, BESA vice president
Right: Lucy Sherburn, CIBSE Graduate of the Year
“Research shows that girls who only interact with male STEM educators reinforce their negative stereotype that they don’t belong in STEM,” she wrote in her blog for BESA. “The surprising evidence is that boys who interact with female STEM educators don’t think they are any less able or respected but they have a more equitable view of girls and women in STEM so their experience is also positive. “This is not only important for diversity but
also a key piece of the inclusion puzzle,” wrote Knight. “A study presented in the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology showed that early childhood is a key window in which educational interventions aimed at fostering female engagement with STEM may have greater impact. “So diverse role models benefi t everyone, and the
younger this engagement happens the better.” Research by EngineeringUK also shows that 73% of 11–14-year-olds don’t know what engineers do and neither do 69% of parents. 42% of teachers don’t feel confi dent giving engineering career advice. “Is it any wonder that we don’t have enough people choosing to pursue STEM and go into STEM careers, like building services engineering?” wrote Knight. “The STEM skills shortage is estimated to cost
employers in the UK £1.5bn a year. This cost to the economy is huge, but what will the cost to humanity be in the future if we don’t plug this gap? Role models inform, infl uence, and inspire the decisions people make about their life and career.” She claimed that people working in STEM were
“the hidden heroes of humanity” who get very little credit for “keeping society functioning”. “As we evolve through the 4th Industrial
Revolution and beyond, the need for innovation in STEM will continue to increase at pace. Innovation
in STEM is key to solving some of our biggest global challenges – and a key ingredient for innovation is diversity,” she wrote. BESA also promoted the importance of women in engineering through its special Women in Building Services Award, which was set up to recognise outstanding women working in the sector – with particular emphasis on their contribution to sustainability and innovation.
Positive
The Association called for entries from across the industry so it could celebrate “a truly inspiring person who champions the sector and drives positive change” at its National Awards event on October 20th in London. That evening will also see the presentation
of BESA’s fi rst ever award for Diversity and Inclusion. This has been established to reward those companies who have shown the greatest commitment to recruiting, advancing, and supporting all employees regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, or disability. In her blog, Curran encouraged other women to
follow in her footsteps. “It is a colourful and varied industry with lots of diverse opportunities; where
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July 2022
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