“Diversity of thought; it makes business sense”
Kier Transportation’s Mandy Duncan talks diversity and inclusion
Mandy Duncan, managing director for Rail and Aviation at Kier Transportation, shares her lived experiences of working in the built environment, and underlines the importance of driving forwards an inclusive culture in the workplace – while being the change you’d like to see in male-dominated industries.
Why is D&I important to you personally?
In 1990, I was 19 ,and working for British Rail and I became the first female p-way (track) engineer in the south of the UK. This was something I was pretty proud of, and I was excited for my future as well as getting stuck in on complex projects across the rail network.
When I first started out, I did find it hard – and if I am honest, lonely at times – being the only female. At nights and weekends, I did sometimes feel vulnerable, working in remote railway locations with long, dark walks to site.
What surprised me the most, was how I was made to feel. My arrival wasn’t particularly well received and some of the behaviours towards me were atrocious, let alone the lack of welfare facilities and personal safety available. Many a night I had to dare myself to get out the car to start the shift.
That said, I do believe that every challenge offers an opportunity, and those early days, while difficult, only fuelled my determination and resilience to succeed.
I have never forgotten how it made me feel, and I don’t want anyone to feel some of the ways that I used to before a shift, and now when I am visiting sites and offices, I think we have made huge strides for all, and at Kier we are definitely mindful of our culture, where we want everyone to feel like they belong, can contribute and thrive.
Fast forward to today, and thankfully these days are behind us, and we see a very different industry.
Why is D&I critical to the future of the UK rail industry and modernising transportation?
We need to find smarter, modernised and more efficient rail solutions and also ways to help and engage with travellers.
The rail network is a vital to the UK economy, helping people travel to work, support tourism and move goods from one part of the country to the next. Operating, maintaining and developing rail infrastructure is critical in supporting business and people across the country, and to make this happen we need innovators, first-class engineers and great minds to come together, collaborate and bring about the change we all want to see. In short, diversity of thought helps drive high performance which in turn delivers better outcomes – and I think we can all agree, this is something we all want within the rail industry.
We’ve still a way to go to achieve on diversity and inclusion, but I have seen change happening in front of my eyes. Collective action has supported this, along with our clients, supply chain , and more, working together.
At Kier, where I have worked for the last few years, the culture makes all the difference, with our employee engagement surveys telling us how happy they are working for us. We also have great employee networks, benefits, policies and development programmes, that have supported education, understanding and a focus on high performance.
We truly do have great leaders and people in the business that genuinely understand the importance of D&I. I’ve had nothing but support since I’ve been here and our diverse senior leadership team, executive committee and board shows how passionate Kier is about changing the future too.
How do you think diversity contributes to better decision-making and innovation within the rail sector?
It's no secret that diversity of thought is proven to be a game changer. . While the goal is to encourage diversity of though in the industry, part of the challenge is that we often continue to hear and see behaviours that indicate a reluctance to change in favour of ‘the way we’ve always done things’.
This is similar to what I’ve been told on my own journey for many years. I just wanted to fit in back then and it only came with confidence and experience that I saw we should be harnessing diversity and the opportunities that come with inclusivity, not suppressing them.
No-one, no matter what their gender is, can be pigeonholed into how they think or feel - we all have different dreams, fears and experiences - the key is creating a balanced, empowered open culture where we all feel like we can contribute, be heard, and feel bold enough to share brave ideas.
Not forgetting there is a bigger picture here and D&I impacts everything we do. With a more diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve, we’re able to discover new approaches, innovation and solutions that will benefit more people in the long run.
Can you share a key piece of learning from your personal Diversity and Inclusion journey?
At 28, I was newly married and just promoted to a project manager. Two weeks later I was called into the Managing Director’s office and told they were ‘going to delay the promotion as I’d probably have children soon now, I was married so best to wait – in my own interest’. I ended up leaving, and not challenging this discrimination head on has been a huge regret ever since.
My key learning is never run away from those inappropriately discriminating against you – not only will it impact you, but the environment and industry we all work in for the worst.
Our industry is packed with supportive and inspiring peers, managers and leaders – in my time with Kier, I’ve never worked in an environment where the leadership teams are so inclusive. From my own rail and aviation leadership team, to the wider transportation leadership team, our executive committee and the board. It’s important to lead from the front - and change can come top down, and bottom up, so we’re always learning and encouraging conversations that are refreshing and enlightening to continue to build an inclusive culture and be the change you want to see.
What would be your one piece of advice to individuals looking to navigate their careers in fields where they are typically underrepresented?
Reach out and engage on your journey – don’t be like me sitting in the car at 19, too worried about failure and perception.
I want to walk into a room with lots of variety of conversation and not have to talk golf or football to feel included. I want to wear nice clothes and bags that make me feel empowered, not judged. I want to attend business functions that go on into the evening and not worry about how to get home safe.
Joining networks and understanding business needs is great but it’s still a minefield out there when you're underrepresented. So, get engaged at the onset, find a mentor that inspires you and don’t be scared to speak up.
I’ve had some great male and female mentors, line managers and coaches in my career including those in Kier – they have pushed me, shaped me and continue to do so now. I like to think I’ve also changed their mindset too as it’s important to remember we’re never too old to learn and it works both ways.
Our legacy at work is those that will be running Kier in the future. Corny maybe, but the biggest value this job brings me is seeing some of those people I’ve mentored, coached or supported achieve success – some through awards, promotions, goal success or just great life decisions and I couldn’t be prouder.
Our partnership packages are a flexible and accessible way to support Women in Transport and your organisation's equity, diversity and inclusion objectives. Learn more about our partnership opportunities here and contact us if you would like a meeting to discuss how we can work together.
Follow us @transportwm on Twitter, on Linkedin at Women in Transport and at @transportwmn on Instagram for events, news and updates.