Smart50 workplaces 2023: CJC wins top award for diversity and inclusion

It is with great pride that we share the news of our recent win of the Smart50 Workplaces award for Diversity and Inclusion. Being recognised as leaders in this space is a great achievement for CJC and,  more specifically, supports the steps we are talking towards promoting gender diversity, including doubling the number of women in our team by 2030.   

Industry challenges around Diversity & Inclusion 

There is a significant under-representation of women in the engineering workforce, particularly in civil and structural engineering, and compared to other STEMM professions, there is a lack of university-qualified women in senior positions. This disparity is due to systemic barriers and limited access to education and training opportunities necessary for career advancement. Biases and stereotypes also impact decision-making and perpetuate the lack of diversity. 

Rachael Oertel, Project Engineer at CJC encourages young females to consider a career in engineering and reflects on her learnings.

“Gender should never impact a young engineer’s responsibilities. It is also important to continually improve your knowledge and to always ask questions.

Through my early career, I learned the importance of asking questions to maximise my potential. My biggest challenge now, after seven years in the industry, is identifying which areas of soft and hard skills I should focus my energy on to further myself in the profession.”

How we embrace Diversity & Inclusion at CJC

At CJC Management, we do not just accept difference — we celebrate it, we support it, and we thrive on it for the benefit of our employees, our services, and our community. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We believe the world is a better place with more women engineers and we show up to continuously support our engineers by creating opportunities and having open conversations that help women continue to shape the world. We participate in events like International Women’s Day and attend other specific Women in Engineering occasions to celebrate our female staff members and raise awareness for bias in the industry. 

Our ambition to be a more diverse organisation

CJC Management is dedicated to achieving true diversity in the engineering industry. As an equal-opportunity employer, we aim to promote gender diversity by doubling the number of women in our team by 2030 and providing more opportunities for women graduates. We recognise the achievements of female engineers by nominating them for awards and celebrating International Women’s Day and International Women in Engineering Day. We also organise workshops run by female engineers to encourage more women to pursue a career in engineering.

A supportive culture for all employees to thrive

At CJC Management, we've implemented practices to support diversity and inclusion, including professional development events, flexible work arrangements, and an annual gender pay gap review. As we grow our team, these practices have attracted new female engineers to our team and we look forward to welcoming many more in the future. 

Our workplace culture is one where all employees (gender aside) can thrive and we are making continual improvements to support our people. With the appointment of an accredited leadership and organisational culture specialist, we are now incorporating concepts such as motivation theory, emotional intelligence and brain-based leadership techniques to improve engagement, well-being and retention of employees. We offer leadership training, mentor programs and employee assistance programs to name a few. 

What is Smart50 Workplaces? 

Developed by SmartCompany in partnership with Employment Hero, Smart50 Workplaces 2023 recognises 50 Australian SMEs with exceptional hiring and retention strategies, and six category Top Performers. Read more about the inaugural Smart50 Workplaces list and who else made the cut here.