Marti Smith

Did you have any mentors helping you early in your career?

From the beginning at B&G, I had a project manager on my very first job site who helped me see how my work was important. Despite whether I was handling payables or receivables, putting together billings, or interacting in owner-type audit situations, he continuously reminded me that I was part of a team and emphasized the value of my contributions to the construction process. Often, when we're inside an office and not on the job site as much as others, we forget that we still impact construction and the surrounding communities. He showed me how I fit into the company and the project, revealing the bigger picture of how my work truly mattered. I carry this with me to every other responsibility I've had since.

Are there any milestones that stand out to you?

After ten years, I transitioned from accounting into a systems implementation role with our business process improvement group. I took the technical and people skills I picked up working on projects and said, "Hey, how can we improve our processes through technology and change management?". That was a huge milestone because it took me from a high-level individual contributor to a department head responsible for the growth of other people. 

That's when I learned that I just love pouring into people. I always said I never wanted to manage people. It was a scary and overwhelming thing for me, but someone saw something different in me, and they said, "We think you need to do this." And, boy, am I glad that I did. Because it is magic watching other people achieve and grow, and have that sense of belonging and contribution.

Did you feel like you belonged after transitioning to IT?

I never would have imagined that I would find my home in IT. How am I gonna get along with them? What are we going to have in common? I came to find out that we have so much in common. But there's something to be said about "people are just people," and they want to know how they fit in and why they matter here because they do.

How can construction better empower women with purpose?

I worried for so many years that I wasn't like the others at the table. And then, at this certain point, you realize that's why you matter. I often think about my journey, coming from the support side into a more executive position. I'm the only one who's done that. So what I have to contribute differs from what they contribute. We talk a lot about inclusion and belonging. Part of that is not being afraid to say "I'm different. That's my strength". This is why we should lean into those differences, share them, and be proud of them.

What advice do you have for someone just starting out?

In the beginning, everything you do matters. Your interactions set the stage for how you’re seen later on. Sometimes, people have a hard time seeing the purpose in what we consider to be the grunt work early on in our careers. And again, it's about finding people who can show you what that purpose is, and let you know that you're setting the stage for opportunity in every interaction. You know, one of my biggest mentors in the first year of my career ended up being a direct report to the President when I recently got my promotion to CIO. So my very first year, my interactions with him and how I showed up on site impacted his advocacy for me 23 years later.

How has having good mentors impacted your career?

A lot of people have said to me recently, "Who would have thought somebody in accounting could be the CIO?". I would have thought! I mean, I don't understand why our President started as a project manager, and that was completely possible, and everybody expected that.

The other day, a guy down the hall that I've known for years said to me, "Marti, I knew from the beginning." Find those people. They will believe in you and show you the truth in the situation, and then pay it forward and do that for others when it's your turn to mentor. You might look around, and it might not look like you expect. But you can make a difference, and if you hang in there, you will.

How can we better support and retain women with families?

I mean, I do experience things differently from someone in the field since my roles have been more office-related. But having kids and working is just really hard in general, even if you're not in construction. There is no separation between bringing myself to work and bringing myself home. When you decide to start a family, you have to be able to give yourself some grace. And other people do, too. It's not reasonable to be the best of yourself in both places. And I don't buy into the idea that you have to sacrifice part of your career to be able to have a family. Find the people around you who are willing to treat you like a human being, partner with you, and be your advocate. We put too much pressure on ourselves to take it all on. Find your village.

What excites you about the future of construction?

The biggest thing that excites me is AI. Transformation requires the ability to learn, unlearn, and then relearn again. Women can adapt. So I think you'll see a lot of women who are new to the industry be able to quickly change and embrace, whereas people who have been ingrained with certain processes and procedures will hold onto those for a long time. Women have a unique opportunity to push the envelope and see what is possible because whether it's through innovation, technology, AI, or data, construction is at a tipping point to transform in a way we've not seen before. Gosh, don't even get me started with mission critical and infrastructure. It's all happening now. And yeah, maybe we can be the change agents that show what happens when you adapt. We can make a difference.