Heron Bros. celebrate International Women’s Day and the tremendous efforts by women and girls around the world in shaping a more equal future and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The UN Women’s theme for International Women’s Day 2021 is, “Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world.” This rang true for our SHEQ Manager, Caroline Hughes who was a finalist in the Women in Business Inspiring Women Awards ‘Agent for Change’ for her ongoing efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Women in Business (WIB) is Northern Ireland’s largest and fastest growing business support network for women. They equip women with the skills they need to start, and grow, their own business or develop their careers, rising into senior manager and leadership positions. By positively impacting all its members, WIB aspires to Create a New Economy; whereby all females in significantly contribute to the economic success of our society.

As a Safety, Health, Environmental and Quality Manager at Heron Bros. Caroline used her position to lead and inspire her team, including employees and integrated supply team, to bring about effective change throughout the pandemic. From the start of the pandemic Caroline understood the importance of change and how we needed to adapt and adjust our processes to ensure the safety of each other, our families, and the communities we work in.

Caroline said “I was very humbled to be nominated for this great award. I wouldn’t have been able to implement these changes effectively without the help of my colleagues. This was a very busy period for myself and the Heron Bros. management team in successfully navigating the ongoing global health crisis.

For any females who are considering a career in construction, I would say don’t be put off by gender stereotypes. In my experience, enthusiasm and ability will always be recognised and respected, regardless of gender, and this this is definitely the case at Heron Bros. who have a higher female representation than the industry average. I am proud to be a woman in Construction!”

 

Caroline designed and delivered Heron Bros. Make things Better Campaign. She understood that no one knows their job better than themselves. Her concept was to drive positive change by bringing employees through challenging times as the decision makers. By giving individuals the power to make things better Caroline instilled trust and respect from her peers. She has a natural empathy that responds to individuals and led to a change in the direction of communication, from the top down and bottom up. It opened lines of communication between departments and regions. This improved collaborative involvement through greater communication and understanding.

The campaign generated a fantastic response with ideas that resulted in a safer, quicker and easier return to work during COVID-19.

Congratulations to the nominees and winners at the Women in Business inaugural Inspiring Women Awards. Today we celebrate women from all walks of life who had gone above and beyond to unite and inspire.

For more information visit  www.womeninbusinessni.com