Katie Marshall

"The personality types match very well with the job role that I do. Being a design manager, I am in the in the middle of a large team of people all trying to deliver a project for a client. I have to be able to listen to the client's needs and communicate and manage that within the rest of the design and construction teams. I am delivering a service to the client to ensure they end up with a finished product that meets their requirements. It's important in my role to understand the budget of the project and the deadlines involved in the design and the construction phases to ensure the project is affordable and delivered on time. My job is to manage the design of the project to ensure that the time and cost parameters are maintained within the design. It's important to ensure there is enough detail in the design to enable the client to understand what they are going to receive at the end and to ensure that the construction team can build the project. Over the many months I am involved in projects there are lots of changes due to client needs changing and time and budget constraints so it's important for me to be adaptable and be able to manage those changes within the rest of the team. As I spend so much time with our clients it is important that I uphold our company's ethics in order to build good relationships. I must be fair and honest with all members of the team including the client to ensure the project runs smoothly and everyone understands the product they are delivering and what is achievable. As with all job roles in construction it is important that we all ensure our projects are delivered with the safety of everyone being the most important consideration."

"I am allocated a project during the tender stage which is when my company is in competition with other companies to try and win the project. During this period, I am speaking with architects and engineers to produce some basic drawings of the project. At this stage there is a lot of documents that the client issues to us with all their requirements about what they would like at the end of the project that I have to review and ensure is included in our design. When the client decides that they would like my company to deliver their project it is now my job to fully develop the design with the architects and the engineers. I have to ensure that they are working together to produce a product that looks right and functions correctly. I engage with consultants at this stage to carry out surveys of existing buildings, the ground and the drainage systems to enable the design to develop correctly. I spend a lot of time at this stage with the client to ensure as the design develops, the scheme is still meeting their needs. During this period, I have to ensure that the design also meets the requirements of the Local Planning Authority who have to give their permission for any building work to be undertaken in this country and Building Control who have to sign off any building work in this country. At this stage I work closely with the construction team to ensure they can build the finished product and that the project is still within the budget that we have been allocated. Once the design has been finished the project can now be constructed. My role throughout this phase is to ensure the client is still happy as the project is being built and to manage any changes they would like to make. I spend a lot of time visiting site at this stage ensuring the construction work is being carried out as per the design and overcoming any problems that may arise during this stage that we didn’t know about during the design phase. I most enjoy seeing the design develop and working out how we would build the scheme. I like being faced with problems and trying to think of ways to overcome them both in the design and construction phases."

"I studied physics and maths at A-level, and I enjoyed the mechanics aspects of both those subjects. My physics teacher suggested that I investigate a career in engineering. I went on an engineering awareness course for young women at Brunel University where I spent a week learning about different types of engineering available. I decided after this course that Civil and Structural Engineering would be something that I could potentially find interesting and I spent some work experience at the University of Greenwich in their concrete laboratory. I enrolled at University College London on their Accredited Civil and Structural engineering course and immediately found the course subjects interesting. Within the fist year I had learnt so much about designing both structures, drainage systems and soil. We had learnt about the materials that we use in design and also the history of engineers throughout the World and how they shape the World we live in today. During the summer of my 2nd and 3rd year I applied for placements with a construction company, Kier Construction to gain some site experience. This helped me during my final year to put the work I was doing into context. I graduated university in 2007 and Kier Construction offered me a role as a Graduate Civil Engineer. My first project was a £32 million police station. Following this project I worked on many projects for National Grid building their operations buildings and large concrete foundations and pipework for their gas plants. I progressed through Kier and in 2010 I was promoted to Site Manager and managed my own project which was the stabilisation of Grade II listed Deer Barn within a Women’s Open Prison and Young Offenders Institute. From this I went on the run several other projects for Kier as a Site Manager.In 2013 I was left work on maternity leave with my first child and returned to work in 2014 as an Assistant Design Manager. This role enabled me to work part time and manage being a parent as well as an engineer. Since 2014 I have had another child and now both children are at school and I am a Design Manager. I spend less time on site and more time planning the projects but I still bring my engineering background to use in all the projects I work on."

"I have two young children so I spend a lot of my spare time running around being a mum. We love visiting different places and trying out new hobbies and sports. Both of my children are very energetic and adventurous. I try and open their minds to engineering as much as I can. I try and get them to think about the World and how its changed and why it’s changed and my hope for the future is to be able to take them to developing countries and work with engineers to improve their quality of life through engineering. I spend a lot of time visiting schools and trying to raise awareness of engineering especially with girls. We carry out fun activities and I tell them about my day. But generally, when I get time to myself I like to get away from all the mud and concrete and spend time doing relaxing things with my friends and family. I like shopping, spas, afternoon tea. I’m also training for a charity run later in the year in aid of the British Heart Foundation who have recently supported me throughout some heart problems I have faced this year. "

"After I have dropped my two children at school, I head either to the head office or the one of my sites. My sites are all within Kent and my head office is within the same town that I live so I usually make it to work by 8.30am. I firstly check my emails to make sure there is nothing urgent that needs my attention and then I decide which project I need to work on that day. Generally, I have 4 projects that I am working on at varying stages of design and construction. At the office I spend the day on the phone and replying to emails. I review drawings and programmes and get back to people with my comments. If I attend site, I spend less time reviewing drawings and emails and more time on site watching works that are being undertaken or inspecting works that have been completed. Whether on site or in the office I also attend meetings to discuss the projects and how they are progressing or to run through designs with clients or design teams. I finish work earlier than my colleagues as part of the flexible working agreement I have in place with my employer and pick my children up from school. After school I take my children to clubs and help them with homework. When they are in bed, I have time to myself in the evening to relax before the day starts again. I enjoy the balance of my work and I’m lucky to have an employer that allows me to be flexible with my working hours to ensure that I can fulfil a meaningful career and still be present as a parent while my children are still young. "

"AS-level ArtA-Level MathsA-Level PhysicsA-Level ChemistryB(Eng) Hons Civil Engineering Working towards I(Eng) MICE with the Institute Civil Engineers "