KCGD Celebrates Female Leaders in the Industry
In honor of Women in Construction Week (March 5-11), meet some of the groundbreaking women in Kansas City’s construction industry and learn what drives their success, their experiences in the region’s design community and advice they have for other women entering the field.
Emily Tilgner
Vice President of Building Performance Solutions at McCownGordon Construction
How has the support within the KC region’s design & build community played a role in your career path?
This has been huge. I love this city because we are perfectly sized to be able to easily engage with a variety of people and build relationships within our industry and region. I would not have the career I have today if it weren’t for all of the connections I’ve made locally through projects, volunteer organizations, board participation and interaction with A/E/C peers.
What advice would you give to other women considering a career in the industry?
Advocate for yourself. I wish I had learned this earlier on in my career. I made the assumption that if I did great work, it would be noticed and rewarded. We have to be our own advocates and promote ourselves, share our success and verbalize our goals and what we would like our career paths to be. If we aren’t saying these things out loud, we can’t expect anyone to read our minds and push us along.
What unique resources or expertise does our region offer for women in construction?
The KC region is known for being a design, engineering and construction hub nationally from being home to so many of the largest and most successful firms, as well as many schools with programs in the industry. This has created a large community to connect women who are involved in all phases of the construction environment. I believe it is very unique and creates a natural support system that not many other regions can compare to.
What are you most proud of when you reflect on your career in construction?
I’m extremely proud of the growth of women in construction since I first began in it myself. I’ve spent much of my time in the last eight years connecting with all sorts of people, especially students, to share what it means to be a woman in construction, and this has begun to change how many other women you see on projects daily.
What has been your favorite project that you’ve worked on?
My favorite project thus far has been the Tonganoxie Public Library, in Tonganoxie, KS. While only having a $3 million budget, the impact of this project on the town was beyond measure. While being a library, it was also being built to be a gathering hub for the community since the options were extremely limited at the time. That project truly transformed that town and they were so grateful for our help in doing so. It’s a good reminder that it’s not always the size of the project that dictates how much impact it will have.
What has been your favorite project that you’ve worked on?
The B.E. Smith Family Center at AdventHealth – Shawnee Mission. Not only is their mission of providing therapy and education for children with special needs praiseworthy but it was also my first start to finish, ground-up build as a Project Manager.
What advice would you give to other women considering a career in the industry
Construction is not for the weary, but the satisfaction of solving a problem for a client, changing the landscape of your community or building a structure that will last for decades is unmatched. There is no reason a woman can’t be successful in this industry as long as you believe in yourself 100% and let your actions and results speak for you.
What unique resources or expertise does our region offer for women in construction?
Our region offers great resources for women in construction. Here in the Kansas City area every year there is a large recognition of WIC week, including an On the Rise summit for women’s leadership that brings ladies together from companies all over the area. There was also a WIC group presence in the TCM department at Missouri State University, so it has been neat to see the progression of the organization from college into my career.
What has been your favorite project that you’ve worked on?
My favorite project I have been a part of would probably be the one I am working on currently, Twin Creeks in Kansas City, MO. The project is single-family for rent homes, including 199 individual structures with a total of 220 units and a clubhouse. This is the first of this type of project we have done so it has been interesting learning the different logistics, planning, and procurement that this project has compared to a typical apartment complex.