POWER June 2015 - 30

WORKFORCE
POWER's 2015 Women in Power
Generation Survey
Courtesy: Burns & McDonnell
How do women in the power generation business-in power plants and in the vendor
community-view their jobs in this male-dominated industry? In what is likely
the first survey open to women across the industry, they told us.
Gail Reitenbach, PhD
T
he November 2008 issue of POWER included
an industry-first in-depth look at
women in the power industry, " Workforce
Management Lessons from Women in Power
Generation. " When one of the women who
participated in that article suggested it might be
time for an update, I decided to take a different
approach this time around. In order to incorporate
the voices and experiences of more people
at more levels than is possible with selective, indepth
interviews, I launched a survey.
There have been previous surveys of
women in specific power sectors (primarily
renewables) as well as broader surveys
of women in engineering, but there does
not appear to have been any prior survey of
women employed across the power sector-
covering all technologies and including both
generating companies and companies that
interact with generators. (See sidebar for a
note about the woman featured in the opening
photo.)
This article presents findings from POWER's
April 2015 survey. For even better results and
30
insights, a collaboration among multiple power
industry groups should field a study that targets
a representative sample of women in the industry.
POWER would be happy to report on the
results of a more comprehensive study.
For a look at the broader context of women's
participation in the power industry, see
" Women Are Essential to a Thriving Power
Generation Sector " in this issue.
Survey Design and Participation
POWER fielded an online survey of 21
multiple-choice questions plus one openended
question between April 2 and 26.
The survey was promoted via the POWER-sponsored
LinkedIn group Women in
Power Generation (WIPG); at the WIPG
panel session at the ELECTRIC POWER
Conference & Exhibition on April 22;
and via email to the leaders of Women
in Nuclear, Women in Solar Energy, and
Women of Wind Energy. The LinkedIn
group had 748 members when the survey
closed; some members may not receive
www.powermag.com
regular notifications of new posts, so they
may have missed the announcement of the
survey's availability.
High on Power
Chelsea N. Smith, shown sitting on
a beam at a construction site in the
photo that opens this article, is an assistant
project manager at Burns & McDonnell.
She says, " I chose to work in
the power industry because there is an
endless need for innovative engineering
and construction services. In addition,
the energy sector of industrial construction
provides job stability and a range
of career opportunities. Every day is a
challenge, which requires determination,
critical thinking, and intrapersonal
skills. I can't imagine working in any
other field! "
POWER | June 2015
http://www.powermag.com
POWER June 2015

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