Women in Industry - ECS Associates

Leaders in PMO services through collaborative project strategies, contract advisory consulting and training.

Engineering consultants ECS Associates has great pleasure in honouring Engineering Manager Dianne Reddy during Woman’s Month. Reddy, a mother of three, credits her success in the workplace to managing her family and her career in parallel with the sound philosophy: “My compass is my Creator, my best teacher...history, my armour...knowledge, my medicine...laughter, my heart...family and friends.”

After earning a BSc Eng (Che) degree, Reddy worked as a production engineer in the automotive industry. She progressed into project management, in the petrochemicals sector, in coal- fired and nuclear energy, and in the metal processing industry. As a result, Reddy has developed extensive, hands-on expertise managing intricate and large-scale capital projects across the project lifecycle in the areas of engineering, procurement, construction and site installation.

The year 2020 changed the world as we knew it. It obliterated normal and challenged our traditional views on how things should be. In homes and in businesses, we had to adapt to survive and unconventional suddenly became our reality. Now, four years on, our post-pandemic generation is not merely redefining normal, but also re-inventing optimal. The project management office, it stands to reason, in such a dynamic world then must also change to stay relevant.

The shift in mindset to reprioritise constant cooperation, trust between parties, out-of-the-box thinking and innovative problem solving offers a wealth of benefits to project execution in the current time. All this still wrapped in the familiarity of unwavering safety control, strict quality control and sound governance — delivered within the predetermined time and financial parameters — is proving to be essential to the successful completion of projects today.

Heightened levels of ongoing liaison between stakeholders and internal teams, continually making sure that the project goals are in alignment with client expectations is required. Careful coordination of design and engineering activities is vital, with adherence to standards and specifications. Schedules and budgets are developed around this with risk factored in and managed

through the duration of the project. Facilitation and management of communication is key to managing risk and resolving technical issues and challenges efficiently. When all is said and done, it is all about delivering solutions that guarantee quality outcomes and client satisfaction.

Reddy predominantly exhibits an active collaborative leader- ship style while also occasionally incorporating persuasive and transactional management techniques. “Experience has taught me that people are more likely to work effectively and maintain excellence in deliverables consistently when they are personally and professionally engaged and fulfilled,” she says.

“Fall seven times, stand up eight. Every challenge and circumstance that presents itself is an opportunity to build resilience and fortitude. Keep standing up, keep moving forward, because the world is your oyster!" is her message to fellow women in the engineering industry.

Tel: +2711 803 3008

Website: www.ecs.co.za