Honoring Women In Construction (2018)

W.E. O’Neil is proud of every team member within our Company and this week we honor our Women in Construction. Thank you for all that you do to elevate us in every market, in every department, in every industry and our success as a whole. Here are just a few of our very talented women that are part of our O’Neil Family. #WomenInConstruction
ARIZONA | Project Engineer, Leslie Amaya
“Leslie started as an intern and it was very clear from the beginning of her internship that Leslie exhibited many traits of an individual that W.E. O’Neil values in an employee. Hard work, team work, integrity and willingness to learn new tasks were just some of the qualities exhibited by Leslie early on in her internship. Leslie was willing to help out however asked and served in roles in operations, preconstruction and office administration. We are lucky to have Leslie on our team and it was a very easy decision to make her a full time offer. Currently she is playing a key role as PE on a significant project for the AZ office, Morrison Ranch Senior Living. Leslie continues to shine in her full time role and we look forward to her many successes in the future with W.E. O’Neil.” – Randy Klauss, Estimating Manager
CHICAGO | Project Executive, Stephanie Cotey
“Stephanie has progressed quickly with the company, demonstrating outstanding leadership and high standards for her projects while bringing a fresh approach to project execution. She manages problems head on, and always advocates for what’s best for the project and our clients.” – John Russell, President, W.E. O’Neil Chicago
CALIFORNIA | Project Manager, Jessica Zeledon
Jessica has always known she’d be working in construction. “The majority of my siblings are in construction one way or another. They’re either in real estate, a superintendent with a G.C., or even their own G.C. We all have a background in engineering, it’s mechanical, it’s civil, or if it’s construction, it’s family driven.” She attests her success to patience, to be patient and able to work well with all the characters it takes to produce quality projects. She is well respected by team members, clients, consultants, architects and subcontractor’s alike. She is relentless and her dedication delivers. Her current work at Belmont Village, in Calabasas, California achieved Temporary Certificate of Occupancy 6 days ahead of schedule. It takes leadership, and working well with the team, to achieve these goals. She has a heart for animals, volunteering in her free time to help place people and families with pet adoptions. “There are more opportunities for women in construction these days than when I started my career. I think people are opening their eyes realizing that women can definitely be successful in this industry.”
ARIZONA | Project Manager, Dorothy Wagener
Dorothy has been with the Tucson office of W.E. O’Neil since 1999, serving as project manager on many of our most challenging projects. Her experience has included work with both public and private clients in a broad range of market segments, including medical/hospital, office, schools, senior living, and hospitality. Her attention to detail and focus on giving her team in the field everything they need to successfully complete projects has resulted in a long list of very happy clients. As a representative of our company, Dorothy lives up to our core values of customer satisfaction, quality, integrity and teamwork.
“W.E. O’Neil’s team exhibited a “can do” attitude during the entire design and construction phases of the project. It was clear that they were always working to meet our standards and fulfill our goals as owners. I would highly recommend the services of W.E. O’Neil Construction Company, Inc. to any organization.” -Bruce A. Wright, Associate Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, University of Arizona
DENVER | Project Manager, Leslie Woodbury
When she’s not snowboarding or hiking, she’s crafting, baking and cooking, or working on great projects like The Hadley Library Renovation, and Zuni Plaza Apartments. “W.E. O’Neil did really well in their communication process and their project team leadership is what makes them professional. Leslie Woodbury did a great job of keeping us informed on potential cost impacts while being timely and detailed. Leslie is a quality person. She made good recommendations and was always very prepared in the meetings and on the project site.” -Alan Linderman, HDR, CU Boulder Duan Lab
CALIFORNIA | Project Estimator, Katie Quinones
When she’s not entertaining family, balancing life together with her husband, screaming for her favorite football player-her son, or being “BOP” mom to her competition cheerleader daughter, Katie is building great relationships within the Southern California American Subcontractors Association and bidding out some of the best projects to come out of the California company today. “Katie has been with W.E. O’Neil for 14 years. During that time Katie has always strives to the best that she can be. She is not content resting on her laurels she always is looking for new challenges. She started out as a Project Administrator then moved into estimating as an Estimating Coordinator and is currently one of our most relied upon Estimators. I fully expect Katie to keep striving for new heights.” -Vince DiNunzio, Vice President, Chief Estimator
DENVER | Preconstruction Manager, Laura Hoff
When she’s not sporting clays, running, and enjoying her kids, Laura paves the way for great collaborative projects like S’Park. “I enjoy the collaborative process the preconstruction process allows the team to be involved in. This process creates buy-in from all parties that agree on a process that will guide the team to the end goal & into construction. I love the opportunity to shape a project as a team by working together to create opportunities that would not be possible by working alone.”
NASHVILLE | Assistant Project Manager, Alisa Raynor
Alisa shared, “I graduated in 2013 from Loyola Marymount University with a Civil Engineering degree. Right out of college I took a job with a large general contractor. After a few years I wanted to make a change to a smaller company where I could have a stronger voice and more control over my professional direction. That’s when I made the switch to W.E. O’Neil, where I worked for their California branch and now work for their Tennessee branch. Being a woman in construction does not come without challenges, but it’s also extremely rewarding. I believe the future of construction will have a much higher ratio of smart and driven females and it will make the industry stronger as a whole. “
“When Alisa relocated from Los Angeles to Nashville we were very fortunate to keep her within our family of companies. Her leadership within her project team, her initiative to better our recruiting, and her willingness to share her previous experiences have been extremely valuable to our group. Alisa is a keen construction professional; she has a bright future ahead and I am excited to be part of it.” Eric McKinney, Vice President of Operations
CHICAGO | Project Estimator, Shalimar Aiken
“Shalimar began her career at W.E. O’Neil as our Estimating Assistant. Through her drive, determination and ability to learn quickly, she progressed to a Project Engineer and is now a Project Estimator who has proven to be a crucial member of our team with a thorough understanding of the industry.” – Dennis Garlick, Vice President, Estimating, W.E. O’Neil Chicago
CALIFORNIA | Project Administrator, Kristi Armstrong
When she’s not entertaining her huge loving extended family with her husband, son and daughter, she’s her Project Managers’ favorite Project Administrator. “Although most of her hours are from the office, her enthusiasm, passion and support is felt in the field. She takes pride and ownership of what we build together which has made her a stronger account manager through the years.” -Andrew Austin, Project Manager
“Kristi has help blaze the trail on getting all of W.E. O’Neil California projects (and seemingly one third of all suppliers and subcontractors in greater Los Angeles) integrated into the Textura CPM pay application process. Her extensive experience as account manager, working for a subcontractor, has given her the wisdom, empathy, and determination to make sure our accounting best practices, on all our projects, are streamlined to create a smooth process for our subcontractor partners.” -Daniel Spickard, Senior Project Manager
DENVER | Assistant Project Manager, Beth Mikon
This hiker, golfer, traveler, restaurant seeker, and dog lover has played pivotal roles in the success of our projects with BMW of Downtown Denver, Mercedes Benz of Denver, and S’Park. “As the Assistant Project Manager on the S’Park Timber project I assist with managing various levels of the project from BIM coordination to financial management. There are so many people involved in the construction process, from the client, to consultants, to subcontractors. Managing and documenting everything with so many stakeholders on the team can be a challenge. By leaning heavily on W.E. O’Neil’s best practices, we are able to combine those best practices with our experience and knowledge to drive solutions.” “Woof!” Piper approved.
#WomenInConstruction #WEONeil #HardHatLife #BuildingGreatRelationships