Read.Watch.Listen. Engagement
- SE3 Committee
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
January 2026 Issue
A monthly forum to share diversity, equity, and inclusion resources.
Welcome to the next installment of Read.Watch.Listen. With the new year comes a new focus- our overarching topic for 2026 will be the theme of engagement! Each month, our issue will dive into a topic related to engagement, with the goal of starting conversations and providing resources to help individuals at all levels pursue renewed passion, involvement, and excitement for the structural engineering industry.
Engagement is necessarily a complex topic, encompassing issues spanning from mental health in the workplace to employee retention programs and management training. These issues vary in relevance and priority to every individual, so understanding them and how they interact is critical to fostering lasting and genuine engagement in the industry. Forbes reports that employees who are engaged in their company’s culture are 87% less likely to look for another job, and McKinsey notes that employees at firms with higher levels of inclusivity were 90% more likely to go out of their way to help a colleague. Clearly, engagement makes a big difference! Read on (and Watch, and Listen) to learn more about the importance of engagement in the engineering industry and beyond.
Image by Vectorjuice via Freepiks
Building Belonging in Structural Engineering - STRUCTURE Magazine
This article by Stephanie Slocum reflects on one of the challenges our industry faces: lack of employee engagement and how it causes employees to consider leaving the profession. To address this challenge, she recommends we apply the same “systems thinking” we use in engineering to support those in our profession. She challenges us to understand an individual's barriers in current and historical contexts to create better pathways for learning, mentorship, and professional growth.
Published 2025; Estimated Read Time - 5 minutes
How to Maximize Employee Engagement (For Civil Engineering Firms) - Engineering Management Institute
In this video, civil engineering firm CEO Jeff Peacock discusses his experiences with the difference that employee engagement can make in a firm’s success, and how his career path and lived experiences influence his management style and leadership approach. By learning about and supporting the needs and aspirations of individual employees, managers can work with them to develop innovative approaches that lead to individual and organizational success. By making his firm into an institution that fosters careers, rather than jobs, engaging with the community, and supporting his employees as they need, Jeff has built a thriving and industry-leading business model that provides valuable insight into what makes a firm truly successful.
Originally aired December 2021; 00:47:52
Finding Passion in Engineering for Career Success – The Civil Engineering Podcast
In this episode of The Civil Engineering Podcast, special guest Dr. Bellandra Foster, P.E., explores how engineers can create more meaningful and successful careers by connecting their work to a sense of purpose. She discusses the importance of work-life balance, the role of mentorship and coaching, and the realities of leadership within the profession. Tune in to hear valuable insights and take away ideas that can help all listeners grow a career that is both rewarding and impactful.
Originally published February 2024; 00:32:53
This article was originally published in the NCSEA's Structural Connection newsletter.
Read.Watch.Listen is a monthly forum hosted by the NCSEA SE3 Committee to share and promote conversations on diversity, equity and inclusion within the structural engineering profession. Each month, we will curate a series of articles, audio-visual and digital media to facilitate self-education in matters that affect our professional practice as structural engineers. Whether you choose to read, watch, or listen (or all three!), we hope you will join us in this important conversation. Missed the previous issue? Check out the NCSEA SE3 Committee News and Publication page.
Share your thoughts and/or recommended resources for the next issue at ncsea@ncsea.com.