Fiona Slechten, Urban Development Regional Leader (VIC), Egis
For this instalment of our Humans of Property series, we caught up with Fiona Slechten from Egis, one of our Mentorship program founders and Deputy Chair of the Diversity and Engagement Committee.
A little about Fiona
Fiona is the Urban Development Leader (Vic) with Egis a Global Consulting, Construction Engineering and operating firm with 19,500 employees worldwide.
Egis is committed to working with their clients to create a more resilient and sustainable world and recently demonstrated their commitment to sustainability by sponsoring both the Victorian and National UDIA Sustainability Award categories.
Egis is committed to working with their clients to create a more resilient and sustainable world and recently demonstrated their commitment to sustainability by sponsoring both the Victorian and National UDIA Sustainability Award categories.
Fiona has served for almost ten years on UDIA Victoria committees including:
- – Women in Property
- – Leadership, Industry, Workforce and Diversity
- – Engagement and Diversity
At Egis, Fiona leads the Gender Pillar within the Egis ANZ DEI Network and recently moderated a panel discussion across ANZ for International Women’s Day.
Her greatest career achievement to date has been.
The most rewarding moments for me is seeing junior staff grow their careers. Seeing people I’ve worked with achieve great things makes it all worthwhile.
While in my role, one of my greatest achievements would be becoming the first female non-engineer to take up a leadership role in the urban development space (at Calibre). Leading that change is very important to me to ensure we have diversity of thought and to continue to advocate strongly for the need for greater female representation at leadership levels.
A tip she would give to her younger self.
Don’t wait for an invitation. I think it is quite common as we start our careers that we think if we work hard and do well people will see what we are doing and we will be recognised and rewarded rather than actively driving our own destiny and outcomes and putting our hands up.
Another tip would be that work isn’t everything, it is just one part of life so its really important to find other things to be passionate about. For me it’s my family including my husband and my 16 year old son who is a passionate cricketer and talented guitarist and finding bush trails to explore when I’m not watching cricket or listening to the guitar.
What motivates her
People, problem solving and leaving the world in a better place. I enjoy mentoring and coaching people to be the best they can be and to continue to advocate for greater diversity. I am absolutely drawn to the problem solving that comes with urban and regional environments at all stages of development. Above all, like many people with a Planning background, I am motivated to leave the world in a better place, to create and develop more liveable and sustainable places.
A challenging situation in her career that she overcame
It hasn’t happened often, but I recall a client apologizing that there would not be any other women at a site meeting. I was taken aback!
When she thinks about the future and positive changes within our industry, she is excited by…
Innovation and technology – both excites and frightens me but we need to find better ways to live, work and play. In particular, more innovative ways to get houses on the ground quickly, to create more sustainable ways of delivering and operating infrastructure and to live more sustainably.
The benefits she has received from being a UDIA member.
The UDIA has been a key part of my professional growth, the network and connections built over many years of involvement through committees and attending events are invaluable.
The mentor programme in particular is something I’m very proud of because there are so many benefits for both the mentors and mentees. The mentees benefit from the opportunity to expand their knowledge by learning from experts in their field, building new networks and growing as individuals. At the same time, the mentors also get so much out of the experience. Being present in the room to witness the energy and the spark this programme creates is extremely rewarding.
While being involved in events and discussions through the UDIA like moderating panels, MC’ing events, presenting awards is a great way to give back to industry, elevate your profile, and above all have a lot of fun!
