b'MRCAs Women In Roofing CouncilLaurie MooreMRCA Director and Chairperson of the Women in Roofing CouncilWhen I was asked to join the MRCA Board ofI continued to be involved with the group in Directors, I was uncertain that my knowledgemy position as Liaison to the MRCA Board or skills would be useful since I wasnt groomeduntil the transition to a stand-alone group from birth to run a roofing business. Throughwas completed.This occurred not in 5 the encouragement and confirmation of theyears, but in less than 1 year from the time it was first discussed.other board members, I learned is that it isThe MRCA has a fiscal responsibility to its membership to use its essential for successful groups to have input from people withresources for support of the membership and for the development of various backgrounds. This gives the group a wider perspective thatthe organization.It was not known at the time WinR was created that can be used to consider what support is needed for the roofingwe were merely investing in a group to increase our benevolence contractor and how best to offer that service.When I learned atto the industry. my first board meeting in December of 2014 that there was to be a Women in Roofing group, I was excited first of all to knowWas there still a need for a Women in Roofing group at the MRCA? that there were other roofing contractors who were women, andThe answer from the 2 contractor members left was an emphatic second, I felt uniquely qualified in this area. yes.The question was then with a national group available, how The MRCA hosted a cocktail reception at the 2014 conference toare we to proceed?Was there truly a demand for our Women gather those interested. Following that event, I wrote the followingin Roofing group?What was the justification?Why cant we just thoughts about the purpose of the group that later became thebe supported like the rest of the MRCA membership?From my basis for the groups mission statement: discussions with others around the country through my associations with other roofing industry groups, here is what I know: To be focused on common challenges so the members are Women have not traditionally participated in roofing associations. able to understand the concerns and share experience orWe typically dont realize that our skills and participation are resources for addressing those concerns.welcomed. Therefore it is helpful to have a stepping-stoneTo provide educational resources based on the needsgroup for getting involved.communicated by the members and to provide a variety of Women typically share the experience of not being immediately information to support people at various stages of their careersaccepted in the industry and often have to prove they are in the roofing industry. justly positioned. As a result there are great stories to share. To help connect those who need help with those who can help Women are perceived to know very little about the industry as well as facilitating general discussion of roofing businesswhich makes it easy to impress others but hard to seem like an topics among the members. educated person in the industry who wants to become moreTo help increase the professional perception of women ineducated.People assume we arent interested or involved in roofing. purchasing industry materials, equipment or services, and asTo help employers see untraditional potential in the womena result, often dont offer to talk with us about their products in their companies or services. To encourage methods of rejuvenation and replenishment to Women willingly admit when they dont have a good knowledge balance the stress of the industry with traditional and creativebase in certain areas and will request in-depth education.family role responsibilitiesWomen tend to look for ways to tailor the job to the personTo make the paths of those who follow easier by sharing ideasrather than the person to the job.In general we look for ways of how to facilitate company transitions. to maximize a persons strengths and minimize weaknesses partially because we dont have preconceived notions about At IRE in New Orleans 2015, I spoke on behalf of the group againwho does what job traditionally so we look to max value for during the cocktail reception that was held for the MRCA WinReach person regardless of position or title.group which had by that time been established as a nationalI dont think the perception of women in the industry is intentional. council of the MRCA. I shared my story of: It is simply based on what has traditionally been done which has 1. How I was not the usual suspect for taking over our roofingcreated an unconscious bias toward women in the industry.It business. will change with time, but those of us who have been around the 2. How the skills of women in the industry are often overlooked.industry for a while realize its existence.3. How we as an industry can do a better job supporting theNot only is it valuable for this group to gather, but it will be valuable women in our industry in order to benefit from their skills.for this group to connect with other industry groups in a focused 4. How the MRCA Women in Roofing group could be used to doway to maximize the value of the connection.Women in Roofing all the things I imagined when I wrote the mission statementwill seek to highlight manufacturers or other industry services for ideas. event education. Women in Roofing will also seek to connect with specifically related industry segments to offer support or At our Spring board meeting in 2015 the idea to go nationalgain knowledge.as an independent group was pitched and a 5-year plan wasThe challenges for women working in the industry of roofing system discussed.I didnt understand the justification for this change asinstallation are unique.We need a group that seeks solutions it would mean a lot of work to facilitate this change without a staffto the challenges in our daily work lives. We need a group that and we hadnt yet fully established the group.I didnt understandseeks solutions to being overlooked for opportunity.We want to why we would want to be a group separate from the industry sincebe recognized as a group that is knowledgeable and seeks to be the industry was where all of our members would come from. (continued on pg 30)14 www.mrca.orgMidwest Roofer'