In Pub. 3, Issue 4 of the On the Road magazine, we interviewed Alicia Winterstein and got to know more about her, her career and her life. We recently sat down again with Alicia to follow up with her on her new appointment to the Women of Asphalt leadership team and where her career has taken her.
You’ve just joined the leadership team for Women of Asphalt. What will you be doing?
I am looking forward to growing the membership through outreach. I also want to focus on the mentorship program because it really helps. Additionally, I am working on finding ways to continue with The Road She Built Lunch and Learns. These events have an ongoing theme that involves learning every aspect of the paving process — we have women in every part of the asphalt industry and it will be interesting to learn about all the ways each of us contributes.
How did you become involved with the Women of Asphalt leadership team?
My friend, Darlene Batatian, invited me to go to one of the Women of Asphalt meetings. Since then, she has encouraged me to join the Women of Asphalt leadership team. I remember her saying, “You would be really good at this. I really think you should join the leadership team.” She really pushed me to get out of my comfort zone and to get more involved.
How does membership in Women of Asphalt benefit those who join these organizations?
It is a place to find connection and support. Women of Asphalt is all-inclusive. You don’t have to be a woman to be a member. Everyone is welcome to join the group. It’s all about showing support for women in the industry because is still male-dominated. We want more women to come and feel successful in the field of asphalt or construction. It is a warm and welcoming group.
I would have never had the confidence to apply for my current position as lab manager. Being involved in Women of Asphalt, the connections I’ve made and the support I’ve found have given me the confidence to reach out and go for what I wanted in my career.
There is also a national Women of Asphalt group. They are really good at holding virtual meetings that have inspiring stories about women in the industry, how they came up in their careers and the struggles they have gone through. Events like this help bring more equality to the asphalt industry.
Please tell us what you are doing for work now and what a typical day looks like.
As lab manager at AECOM, I run the materials lab and have been doing that for a little over a year and a half now. I’ve been doing lab work for five and a half years in total.
A typical day starts with me checking samples that were brought in from the previous day. A lot of times, the company that sent the sample in will call me for results an hour after I arrive in the morning. There are times when the job is on hold until that test is done. They need to know if the sample is good so they can continue working on the job. If it’s a bad sample or if the results don’t come out the way that we want them to, they may have to rip out the portion of the road. So it’s really important to see what samples come in, get everything started and running in a timely manner, prioritize what needs to be done first and ensure the tests are run precisely so results are accurate.
I really enjoy working in the lab. Generally, my schedule is Monday-Friday, 40 hours a week. But I’m a single mom and have two kids. If they get out of school early or one of them is sick, my employer works with me. I am thankful my employer is flexible with me and I am flexible with them — that usual Monday-Friday, 9 to 5, can easily change to night shift, or weekends, or really long days if needed. When extra samples need to be run or quality results are urgently needed, my employer knows that I can be relied on to get it done.
What is the most rewarding part of your career so far?
We do a lot of roadways with UDOT and I find it really rewarding to drive down the road that we’ve helped work on — especially when the road is smooth and everything looks good on it. I know that my testing helped make that happen.
What are the two most important work-related lessons you’ve learned that you would share with someone you mentor?
- Communication is key. Sharing information with others is super important. We can learn a lot from each other just by discussing what we do and the different roles that go into getting a project completed.
- There is room to grow. I have found in this industry, through mentoring, that most people have goals and things that they’re working towards and there are many different ways you can get there. If you want to work in the field, there’s room for growth in the field. If you want to work in the lab, there’s room for growth in the lab. You don’t have to stay on one side of the work either; there’s nothing stopping you from going into the billing and invoicing. There is so much room to grow; you literally can do anything you want.
Please tell us how you spend your time when you are not working.
When I am not working, I enjoy spending time with my family. I have two children. We just went to Yellowstone a couple of weeks ago, and they loved it. I like to cook and make different foods. I’ve been told I’m pretty good at it. My go-to recipe is chicken fajitas — my daughter asks for them constantly. They’re her favorite!
