Under the Hard Hat with Rachel Browne

February 25, 2021

Under the Hard Hat with Rachel Browne

At Clark, we are proud to be made up of individuals from a variety of backgrounds and talents who thrive and succeed together. Our "Under the Hard Hat" series is designed to showcase the diverse people who make up the Clark team.

We recently sat down with Rachel Browne, a manager in Clark's purchasing department.

Describe your background. Where did you grow up? 

I grew up in San Francisco, CA. Both my brother and I attended a bilingual immersion school up until high school, and had classes in Mandarin for half of each day (to the minor chagrin of my mom's side of the family, who speak Cantonese). Both at school and at home, we learned about and participated in Chinese traditions, which have kept me connected to my culture. I had the perhaps unusual experience of being a minority at school not because I was Asian, but because I was mixed - going to college in Pennsylvania was certainly a culture shock after that!

After high school, I attended Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh for my undergraduate and master's degrees, which is where I first heard about Clark. We were lucky enough to have a career fair specifically for the Civil Engineering department, and I ended up having a really intriguing conversation with the Clark recruiter. I knew I wanted to come back to San Francisco to work, and was excited to find out Clark had an office out here. When I was back home for winter break, I went into the SF office for interviews and loved the people I met, some of whom I still work with today.

What job are you currently working in? What are your responsibilities?

I am a purchasing manager in our Western Region purchasing group. Our team works together to lead projects up and down the west coast through the purchasing process, and while I have been involved with projects stretching from Seattle to San Diego, I focus primarily on projects in Northern California. I am currently supporting some projects in Washington, which has been a great opportunity to dive deeper into the differences between contracts and laws in California and Washington.

What do you like most about working in the construction industry?

One of my absolute favorite things about working in construction is the tangible product of our work. There really isn't anything quite like seeing a structure that you helped to build be completed. We all know the sweat and tears that it takes to construct a high rise or a bridge or an airport terminal, but for me there will always be something so thrilling and satisfying about being part of the process of taking lines on paper and turning them into an actual building.

My other favorite thing is that no two projects are ever the same. Even if the final building or piece of infrastructure is similar to a past project, every other aspect of the project is something new. Different locations, subcontractors, people, etc. all present unique challenges - and strengths - on any given project, and I love that!

Who have been your strongest influences in life?

One of the most influential people in my life was one of my civil engineering professors in college. He had a bit of a gruff exterior that hid the biggest heart and a delightful sense of humor and wonder. That sense of humor was something he applied to all that he did, and all that he taught me. He believed learning should be fun, and not only followed that practice himself, but helped professors at other institutions to do the same. The problems he created for his classes were difficult and complex, but creative and funny, and still had direct applications to a variety of real world situations. I often had to force myself to stop working on the projects for his classes and do my other work because I was so engrossed in working through the problems that I didn't want to stop; he managed to create scenarios where we were reminded how fun and exciting it is to learn new things.

Somewhere out there exists a photo of a man in medieval period costume getting water balloons launched at him in just barely above freezing weather, and an entire class of engineering students eagerly awaiting their turn to test their projects and not quite realizing yet that they'd just spent hundreds of hours solving a very hard problem and had fun doing it. What he taught me, that love of learning and laughter, that will be with me forever.

What are you most proud of accomplishing, either personally or professionally?

The past few years have brought a lot of change in all aspects of our lives, but one change that has been for the better is the push that Clark has made on the Inclusion and Diversity front. I helped review the document that would become the first step towards the formation of the LGBTQ+ Listening Group, of which I was a part. Through the hard work of our members, that group formed the basis of what is now LEAP, the LGBTQ+ Employee Advocacy Program. There are currently three Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) at Clark, and I cannot wait to see more being formed! We still have quite a ways to go, but I am excited to be a part of that continued growth, and I am incredibly proud to have played a part in the strides we have made thus far.

What does "Thrive as You, Succeed Together” mean to you?

By being your own self and supporting others as their own selves, together our multitude of experiences, passions, and strengths can complement each other to create a team capable of anything.