Lara Poloni on unconscious bias

About Lara Poloni

Lara Poloni, President at Aecom, has spoken publicly about gender diversity and leadership in the infrastructure and construction sectors. In a 2019 keynote address at the Women in Construction Summit, she said that leaders have "the platform and power to drive change within their organizations" and that "leadership accountability" is critical for progress on gender diversity. She described a personal experience in which a former boss, despite good intentions, "effectively discounted me from a major role because of assumptions about my family situation," which she cited as an example of unconscious bias affecting career opportunities. Poloni noted that in the Middle East, Aecom's graduate intake was "pretty much 50/50 male and female," and she described "dramatic opportunity for the progression of women in Saudi Arabia." In earlier remarks from 2016, when she was Chief Executive of Aecom Australia and New Zealand, Poloni said that upon stepping into the role she saw "a lot of power and influence" and wanted to use it to encourage more women into the professioncars. She said the company had focused on pay equity, describing it as "the right thing to do" that also brought business benefits and helped attract talented graduates. Poloni also discussed the importance of resilience, stating that it involves "staying the course through very challenging times," and said that leaders should "surround yourself with great people who can share the leadership burden with you."

Profile compiled from Lara Poloni's verified public interviews and appearances. See all quotes & transcripts →