INTERNAL MENTORSHIP
JEDI
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion A Triple Bottom Line firm, PAE’s success is measured not only by profit, but by its commitment to people and the planet.
35% OF PAE’S WORKFORCE ARE WOMEN
52%
The JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion)
PAE cares about training and creating paths
MESA Day is an annual state competition for
Committee strives to strengthen PAE as a
for the next generation of thought leaders.
the MESA Schools Program in Oregon. PAE
company where diversity is a core asset, where all
New employees are assigned a mentor that
participates in MESA Career Days to teach the
experiences are valued, and individuality is not only
they regularly meet with, that will promote skill
basics of electrical, plumbing, and mechanical
encouraged but also celebrated.
development, provide new perspectives, and be a
engineering as well as lighting design, technology,
safe space for sharing concerns.
and sustainability.
PRO BONO WORK We are a JUST certified company. By becoming
PAE has done pro bono work for a number of
a JUST certified company, we are evaluating
firms and nonprofits worldwide. In 2016, we
themselves through a social justice and equity
became one of the founding members of the
lense, and reporting on a range of organization and
“Green Warrior Society,” a select group of design
employee-related indicators: Diversity & Inclusion,
firms curated by th founder of the Living Building
Equity, Employee Health, Employee Benefits,
Challenge. This group focuses their pro bono
Stewardship, and Purchasing & Supply Chain.
work on high-performance design for nonprofit
WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP
COMMUNITY SERVICE
PAE created the Women in Leadership (WIL)
Outside of formal AEC community service
Committee to create a program to provide
organizations, PAE provides 20 paid service hours
leadership paths and development training for
for every employee to use according to their own
the women of PAE and to formalize a community
values and has an internal team that regularly
of women so that they can support and guide
organizes community service opportunities for
each other.
our staff.
BIPOC
BLACK, INDIGENOUS,
AND PEOPLE OF COLOR
Construction from different firms in the Portland area. The collective is inspired to contribute in the effort to increase, mentor and support diversity and equity in the AEC profession.
PAE participates in the Port of Portland MentorProtege Program, which is a nationally recognized small business development program that was developed to help small businesses overcome the barriers they face when trying to do business with government agencies.
The PAE Diversity Partnership Program provides
PAID FAMILY LEAVE
an intentional, structured approach for PAE and
In a bold move to retain women in STEM careers
ACE Mentor program allows PAE mentors to work
diverse or COBID partner firms to pursue and deliver
while supporting men to be equal caregivers, we
directly with high school students interested in
successful projects together. The program includes
were the first MEP firm in our industry to offer
professions in the AEC industry. PAE also has
communication guidelines, role expectations, clear
Gender-Neutral Comprehensive Paid Family Leave.
one senior level engineer serving on the Board of
points of contact and communication procedures,
Directors.
and opportunities to share resources based on a firm’s needs.
CHARITABLE GIVING PAE is a certified B-Corporation — a new kind of business that considers the impact of their decisions
OF PAE’S WORKFORCE ARE
in the fields of Architecture, Engineering and
COBID + DIVERSE TEAMS GENDER-NEUTRAL COMPREHENSIVE
LEVEL ENGINEERS &
20%
More, an open collective of diverse professionals
organizations.
OF PAE’S ENTRY
DESIGNERS ARE WOMEN
Principal Ruwan Jayaweera co-founded Room for
on their workers, customers, suppliers, community, and the environment. They create a community of leaders, driving a global movement of people using business as a force for good.
PAE is dedicated to giving back and being actively involved in charitable giving to worthy causes within our communities where we are located and elsewhere. Our Charitable Giving Program will continue to build on the commitment PAE has to employees and to the community. PAE matches all employee gifts up to $100, with a firm wide cap at $15,000.
PAE participates in the Green Building Scholars Program, a program offered through Portland State University, which encourages STEM students to study of the physical phenomena affecting buildings with a particular emphasis on energy-use and environmental quality
PAE’s Diversity Partnership Program The PAE Diversity Partnership Program is intended to provide an intentional, structured approach for PAE, and minority and womenowned partner firms to pursue and deliver successful projects together.
About PAE’s Diversity Partnership Program PROGRAM GOALS
Help diversify the architectural, engineering and construction industry
Develop and execute protocols to ensure effective communication and successful partnerships
Create and leverage strong relationships to win and execute great projects
Provide resources and benefits that meet the needs of Partner Firms to overcome obstacles to success
HOW IT WORKS
TEAMING APPROACH
Interested diverse and COBID partners apply to the program. The PAE Diversity Partnership Program Action Committee reviews each application to ensure we are selecting partners that share our values, can be capable design team partners, and meet the Program’s goal to increase diversity in the AEC industry.
The DPP has created a large network of COBID certified and diverse partners that PAE can bring to project teams. This allows us to bring diverse partners on board that have the capacity to take on proposed work. It also means we can be flexible to the needs, preferences and goals of our Prime partners.
Once accepted, the PAE Diversity Partnership Program Action Committee works with each firm to learn about their strengths and experience, goals and needs, and discuss how we can support each other in a mutually beneficial relationship. Each of our partner firms is unique and so our support for each firm is flexible. Some firm’s would like PAE’s mentorship with business skills, others simply need to expanded capacity and have exposure to different projects, while other firms would benefit from PAE’s marketing and project teaming support. In addition to regular project work and meetings, we meet regularly with our partners to foster deeper relationships and have open and honest dialogue and feedback. PAE’s partners will also undergo an annual review to discuss lessons learned, celebrate successes, evaluate goal progress and additional needs, and confirm program eligibility.
For large projects, we typically recommend a collaborative partnership approach instead of a sole discipline hand off. The benefits of this approach include: — Increased Diversity. By working with a variety of diverse partners, we can better meet project diversity goals. — Resume Building. By using PAE’s experience and resume, our teaming partners have the opportunity to gain experience on larger projects or projects outside of their typical sectors. — Simplicity. With all MEP, lighting, technology and modeling sub-consultants under PAE, we can help simplify discipline coordination and communication for our Prime partners. — Community Impact. By teaming with a wider variety of diverse partners we can help give them the capacity to engage in multiple projects throughout the community, bringing their perspective, skills and lived experiences to more of the built environment.
Brad Wilson HE/HIM
Ruwan Jayaweera HE/HIM
PE, LEED AP
PE, LEED AP
CDT
PRINCIPAL IN CHARGE
PROJECT MANAGER
ASSISTANT PROJECT MANAGER
One of PAE’s Community Service Leads, Sydney
Founder sponsor of PAE’s Women in Leadership
Co-founder of “Room for More,” a diversity and
Group and advocate for gender-neutral paid family
inclusion AEC group, and founder of PAE JEDI
is driven to create a lasting community impact,
leave in AEC, Brad has brought expertise to REACH
Committee, Ruwan has provided design expertise
drawing on her extensive experience coordinating
projects like the Orchards at Orenco Station.
for a number of affordable housing projects.
complex, multi-phase projects.
M A X E
E L P Prosper Majyambere HE/HIM
Jessica Kaplan SHE/HER
TECHNOLOGY
ELECTRICAL
Gustavo Vela-Moreno HE/HIM
Karina Bonin SHE/HER
Ras Wickramaratne HE/HIM
LEED AP BD+C
PE, WELL AP
CPD
HVAC
BUILDING ANALYSIS AND MODELING (BAM)
PLUMBING
Founder of ReNew, Gustavo is giving back
A WELL Accredited Professional, Karina
Passionate about student diversity and
A 2008 Rwandan Presidential Scholar,
2017 Women of Vision Award Winner,
to a community that is now 60% Hispanic,
strives to promote health and well-
equal education opportunities, Ras
Prosper has a passion for helping those who
Jessica gives back through engagement
PE, CDT
by guiding and mentoring students
being through design and community,
volunteers with MESA Oregon, which
are unable to help themselves, as is evident
with Girl Build and Portland’s Habitat for
interested in attending college.
volunteering as AIKO Japanese American
provides high quality STEM education to
through his projects with Oregon Human
Humanity chapter.
Community outreach coordinator.
underrepresented students.
Society & senior living communities.
Eric Walczyk HE/HIM
Ryan Sennett HE/HIM
Jeff Becksfort HE/HIM PE, LEED AP MECHANICAL MENTOR
To the right is one example of a diverse team we assembled to meet the cultural and social goals of a recent project.
Sydney Mills SHE/HER
PROJECT MENTORS
PROJECT TEAM
PAE’s approach to developing teams is to assign people who are uniquely qualified for the project with the availability to deliver it. We have found that having a diverse team adds value to a project by each team member’s experience and perspective coming forward in their design. We strive to bring diversity to teams through both our internal staff diversity and by partnering with COBID minority- and womenowned firms, along with emerging small businesses. We want to approach this process intentionally and avoid tokenism by making sure all team members are engaged and benefiting from their involvement, and that the project benefits from their involvement. For past projects, we have included diverse and qualified discipline leads that are mentored by our senior engineers and designers.
PROJECT LEADERSHIP
Developing Culturally Responsive Teams
PLUMBING MENTOR
Mike Streb HE/HIM
RCDD
PE, LEED AP
TECHNOLOGY MENTOR
ELECTRICAL MENTOR
Jeff is passionate about mentoring the next
Dedicated to the growth of the science
A volunteer on his local school district’s
Passionate about creating healthy, safe, and
generation of engineers - through leadership
behind plumbing engineering, Eric has served
Community Advisory, a member of BICSI’s
welcoming environments for vulnerable
on projects with REACH and other non-profits,
as the Vice President of the American Society
Ethic’s Committee, and a member of the
populations, Mike has provided design
and as a Board Member for the ACE Mentor
of Plumbing Engineers, and has provided
SafeBuild Alliance, Ryan is determined to
expertise for a number of affordable
Program.
plumbing expertise on a number of affordable
help create safer and healthier spaces to
housing projects.
housing projects.
learn and work.