Tjeka’s Christina Klaas is CIDB’s Women Mentor of the Year

Christina Klaas, a Tjeka Training Matters professional training facilitator, is the proud winner of the Women Mentor of the Year Award, a category in the Construction Industry Development Boards’ prestigious Empowerment and Recognition of Women in Construction (ERWIC) Awards.

Now in its fifth year, the ERWIC awards celebrate the exceptional contributions of women in the South African construction industry.

As a seasoned built environment professional and qualified land surveyor, Klaas has worked across the construction value chain. This extensive knowledge and experience make her an exceptionally good mentor to the many young aspiring built environment professionals who are completing construction leadership training at Tjeka Training Matters’ Leadership Academy.

She is currently training and mentoring learners who are completing Tjeka Training Matters’ National Qualifications (NQF) 4 Construction Management and NQF 5 Construction Manager learnerships. This is in addition to facilitating land surveying training.

However, as a mentor, Klaas shares so much more than just the best technical and job-specific skills with learners. Tjeka Training Matters has always maintained that real mentorship in the construction industry is multifaceted. Therefore, she also imparts important “soft” skills that young built-environment professionals need to succeed on worksites. These include effective communication, leadership and problem solving, while also instilling a mindset of continuous learning, resilience and ethical practice.

Klaas says that she is proud of her award and hopes that her achievement also inspires more women to join the South African construction industry. “With only 10% of the South Africa construction workforce consisting of women, the industry is yet to fully harness the unique traits that we bring to worksites. These include strong communication skills; collaboration; emotional intelligence; attention to detail; and creativity. We should be creating a welcoming environment that attracts and retains a diverse range of talented individuals, including women. By bringing new perspectives and ideas, diversity drives innovation and growth,” Klaas concludes.