Civil Engineering January/February 2021 | Vol 29 No 1

Civil Engineering January/February 2021 11 gender inclusivity. Driven by passion and commitment, inspirational leadership is one of the most important traits of any leader and has been held by many of the world’s greatest leaders. It is for this reason that I want to explore how inspirational leadership can shape and transform our industry and profession during my presidential year. By our actions as leaders, we must be an inspiration to all our members so that they can achieve their goals. And these are goals which can also be accomplished by being involved in SAICE. I am an example of this, as my involve- ment with the institution was inspired by past SAICE leaders and has influenced me to continue improving myself in order to achieve my goals. More so, we want inspirational leaders to influence gender equality and inclusivity to ensure that more female engineering professionals reach the top and fewer leave the profes- sion. This can be achieved by growing the number of female leaders in our profes- sion who, in turn, can inspire both young and experienced woman engineers to overcome the barriers that prevent them from achieving top leadership positions. I am incredibly inspired by the many woman engineers in South Africa who have achieved CEO and other leadership roles in the civil engineering profession in the recent past. I am proud of their achievements which show that we are on a very positive path. Furthermore, at this present moment in time, we are witnessing one of the most significant milestones in woman leader- ship as for the first time in US political history a woman of African American and Indian descent was elected to be the vice- president of the United States of America. This is truly inspirational, as it paves the way for transforming a male-dominated position that has been in existence for over 200 years. In her address to the American public as well as to the world, US Vice-President Kamala Harris reminded all women that as much as she was the first female vice president, she was not going to be the last. There are so many intelligent and talented women who have overcome nu- merous barriers in their careers to achieve success and they must be celebrated so that woman engineers and women of all professions become inspired to ask the question, “why can’t I?” FOURTH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION My address would not be complete if I did not make mention of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) and its influence on our profession. In this information era, we are only held back by how young we are mentally and whether we can adapt to digital transformation. Millennials’ and Zoomers’ thirst for knowledge, information and innovation far surpasses that of the older generation, and this further frustrates the younger generations as they perceive that their careers are being stagnated by outdated technology, old policies and processes, and ageing superiors. Over the past decade, digital progress has transformed entire industries, ushering in a new technological era. Innovation has improved companies’ productivity and sustainability, and rede- fined the skills and competencies needed to thrive. However, over the same period, the construction industry has continued to operate as it has done for the past 50 years. It still relies heavily on manual labour, mechanical technology, and es- tablished operating and business models. As a result, productivity stagnates, and profitability drops. Only recently have digital technologies begun to enter the industry, gradually changing how infrastructure, property and other built assets are designed, constructed, operated, and maintained. Virtual and augmented reality applica- tions are already being utilised in design offices and on construction sites to provide employees with visual images of what completed tasks should look like. Drones are also being utilised increasingly to enable off-site management of projects, as well as safer surveying of construction sites and surroundings. The world is advancing at a very rapid rate in embracing 4IR, and in South Africa we need to bridge the gap with our international counterparts in this digital space. The economic and social impact thereof can be substantial given the fact that the construction industry accounts for 6% of global GDP. CONCLUSION I must admit that being the president of SAICE comes with many rewards as well as numerous challenges, as many of my predecessors will acknowledge. Being able to represent an honourable profession and an institution with 15 000 members is indeed an honour. I am confident that with the support of the SAICE national office and CEO we will be able to achieve many of SAICE’s short-term goals and lay down the foundation for a very sustain- able future. I pledge to take on every task with the passion and commitment expected of any president, and to ensure that I lead from the front. I certainly hope that the year 2021 will afford me the opportunity to go out and meet with our members around the country and provide some assurances that, despite the effects of the pandemic and the economy, SAICE will endeavour to engage with strategic partners to deter- mine how we can contribute to reviving our industry to an acceptable level. We need to capitalise on the infra- structure and development plans from government, as well as those from the private sector, and to look at how this can create an economic upturn in the value chain that will be beneficial to all stakeholders in the industry. Gender inclusivity will be high on my agenda, and my intention is to engage more strategically with individuals and organisations who advocate the need for a more gender-inclusive working environment. At the end of my presidency, I would like to have contributed to the development of best practice guidelines for gender inclusivity in the workplace, with the defining attributes being talent acquisition, organisational culture, and transformation. It is going to be a very challenging but rewarding task, knowing that this will help to positively influence the lives of many of our female engi- neering professionals. I would like to once again thank everyone who attended my inauguration as well as those who have supported me from far and wide. Being a son of the Zulu Kingdom, I would like to acknowledge the isiZulu phrase “Umuntu Ngumuntu Ngabantu” which translates to “a person is a person through other persons”. I am here today because of the many individuals who have shown faith and trust in me over the years. These indi- viduals saw my passion and commitment and supported me in my endeavours. My time as president of SAICE will be no dif- ferent. The flag of SAICE will fly high and proudly, and I will truly aim to represent our members with distinction.