Returning to Master Builders from extended travels,
recently promoted of ce manager René Wooler landed in
the midst of the Association’s extensive strategic planning
activities. Not one to shirk a challenge (though perhaps
not faced with the same perils encountered in her leisure
activities), she’s jumped right in.What were you doing before joining
Master Builders?
I started working for Master Builders in 2014
but it wasn’t the right timing for me. I left to go
travelling for a year-and-a-half. I worked in the
United Kingdom to support my travels and got to
visit lots of family and friends while I was there as
well as crossing things off the bucket list. When
I returned, I was lucky enough to have my old
position open for me.How long have you worked for
Master Builders?
In total, approximately 19 months.What is it that you can offer?
I think for someone my age I have a lot of life
experience. Living in both fi rst and third world
countries forces you to be open minded and
makes you adaptable. This, coupled with all
of my travels, 30 countries and counting, has
taught me how to deal with different cultures
and personalities. I have 13 years’ experience
in customer service, and a business degree,
which has provided me with so many tools to
use in the industry. It also helped me conquer
my fear of public speaking. I have a desire to
constantly learn, develop and grow and so have
been put forward for leadership programmes and
other courses.These experiences have made me confi dent and
taught me to use my initiative. Managers want
people who not only get the job done but go
above and beyond. I have this.What does your role involve?
I have recently been promoted to offi ce manager.
The role is quite diverse, which I love! I assist
fi nancial controller Kanishka Kumarage in Master
Builders’ day-to-day operations. I’ve started
handling basic human resources and information
technology and communications matters. I also
oversee the management of our metro and
regional properties. On top of this,PEN PORTRAIT:
RENÉ WOOLER
I am a personal assistant to Charles Anderson,
assisting members with our contracts and
working towards having more of our contracts
stationery online.How do you feel you’ve settled in
your role?
My previous role as contracts and administration
offi cer I settled into quite quickly. This new role
will take some getting used to. It has come with
a lot more responsibility but I have always loved
a challenge and work well under pressure so it
won’t be too long before it’s all second nature.What project are you most
excited about?
We are currently upgrading the façade of
Construction House. I’ve been lucky enough to
be involved from the tender stage and work with
our superintendent and Broad. Seeing the build
progress is very satisfying knowing all the works
that go on behind the scene. This project resulted
in my getting my white card and allowed me to
join the builders and architects for inspections.What lies ahead for you?
I currently want to focus on this role and gaining
more experience in this management role and
guess I will see how far Master Builders can
take me.How are you fi nding working in a
male dominated industry?
It’s not something I’ve ever taken notice of. I’ve
been lucky to have been treated with respect
by the men in the industry and so my dealing
with members and builders has always been
pleasant. Master Builders’ offi ce is fi lled with
female staff members. I think a lot of offi ce base
jobs nowadays have that equal ratio.What interests you about the
construction industry?
I believe it is an ever-growing industry. I realise the
economy is struggling at the moment but therewill always be a need for new housing, schools
and so on, and Australia continues to expand.
As times change people demolish and rebuild
or renovate.How do you feel you’ve settled into
working life?
Very well! People told me to enjoy the university
lifestyle, as it’s much more enjoyable than
working full time, but I don’t feel that way. I
really enjoy coming to work every day. I also
enjoy having my nights and weekends free
from assignments.You grew up in Zimbabwe. What
brought you to Perth?
I moved to Perth for my education. Zimbabwe’s
economy had been in crisis for a while and it
made the decision to leave easy as there were
simply no opportunities living in a third world
country. It was very hard to leave my family
behind. My brother followed some years later but
my mum and her family are still there.When you’re not at Master Builders,
what keeps you busy?
I love trying new things. I discovered I am a bit
of an adrenaline junkie, after my fi rst skydive in
Perth. I loved it and knew I wanted to do it again!
So, that coupled with my love for travel led me
to jumping out of helicopter in Switzerland and
off a bridge in New Zealand. I’ve also swum with
sharks in South Africa and been white-water
rafting in Zimbabwe.What are you working on now?
We are in the middle on a company restructure,
so I am helping to implement new HR and
IT systems. Now that our website has been
upgraded, I can focus on expanding what
contracts are available online. Apart from that,
the property portfolio keeps me pretty busy!M
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René
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MAY–JUNE 2017
personal pars UPDATES^53