Thea Zander

As construction superintendent on a major building project, Thea Zander is like a symphony conductor—orchestrating the work of architects, engineers, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, drywallers, roofers, flooring installers, and crew members into a harmonious performance

Well, usually harmonious. When the concrete truck loses a bearing, when the lumber shipment is four beams short of a load, when the drywall crew is down with the flu, Thea is the go-to person. “I get there at six in the morning,” she says, “and people just pour in the door.” 

Often a subcontractor—a plumbing foreman, let’s say—will barge into the construction trailer and demand to see the superintendent. “Well,” she replies coolly, “you’re looking at her.” After a split second of surprise, the person will take her femaleness in stride. “And then they’re fine,” she says with a smile.

Thea Zander started her career at Walsh 19 years ago, as a laborer on a student-housing framing crew in Olympia, Washington. She worked her way up to carpenter apprentice, and then attended a four-year on-the-job training program to become a journeyman carpenter. She became team lead on the framing crews, then crew foreman, and eventually was promoted to assistant project superintendent.

Thea, 50, was raised in Whitefish, Montana, by parents who told her she could become anything she wanted to be. What she wanted to be was outdoors. She studied environmental biology and anthropology in college, “but I never finished because I couldn’t sit still long enough.”

In 1989 a carpenter friend steered her to a Walsh Construction Co. project in Olympia. They needed a laborer; was she interested? Thea was between jobs at the time. “I’d never considered construction,” she says. “I always thought it was just, well, rednecks and beer. Who would want to do that? But when I went to work for Walsh, the guys were so decent. Decent, smart, and hardworking. I thought, I really like these people.”

The superintendent on that job recognized Thea’s potential and asked if she’d like to learn carpentry. By that time construction had gotten into her blood, and she said yes. “I really love building things,” she says, “because it’s about problem-solving. When you notice that things are going off the track, you come up with a solution.”

Like other women in male-dominated fields, Thea has faced her share of prejudice. But not from her teammates at Walsh, who have become her strongest allies. “They treat me like one of them,” she says. “We have a very good working relationship—they expect me to work, I expect them to work. It’s a team effort, and you trust your teammates.”

Thea contributes time and skill to Habitat for Humanity, for which Walsh is a key sponsor. She was part of a nationwide all-woman construction crew that helped rebuild New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. She also volunteers for Women in Trades and Portland Youth Builders, two other organizations supported by Walsh.

In 1998 Thea was voted Safe Person of the Year by the rest of the Walsh crew. “That was a huge deal for me, and it humbled me,” she says, “because it meant I was accepted by my peers. 

Walsh Construction Co., founded in 1961, builds affordable housing, high-rise apartments, museums, medical facilities, high-end resorts, and other projects for clients across the public, private, and non-profit sectors in Oregon and Washington. Walsh’s solid reputation reflects a strong set of values that drive all its efforts: fairness, openness, cooperation, innovation, and excellence.

Thea Zander hopes to work for Walsh until she retires. “They’re committed to quality, they’re committed to the community, and they’re good businessmen,” she says. “They believe that if you’re going to take the time to build something, you should build it right.”

Written by Gail Wells for Walsh Construction Co.