Shawmut Design and Construction Company: Building on Diversity

Shawmut Design and Construction Company is a national construction management firm founded byJim Ansara in 1982 with his unique vision for a construction company that would specialize in undertaking complex challenging projects and completing them on time. This was exactly what Jim Ansara and his few employees – at that time – set out to do with their exceptional customer service that no sooner than that, the Compnay made itself known to be one of New England’s most successful start-up companies.

With this unique business model of delivering projects on fast-track scedules, providing exceptional personalized service to its clients, the company has enjoyed tremendous growth through the years. Today, it has offices in in Boston, New York, Providence, Las Vegas, New Haven, Los Angeles, and West Springfield and through its diverse specialized project teams, continues to build excellent projects for clients within these areas: academic, commercial, corporate interiors, cultural and historic preservation, healthcare and life sciences, hotels, gaming, restaurants, retail, spas and healthclubs, and sports venues.

To ensure success in their goal of delivering their best, Shawmut's project teams - made up of expert project executives, project managers, superintendents, and estimators - take time “to listen to their clients' goals and concerns and implement comprehensive tools and services.” Clients are made to feel secure that they are getting the best possible deal when dealing with Shawmut”s expert teams which is no wonder as Shawmut is a 100% employee-owned company. Thus, each employee has a vested interest in the Company's success, and each rightfully feels being an owner of the Company.

Shawmut is also a company that builds on diversity, and is fully committed to building and sustaining a workforce of diverse skills, expertise, and backgrounds as it believes that “a wide range of perspectives produces a more creative environment and facilitates better decision-making.” This means the company values and leverage differences among its people. This is essential as its clients and business partners are increasingly diverse; hence, to better serve and address their needs, there is an an active, company-wide diversity initiative, with the goal that “all members of Shawmut recognize, understand, appreciate, and use the diversity of our company.” The following are key aspects of its diversity training:

Cultural Awareness Training: Employees build awareness and are provided with tools and a common language with which to talk about diversity and multiculturalism.

Managing Diversity: People managers are provided with tools, skills, and a common language for managing a diverse group of employees.

Lunch and Learns: These monthly lunchtime sessions cover a variety of topics related to diversity including: Modern and Internalized Oppression, Gender Differences and Communication, GLBT Issues, and Age and Generational Differences.

Indeed, at Shawmut Design and Construction Company, there is a special atmosphere inspiring enthusiasm and passion anong its people, each striving to make Shawmut a very good place to work.

View Shawmut jobs at DiversityWorking and become part of a distinguished diversity company.