Interview

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY 2025

Jenny McLaughlin, Senior Project Manager, Heathrow Airport, talks to CICES Communications and Engagement Officer, Tehya Bruce-Allen

Jenny McLaughlin, a successful senior project manager at Heathrow Airport, has worked in the airport industry for over 20 years.

A closer look at the ways in which effective project management can #AccelerateAction for gender equality

I have worked within the airport industry for over 20 years. This began at East Midlands Airport, including working on ISO14001 accreditation and an airspace change. The last 17 years have been at Heathrow Airport in a number of departments, including environment, airside and now infrastructure. I have had the privilege of delivering a number of business changes, including a new aircraft de-icing process and new IT applications, as well as infrastructure delivery such as taxiway rehabilitation, fire training, the ground villa complex and a new virtual contingency facility.

What initiatives or programmes at Heathrow have you been involved with to promote diversity, equity and inclusion within your team or the wider community?

I am dyslexic and have ADHD. I believe the different way that my brain is wired is an asset. I have spoken at a number of industry events on systematic inclusion, bringing to light the criticality of accessibility if we are to remain a safe and sustainable industry.

This is most evident in me being a key player in the creation of RIBA Inclusive Design Overlay, published in the summer of 2023. I’m also a governor for Harrow Richmond and Uxbridge College, and lead the Heathrow Inclusive Learners Partnership to ensure equitable pathways for learners to gain experience, internships and work.

Could you tell us about a particular project or initiative where your expertise influenced safety protocols or strategies at Heathrow and how you led those efforts?

I am currently working with cross industry representatives under the banner of equitable safety initiatives to highlight how everyone experiences safety differently and that there is no mythical average. A wheel of considerations tool will shortly be shared to allow different areas of the business to start to record and measure their impact on the safety of different demographics.

What words of advice would you give to women who are interested in entering a leadership role but may feel intimidated by its challenges?

I would say that your job title doesn’t dictate whether you are a leader or not; understand that you have a voice and a role to deliver the changes we need to see in the industry. Believe your voice is valid, feel the fear but take the chance and always ask the curious questions.

I also recommend the book If That’s Leading, I’m In by Julia Middleton, which has really helped me to define a leadership style as part of the Women Emerging global leadership movement.

What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced as a woman in a leadership position and how did you overcome them?

Understand that you have a voice and a role to deliver the changes we need to see in the industry.

I tried to lead in a style that didn’t work for me, believing I needed to change myself to fit the stereotype of what a good leader looks like. I think the biggest change came when I was diagnosed with ADHD. Initially, I felt the need to mask my differences and fit into a world not designed for me.

However, after being diagnosed with ADHD, I started to better understand and embrace my unique way of processing the world. Supportive line managers, ally network and coaching played a crucial role in challenging ingrained biases and fostering a culture that allowed me to thrive as me.

How do you ensure safety measures at Heathrow are not only effective but also inclusive, especially for women, considering the diverse backgrounds and needs of passengers and staff?

We have incorporated CDM 2015 requirements with inclusive design as part of our safety workstream. It is important but also complex to ensure you have thought about all the different access requirements and that you are making design decisions based on the best possible outcome. This is because the requirements can overlap; what is needed by one may be a barrier for another and universal design (i.e., one design fits all) may not be the answer.

Instead, incorporating choice and flexibility, so that each individual can understand and choose the best option for them (building in agency needed for dignity and safety) results in a more human-centred approach that respects diversity and works within constraints. This is where we apply the wheel of considerations, an equitable safety initiative developed as a tool to help bring together these elements. It records the outcome as a metric of how different aspects of demographics experience safety and the mitigations that reflect that have been designed.

Examples include presuming everyone has a size six foot or over when designing safe work sites, or recognising that hand grip size and strength differ, allowing for ergonomically safe use of tools to be developed. Or that colour contrast is understood as a barrier that prevents critical interpretation of risks and method statements.

Jenny McLaughlin, Senior Project Manager, Heathrow Airport was talking to Tehya Bruce-Allen
jenny.mclaughlin@heathrow.com
heathrow.com