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This article is part of a series of conversations with women leaders in the construction industry. Click here for past discussions.
Corissa Smith knows convention centers.
As executive vice president and market leader for AECOM Hunt, she oversees the company’s projects in the convention center industry. Appointed to the position Earlier this year, Phoenix-based Smith supports the the company’s national market strategy.
Throughout his nearly 30-year career in construction, he has seen changes in both how and where facilities are built, as well as in their design and function. Convention centers are now more vertical, more urban and more multipurpose, he said.
His previous work has included large-scale convention center expansions in Phoenix; Sacramento, San Jose and San Francisco in California; and San Antonio, Texas. He has also worked at major sports facilities, including State Farm Stadium in Phoenix, home of the NFL’s Cardinals, and T-Mobile Park in Seattle, home of Major League Baseball’s Mariners. The variety of the work is part of what drew her to construction, she said.
“Each project presents a different experience, a different team, a different learning opportunity. And that’s the amazing thing about construction: you’re constantly evolving, you can start over every few years on a new project, and it’s always changing,” he said. “It’s so dynamic and so interesting that you can never get bored.”
Here, Smith talks to Construction Dive about his career path, his favorite projects, and how convention centers have transformed over the years.
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
CONSTRUCTION DIVER: What made you choose construction for your career?
Corissa Smith
Permission granted by AECOM Hunt
CORISSA SMITH: I started with an architecture degree and realized before I started working, I wanted to know more about how buildings are built and have a real understanding of construction. I joined a construction company with the intention of learning how to build buildings so that I could be a better architect in the future. And today, all these years later, I’ve never gone back to architecture because I’m still learning.
My first project was what is now T-Mobile Park in Seattle, and as my hometown baseball stadium, I couldn’t imagine a more amazing project to be a part of. It was an amazing experience, and these projects just kept coming!
What are some of your favorite projects to work on and why?
Part of what makes this work so rewarding and interesting is the uniqueness of each project, so it’s hard to choose. But as I think about some of the biggest projects of my career, there are two, one is what was originally called Cardinals Stadium in Phoenix, now called State Farm Stadium, and the other is the Phoenix Convention Center.
Cardinals Stadium was a design and build project, and the first one I managed. As part of the design, construction strategy and schedule, we embarked on a plan to make a single deck to put the structure in place, 5,400 tons all at once.
The project was a huge undertaking and I moved from San Francisco to Phoenix to direct. In the end, it turned out to be very challenging and rewarding, and it marked an important moment for me both professionally and personally. It put me on the map, so to speak.
I won an ENR Newsmaker Award for my work, and I don’t think I even knew what it all meant at the time. But now looking back, I realize how pivotal that moment was.
The second, the Phoenix Convention Center, was the first project I took on in terms of delivery. Like the stadium, it was also very challenging but also very rewarding.
With this one I proved to myself that I could do it, that I could be in charge of bringing an entire project to success. And it was a big one: $350 million at the time, which by today’s standards would probably be $800 million or $900 million.
How have the convention center projects changed over the years?
We’re seeing a lot more input from stakeholders, from all parts of the cities and destinations they’re in. Convention centers are also increasingly geared not only toward destination-based travel, but toward more frequent local use of the building. . Rather than just going to a specific show or event, it’s more of a 365-day offering to the community.
What we are seeing is that rather than existing only to attract conventions and shows, these centers incorporate the participation, offerings and benefits of the local community throughout the year.
We are also seeing changes and trends in how centers are built, largely because of where they are located, which are typically downtown urban environments. Space constraints are very real in these environments, and so we’re seeing convention centers move from horizontal to vertical.
This of course reduces the footprint of the building, but it also allows people to move through buildings and the area around them much more efficiently. It creates a completely different experience for the convention center delegate, without having to walk miles to get from one end of the building to the other, while opening up access to shops, restaurants and the local experience of surroundings
This shift to vertical allows for greater and more diverse use of the area and supports the entire surrounding community. Instead of the convention center being a big city wall, it allows for a much more dynamic interface between the center and the rest of the center.
What are the benefits of working in construction?
Certainly, for me, coming into this industry, I didn’t fully understand or appreciate the sheer number of roles and different opportunities you can have in your career. When people think of construction careers, they may think of the project management route, which is what I took.
But there are so many other facets to our industry – the digital technology side of what we do to support construction, the field management perspective or the safety function.
There are many different ways to participate in the project delivery process. And you don’t have to do one for your entire career. You can diversify, which I think really makes for a more well-rounded construction professional.
What advice would you give to young women considering construction as a career?
The many ways you can fit into this industry as a career is one of the biggest and most unknown opportunities. But I think another thing for women in particular is that, like never before, the industry really appreciates having multiple perspectives and voices in the room.
While there are still not enough women represented, the industry has never embraced the idea of diversity and inclusion more readily than it is now. The opportunities are wide open for women entering the industry and it’s exciting to see them and be a part of them.
