Three Mentors at Joeris | Women in Construction 2021

In recognition of Women in Construction Week, we profile the fearless female leaders working at Joeris. From project managers, estimators, accountants, to field staff, these women are stand-outs in their field.

Our employee spotlights profile women at all levels of leadership at Joeris modeling our values of safety, integrity, leadership and excellence. Angela Cardwell, Janet Dusek and Ellen Ward mentor all new Joeris team members and, especially, offer young women in the industry with support and guidance.

Estimated reading time: 9 minutes

Angela Cardwell, Executive Vice President

Work History

Angela has spent the past twenty years working in the construction industry. She has worked exclusively for Joeris General Contractors during those two decades in many roles. She has held the position as Marketing and IT Director, Vice President of Marketing, Chief Marketing Officer, and currently holds the title of Executive Vice President. Her experience spans Information Technology, Business Development and Marketing, Construction Technology and Data Analytics.

Why Angela’s a Mentor at Joeris

In her twenty years at Joeris General Contractors, Angela Cardwell has held many roles, including Marketing & IT Director, Vice President of Marketing, Chief Marketing Officer and has recently been promoted to Executive Vice President. Her passion, leadership and business acumen have resulted in her becoming the firm’s first woman to hold this role in the company’s 50+ years in business. Angela’s drive to increase diversity has resulted in increased visibility and leadership opportunities for women in the construction industry.

Her 30 years of marketing, communications, and technology experience enables Joeris to continue to be an industry-leading construction management firm in various markets within Texas. As the company’s Executive Vice President and member of the executive team, she is responsible for strategic planning as well as the implementation of corporate leadership development of the firm’s nearly 500 construction professionals.

Angela’s fifteen years of executive leadership have been instrumental in re-defining the company’s mission, vision, and values in 2019. As the “culture champion,” she has implemented a values-based leadership model focusing on the firm’s mission of transforming people and places and the tenents of safety, leadership, excellence, and integrity.

As a result of Angela’s leadership as the firm’s Executive Vice President, Joeris was prepared to handle the COVID-19 pandemic through proactive implementation of safety and hygiene protocols, limiting the spread on Joeris jobsites. Additionally, despite the pandemic negatively impacting the industry, Joeris is experiencing a record revenue year in 2020 and a significant amount of backlog in 2021.

Throughout her tenure at Joeris she has been an esteemed leader within the company and within the San Antonio business community. In 2019, Angela received the Leonardo Award from the Society for Marketing Service Professionals San Antonio Chapter, in recognition of her leadership, innovation, and excellence in her field.

Angela Cardwell is an Outstanding Woman in Construction for all of these reasons listed above, but most importantly because, when these talents and skills are combined, her leadership has established Joeris General Contractors as an industry leader recognized by the San Antonio Business Journal as the highest-grossing (by revenue) general contractor and one the city’s ‘Best Places to Work’ more than ten times!

Janet Dusek, Senior Project Manager

Work History

Janet has spent the last twenty years working in the construction industry. Janet began as a Project Manager Assistant and quickly climbed the ranks to Assistant Project Manager, Project Manager, and now Senior Project Manager. Janet is an expert at complicated, fast-track projects, including multi-campus renovation projects on occupied K-12 campuses. She has overseen successful projects in Canyon Lake, Schertz, and San Antonio. Janet is well-versed in the pre-construction process associated with the CM at Risk delivery method. She is a true team player with a natural ability to understand the technical aspects of any project. Her strong leadership skills, accompanied by her ‘can do’ attitude, lead to successful projects and long-lasting client relationships.

Janet has spent the last two years working on a $38 million project at San Antonio ISD Brackenridge High School. As that project nears its end, she will begin work on the new $21 million New Braunfels Police Station and Veterans Memorial.

Why Janet’s a Mentor at Joeris

Janet is actively engaged in her community where she serves as an advisor to the Comal Education Foundation Board, a volunteer with the Comal ISD Incubator Program, and as a volunteer with the Comal ISD Student Ambassador Program. Janet has spoken at the SCUCISD Career Readiness Event, to numerous classes at Clemens High School, and to the CTE department at Jefferson High School about careers in construction, engineering, and architecture. Janet continuously gives of her time and knowledge to raise up those around her.

In 2020 Janet was awarded the Wilma Divin Leadership Award from Joeris General Contractors. This award was created to recognize employees who exemplify a high degree of servant leadership through selflessness, attentiveness, respect for others, and effort towards building relationships with and serving their peers. Janet was recognized by her co-workers, team members and superiors as embodying each of these qualities on and off the job site. She consistently strives to foster community and clear the path for others. A clear example of this is through her design and implementation of Joeris Connect, a forum designed for new hires to meet and build relationships with tenured Joeris employees.

Ellen Ward, HRPM, Human Resources Manager and HUB Outreach Liason

Ellen was featured as one of Construction Dive’s 2021 Construction Champion Mentors.

Work History

Ellen has ten years of construction industry experience working in multiple roles in Human Resources at Joeris General Contractors. Her passion is to increase awareness of STEM careers to young women in San Antonio. She holds multiple positions on local education and philanthropic committees, with the goal of connecting young adults to industry professions. She is a member of the following organizations:

  • SCUC ISD Education Foundation board member – VP of Events
  • North Chamber Leadership Lab Alumni board member – Learning & Development Chair
  • San Antonio African American Community Fund board member – co-chair of “Building Capacity” program to help enrich grant winners and small businesses & 2017 Gala Chair
  • San Antonio Independent School District’s – Pathways in Technology Early College High School advisory committee member
  • San Antonio Works Industry Advisory Council, board member
  • H-E-B’s Supplier Diversity Construction Council, committee member
  • 2021 Go Red for Women steering committee member, circle of red member
  • SCUC ISD Construction Technology Engineering (CTE) Advisory member

Why Ellen’s a Mentor at Joeris

Ellen Ward has spent the past ten years in the industry increasing the awareness of STEM-related fields, like commercial construction, to young high schoolers, particularly young women. She is an active director and chair of multiple education committees throughout the San Antonio metroplex, a graduate of the North Chamber’s Leadership Lab, co-chair of the Building Capacity program for the San Antonio African American Community Fund, and committee member on HEB’s Supplier Diversity Construction Council.

Her most recent endeavor to raise awareness of the growing construction industry has been to lead a networking program for the citywide STEM Goes Red Mentor Program for young women with the American Heart Association (AHA). As a fourth-year member on AHA, Ellen seeks out young women interested in STEM careers and becomes a mentor to them, helping them to make connections with other industry professionals.

As Joeris’ Human Resources Manager, Ellen has also created a mentor-protégé program within Joeris. She pairs new-hires to the company with an experienced Joeris employee, with the goal of providing new-hires with expanded access to industry knowledge and relationships. 

Women In Construction 2021 Features