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All Alone on the 68th Floor: How One Woman Changed the Face of Construction
Barbara Res found her way into Engineering in college. Although she had the highest Mathematics grades in her school and excelled at Science, she was steered into a career of teaching because she was a girl. Rebelling against the conventional wisdom, she planned first to major in computers and then later picked engineering because of the challenge. She graduated in 1972 as one of three women in a class of 800 and entered the rough and tumble world of construction.Unfortunately, construction remains a heavily male dominated industry, but in 1972, it was a "no woman's land", and Res met resistance at every turn, in the form of discrimination, sexual harassment and intimidation. She was literally barred from the work site, a move that prevented her from advancing in her job. She quit several positions because of discrimination. Finally, she took a chance on a part time position she parlayed into a career beginner with a major Construction company in NY. After holding several "men's jobs" in contracting, Res met Donald Trump, at the Grand Hyatt project he was developing for the hotel company. She impressed him and when he had a new ground up project, he installed her as Executive in charge of Construction. The project was the world famous Trump Tower and the rest is history - a history filled with travail and triumph.All on the 68th Floor tells the story of Res's journey, what she endured and accomplished. It also describes the process of building in a way that entertains and instructs. The book is chock full of anecdotes about the rich and famous who lived and shopped at the luxurious Trump Tower and presents a picture of Donald and Ivana Trump as builders, that the world has yet to see. The author also talks about other projects, like the restoration of the Plaza Hotel and the development of the West side of Manhattan. Contracts and contractors, unions and government, politics and payoffs, all of the intrigue that goes into developing property, getting approvals, getting tenants and finally building skyscrapers.But the essence of the book is frankly feminism. It is a call to women to be themselves and do what ever job they think they can do, whatever they want to do and not allow stereotypes to influence them. It is a rebuke to the notion that women need to think or act like men, stating to the contrary that there should be no norms to follow and that people should be individuals following their instincts and not allowing society to define who they are by what they do.Res points out the dismal statistics about the number of women in construction, about the discrimination that still exists and issues a call to action to women, businesses and politics to take steps to get more women into this lucrative field, for which they are well suited.This book has something for everyone and is guaranteed to amuse, inspire and challenge everyone who reads it.
- GenresNonfiction
260 pages, Paperback
First published July 10, 2013
41 people are currently reading
169 people want to read
About the author
Barbara A. Res
2 books18 followersBarbara A. Res was born Barbara Tahan in Brooklyn, NY and attended John Adams High School in Ozone Park NY. She attended City College of New York and graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering in 1971.
Since 1971 Barbara Res has had a successful career in engineering and construction. She has been in charge of numerous large construction projects.
In 2004, Barbara Res returned to school earning her Juris Doctor from Rutgers School of Law in 2007. Res is a Licensed Professional Engineer in New York State and a Member of the Bars of New York and New Jersey.
Res is currently providing Mediation and Arbitration services for Construction matters to the American Arbitration Association as well as the NY Supreme Court Commercial Division. She serves as a consultant in legal matters and construction matters to private clients.
Barbara Res was awarded the prestigious Townsend Harris Medal by CCNY in 1991 for her role as a pioneer among women engineers.
Barbara Res received the Emily Roebling leadership award by Professional Women in Construction for her achievements in the Construction Industry.
Barbara Res is the author of All Alone on the 68th Floor: How One Woman Changed the Face of Construction, a memoir of her life and experiences as a woman in the male dominated building business.
Barbara Res has appeared on TV in Smithsonian World, Skyscraper, a documentary about building in New York, Financial News Network; a feature about women in non-traditional occupations on CNN, a CNBC Roundtable discussion and local newscasts in New York and Los Angeles. Res has been featured in numerous radio interviews; Fortune magazine; Engineering News Record; Shopping Center Digest; Savvy Woman; Cosmopolitan Magazine; The New York Times, Daily News, Post, and Newsday; The Newark Star Ledger; The Bergen Record; The Los Angeles Times; The LA Daily News; LA Weekly; The Sacramento Bee and several other local newspapers and trade journals and am a recognized expert in the fields of retail, commercial and residential development and construction. She has lectured on construction, development and women in non-traditional roles at various seminars including ones held for The New School and NYU School of Continuing Education.
Since 1971 Barbara Res has had a successful career in engineering and construction. She has been in charge of numerous large construction projects.
In 2004, Barbara Res returned to school earning her Juris Doctor from Rutgers School of Law in 2007. Res is a Licensed Professional Engineer in New York State and a Member of the Bars of New York and New Jersey.
Res is currently providing Mediation and Arbitration services for Construction matters to the American Arbitration Association as well as the NY Supreme Court Commercial Division. She serves as a consultant in legal matters and construction matters to private clients.
Barbara Res was awarded the prestigious Townsend Harris Medal by CCNY in 1991 for her role as a pioneer among women engineers.
Barbara Res received the Emily Roebling leadership award by Professional Women in Construction for her achievements in the Construction Industry.
Barbara Res is the author of All Alone on the 68th Floor: How One Woman Changed the Face of Construction, a memoir of her life and experiences as a woman in the male dominated building business.
Barbara Res has appeared on TV in Smithsonian World, Skyscraper, a documentary about building in New York, Financial News Network; a feature about women in non-traditional occupations on CNN, a CNBC Roundtable discussion and local newscasts in New York and Los Angeles. Res has been featured in numerous radio interviews; Fortune magazine; Engineering News Record; Shopping Center Digest; Savvy Woman; Cosmopolitan Magazine; The New York Times, Daily News, Post, and Newsday; The Newark Star Ledger; The Bergen Record; The Los Angeles Times; The LA Daily News; LA Weekly; The Sacramento Bee and several other local newspapers and trade journals and am a recognized expert in the fields of retail, commercial and residential development and construction. She has lectured on construction, development and women in non-traditional roles at various seminars including ones held for The New School and NYU School of Continuing Education.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
July 22, 2016
This is a memoir by an electrical engineer who happens to be a woman and who spent most of her career in the field of construction and land development. A significant part of her story is a recounting of years of on-the-job sexual harassment especially in the early years of her career beginning in 1971. Readers need to remember that prior to 1989, employers were unaware that they had any legal liabilities associated with a sexual discrimination and/or hostile work environment. The author put up with the environment, and due to her incredible work performance ended up advancing to positions of power. Late in her career she returned to school and got a law degree.
The author didn't give much thought to the issues of sexual harassment until the 1991 appointment hearings for Clarence Thomas. After witnessing Anita Hill being questioned on TV the author's feelings of resentment from the years of harassment came to the surface. She saw Anita Hill's integrity being dragged through the mud because she had continued to communicate with Clarence Thomas after no longer working for him. The author realized the same could be said about herself. She had maintained communications and work associations with unpleasant people that were necessary if she was to advance in her career and/or get any work done.
I suggest reading the article at THIS LINK from ENR Magazine written by the author of this book. Perhaps this is an insight into why women continue to be so underrepresented in engineering and construction professions.
The book provides a good description of the work associated with engineering and construction. I sometimes wonder if the public realizes how pressure filled and stressful the engineering career can be. The stories told in this memoir give the reader a taste of the myriad of scheduling and design problems that need to be overcome on large construction projects. I found these stories fascinating because they parallel similar experiences I've experienced in my own engineering career. (But I don't claim to be nearly as successful as her.)
The book also provides an interesting look inside the Donald Trump organization since he was her employer for many years. I found it interesting that she said Donald Trump didn't like to fire employees which is not the impression one gets from the TV show "The Apprentice."
The author comments on the fact that her work environment turned her into something of a "potty mouth" in order to be "one of the guys." This language is very much on display in this book. I could pretend to be offended, but it really was necessary to convey the raunchy atmosphere of the construction world. It was also necessary to give the reader a feel of the depth of emotion felt during various confrontations described in the book. As a matter of fact, some of the most disgusting blue language contained in the book are quotations of things that were said to and about the author. Men in her position would probably hear similar language, but men would not receive it directed so personally at them is such an offense manner.
The author doesn't say too much about her personal family life while in the midst of her work career. But from what she did say I understand that she ended up at the end of the book with the same husband that she married in college. Both the author and husband deserve to be congratulated for making their marriage last in spite of demanding careers. The author was so efficient with the use of her time that she managed to have two children with one pregnancy (i.e. twins) to minimize the impact on her career. Her husband was also an engineer which just goes to show that they make good husbands. The book is dedicated to him.
Link to article from Baltimore Sun written by this author:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opin...
The following material is not from this book, but is sort of my editorial:
Here's a link to an article that claims that the so called STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) crisis is a myth. http://tinyurl.com/q3wcneq
The so called wage gap between the sexes will never close unless women begin to enter the higher paying professions. Consider, for example, how men and women differ in their college majors. Here is a list of the ten most remunerative majors compiled by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. Men overwhelmingly outnumber women in all but one of them:
1. Petroleum Engineering: 87% male
2. Pharmacy Pharmaceutical Sciences and Administration: 48% male
3. Mathematics and Computer Science: 67% male
4. Aerospace Engineering: 88% male
5. Chemical Engineering: 72% male
6. Electrical Engineering: 89% male
7. Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering: 97% male
8. Mechanical Engineering: 90% male
9. Metallurgical Engineering: 83% male
10. Mining and Mineral Engineering: 90% male
And here are the 10 least remunerative majors—where women prevail in nine out of ten:
1. Counseling Psychology: 74% female
2. Early Childhood Education: 97% female
3. Theology and Religious Vocations: 34% female
4. Human Services and Community Organization: 81% female
5. Social Work: 88% female
6. Drama and Theater Arts: 60% female
7. Studio Arts: 66% female
8. Communication Disorders Sciences and Services: 94% female
9. Visual and Performing Arts: 77% female
10. Health and Medical Preparatory Programs: 55% female
Much of the wage gap can be explained away by simply taking account of college majors. Early childhood educators and social workers can expect to earn around $36,000 and $39,000, respectively. By contrast, petroleum engineering and metallurgy degrees promise median earnings of $120,000 and $80,000. Women, far more than men, appear to be drawn to jobs in the caring professions; and men are more likely to turn up in people-free zones. In the pursuit of happiness, men and women appear to take different paths.
Link to complete report with source of data. It's a study titled What's It Worth: The Economic Value of College Majors, by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.
The author didn't give much thought to the issues of sexual harassment until the 1991 appointment hearings for Clarence Thomas. After witnessing Anita Hill being questioned on TV the author's feelings of resentment from the years of harassment came to the surface. She saw Anita Hill's integrity being dragged through the mud because she had continued to communicate with Clarence Thomas after no longer working for him. The author realized the same could be said about herself. She had maintained communications and work associations with unpleasant people that were necessary if she was to advance in her career and/or get any work done.
I suggest reading the article at THIS LINK from ENR Magazine written by the author of this book. Perhaps this is an insight into why women continue to be so underrepresented in engineering and construction professions.
The book provides a good description of the work associated with engineering and construction. I sometimes wonder if the public realizes how pressure filled and stressful the engineering career can be. The stories told in this memoir give the reader a taste of the myriad of scheduling and design problems that need to be overcome on large construction projects. I found these stories fascinating because they parallel similar experiences I've experienced in my own engineering career. (But I don't claim to be nearly as successful as her.)
The book also provides an interesting look inside the Donald Trump organization since he was her employer for many years. I found it interesting that she said Donald Trump didn't like to fire employees which is not the impression one gets from the TV show "The Apprentice."
The author comments on the fact that her work environment turned her into something of a "potty mouth" in order to be "one of the guys." This language is very much on display in this book. I could pretend to be offended, but it really was necessary to convey the raunchy atmosphere of the construction world. It was also necessary to give the reader a feel of the depth of emotion felt during various confrontations described in the book. As a matter of fact, some of the most disgusting blue language contained in the book are quotations of things that were said to and about the author. Men in her position would probably hear similar language, but men would not receive it directed so personally at them is such an offense manner.
The author doesn't say too much about her personal family life while in the midst of her work career. But from what she did say I understand that she ended up at the end of the book with the same husband that she married in college. Both the author and husband deserve to be congratulated for making their marriage last in spite of demanding careers. The author was so efficient with the use of her time that she managed to have two children with one pregnancy (i.e. twins) to minimize the impact on her career. Her husband was also an engineer which just goes to show that they make good husbands. The book is dedicated to him.
Link to article from Baltimore Sun written by this author:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opin...
The following material is not from this book, but is sort of my editorial:
Here's a link to an article that claims that the so called STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) crisis is a myth. http://tinyurl.com/q3wcneq
The so called wage gap between the sexes will never close unless women begin to enter the higher paying professions. Consider, for example, how men and women differ in their college majors. Here is a list of the ten most remunerative majors compiled by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. Men overwhelmingly outnumber women in all but one of them:
1. Petroleum Engineering: 87% male
2. Pharmacy Pharmaceutical Sciences and Administration: 48% male
3. Mathematics and Computer Science: 67% male
4. Aerospace Engineering: 88% male
5. Chemical Engineering: 72% male
6. Electrical Engineering: 89% male
7. Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering: 97% male
8. Mechanical Engineering: 90% male
9. Metallurgical Engineering: 83% male
10. Mining and Mineral Engineering: 90% male
And here are the 10 least remunerative majors—where women prevail in nine out of ten:
1. Counseling Psychology: 74% female
2. Early Childhood Education: 97% female
3. Theology and Religious Vocations: 34% female
4. Human Services and Community Organization: 81% female
5. Social Work: 88% female
6. Drama and Theater Arts: 60% female
7. Studio Arts: 66% female
8. Communication Disorders Sciences and Services: 94% female
9. Visual and Performing Arts: 77% female
10. Health and Medical Preparatory Programs: 55% female
Much of the wage gap can be explained away by simply taking account of college majors. Early childhood educators and social workers can expect to earn around $36,000 and $39,000, respectively. By contrast, petroleum engineering and metallurgy degrees promise median earnings of $120,000 and $80,000. Women, far more than men, appear to be drawn to jobs in the caring professions; and men are more likely to turn up in people-free zones. In the pursuit of happiness, men and women appear to take different paths.
Link to complete report with source of data. It's a study titled What's It Worth: The Economic Value of College Majors, by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.
June 13, 2023
Although I hold respect for the author writing a book and wanting to transfer her wisdom to future entrepreneurs in the construction industry, I am sorry to say that I could not finish this book. The writing, editing, errors and style was impossible for me to get past to pull out any pearls of wisdom from the author’s life story. The book is more of an autobiography.
January 6, 2020
I’m a woman in construction, and I absolutely loved that a woman wrote a book to bring light to this subject. The book itself, however, needs so editing and writing rework, which without leads to some credibility loss on the subject.
November 22, 2020
As a woman with an engineering degree not related to construction management- I felt for everything in this book. My short career so far has been eye opening. I am not a huge fan of the way the book was written, but it was a quick read and one that was very relatable. I am not sure if it is reassuring to know that other people deal with similar issues.. or if it is saddening to know that 40 years later nothing has changed.
March 22, 2020
An ego to match her bosses
In addition to being poorly written, her idea that she wrote the book on sexual harassment would be laughable were it not so denigrating of all the other women who had the same work experiences, or worse, than she did. As a humanist, corporate worker and mother, her egotism simply made me angry.
In addition to being poorly written, her idea that she wrote the book on sexual harassment would be laughable were it not so denigrating of all the other women who had the same work experiences, or worse, than she did. As a humanist, corporate worker and mother, her egotism simply made me angry.
September 29, 2019
I find it extraordinary that Barbara remembers all the details, all the names, all the shenanigans even from long ago. Quite amazing!
maybe
October 15, 2020- As Trump crashes in key states, his 'alternate universe' & cheating kicks in, says insider: New polls show Trump trailing Joe Biden in key states, several demographic groups and even among some 2016 Trump voters. Former Trump Organization executive Barbara Res joins MSNBC’s Ari Melber to discuss how Trump approaches bad news - and why his mindset focuses on making "the system work for him,” even if that involves cheating.
Former Trump co-worker: He’s obsessed with scary beauty Former Trump Organization executive Barbara Res, who helped to build Trump Tower, witnessed Trump’s style over substance first-hand: She tells MSNBC Chief Legal Correspondent Ari Melber Trump is “not a great businessman” and breaks down why Trump might have demanded his border wall be both “physically imposing” and “aesthetically pleasing”, noting Trump “doesn’t understand the nuances of one versus the other.”
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews