I work in the construction industry as a mechanical engineer. It is a severely male dominated industry. I've been designing plumbing and HVAC systems for almost 8 years. I am currently working on a healthcare clinic build out. It's a medium sized project. I am very familiar with the systems, codes, and standards required for such a design.

I was on a conference call this afternoon with the owner/client, general contractor, architect, and project managers. I am usually only listening on these meetings, but there were some items on my plate that needed to be expressed. When the topics came up, I started in explaining where we were in the design, what my recommendations were, and what the implications would be if they were to compromise.

Mid sentence the GC interrupts and says that these items have been discussed and that basically I needed to talk to my superior because I was wasting the client's time. While I do have a boss, I am the lead engineer, and I have the most background and understanding of the project. I was also on the call last week where he spoke with my superior about these very topics. There was no conclusion, and my boss and I agreed that the owner needed to make the decision since they would be impacted by the outcome.

I immediately muted my mic to keep from saying something I shouldn't. I kept the rest of my responses short, and hung up as soon as the topic changed. This individual tends to be combative and abrasive when discussing the project, perhaps forgetting we are all on a team. But he hasn't addressed anyone else on the team in this manner. I felt steamrolled and disrespected. Also - I still don't have a decision made on the topic.

These interactions are the reason I SO often consider changing careers. It's incredible to me that massive building projects can have teams that are run by such volatile people.