Jocelyn joined the Stormwater NSW committee in mid-2019 with a desire to get to know the ‘real’ stormwater industry (outside of working for a consultancy firm).

Her interest in stormwater was sparked while at University when she interned with Blacktown City Council’s Drainage team. Here she got exposure to drainage design and water quality modelling and saw the importance of water engineering- something that was often overshadowed by structural and geotechnical engineering in her degree.

Now, she is a Senior Water Resources Engineer for SMEC with a technical background in flood modelling, stormwater drainage design and water quality design. She prides herself on always delivering the best outcome for the community through safe, effective and integrated design. She has completed various types of projects, ranging from Desktop Flood Studies, Water Quality Optimisation projects, Water Cycle Management Plans, on-site detention design and Flood Studies for a range of large and small developments.

In 2019 Jocelyn spent most of her time travelling for work, including spending 3.5 months living and working in the Philippines designing the stormwater drainage for a major railway infrastructure project and 1.5 months in Melbourne completing flood modelling for a large road infrastructure project. Jocelyn is passionate about sharing skills and knowledge globally, having also worked closely with teams in India, Singapore and the United Kingdom.

Career achievements 

Jocelyn’s greatest career achievement was her development and execution of an online platform for Surbana Jurong Group called the Buddy Finder. The Buddy Finder is an advanced search system which allows any employee in Surbana Jurong Group to find colleagues; based on a range of criteria- including their software and technical skills, company, name, job title and more. The purpose of the platform was to increase collaboration across the group and provide transparency on the skills their employees have. The Buddy Finder was officially launch in April 2020 to over 10,000 employees and will soon be rolled out to an additional 6,000 employees within the Group. Jocelyn was awarded the Surbana Jurong Group Young Professional of the Year in 2019 (Australia/New Zealand) in recognition of this achievement.

Who inspires you?

One of the most inspiring women in my professional life is Kate Drews, SMEC’s Market Director for Urban Communities. Kate is a fearless leader who loves a challenge, is a champion for change and does it all with an infectious sense of humour.  She’s constantly smashing glass ceilings and is a role model for many females throughout SMEC and beyond. Kate’s support and mentoring helped Jocelyn get the Buddy Finder platform off the ground and is testament to Kate’s desire to raise other women up.

Any advice they might have for young females just starting out in engineering

My advice to any young females just starting out in engineering is to put yourself out there, make yourself known and throw yourself at as many opportunities as you can.