Transport summit keynote address by AECOM's Jennifer Aument

Jennifer Aument, Chief Executive of AECOM's global transportation business provided the international keynote address at the Roads Australia Transport Summit.

The Summit was hosted by Roads Australia, the peak body for roads within Australia's integrated transport system, and saw a plethora of international and local expert speakers dissecting the issues that are 'front and centre' in both the national transport debate and the industry workplace including:

Procurement reform and risk allocation
Convergence of transport, energy and technology
Mobility and mass transit
Workforce culture
Sustainability and recycling
Resilience in infrastructure
Road worker safety

Jennifer discussed how mega project procurement and delivery needs to evolve to improve outcomes for all.

AECOM's Jennifer Aument oversees major complex infrastructure projects

Jennifer leads more than 14,000 professionals across the highway, transit, aviation, port and freight sectors. As the world’s premier infrastructure consulting firm, AECOM partners with clients to develop and deliver modern, safe and sustainable transportation solutions that transform the movement of people and goods. Her global design team is consistently ranked No. 1 by Engineering News-Record. Jennifer has a background in advancing major, complex infrastructure projects, with a particular focus on public private partnerships.

Prior to joining AECOM, Jennifer served as President & CEO of infrastructure investor Transurban’s North American business, overseeing development, financing, delivery, and operations of major toll road infrastructure in the US and Canada.

Recognized in 2020 as the “Leading Woman in Infrastructure” by P3 Bulletin magazine, Jennifer serves on the boards for several major universities, the Eno Center for Transportation, the American Road & Transportation Builders Association and more. She has also served for nearly a decade as a commissioner and member of the executive committee for the Virginia Port Authority.

AECOM Senior Highways Engineer, Rezarta Rushitaj, chaired a panel

Rezarta Rushitaj, a Senior Highways Engineer at AECOM, also spoke at the summit, chairing the 'Emerging Leaders' panel session that brought together forward-thinking, experienced professionals with emerging leaders within the industry together to discuss how to make organisations stand out as an employer of choice for emerging talent. Rezarta and the panelists took a close look at how embracing a culture-focussed business model can help attract (and retain) staff in a contemporary environment. They also explored why the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the pace of change within many organisations and they highlighted how new ways of working are enhancing job satisfaction and other business outcomes across the industry.

Rezarta is a Chartered Senior Civil Engineer at AECOM. She graduated from The University of Melbourne and joined AECOM in 2012 as a Highways Engineer. One of her most notable achievements at AECOM is her significant influence over the delivery of WestConnex M4 East, a project she was involved in from concept design to official opening to the public in 2019. Rezarta more recently has supported the development of the winning tender for the Sydney Gateway project and is currently leading the road design team for Stage 3, the connection to the Domestic Terminals of Sydney Airport.

Rezarta is a big advocate for workplace culture, social responsibility and diversity. She was an ambassador for the Workplace Gender Equality Agency in 2016 as part of the ‘women’s work | men’s work’ campaign, served on the Engineers Australia’s Women in Engineering committee for three years, volunteered with Engineers Without Borders. She is also an active contributor in student-led initiatives as an Industry Mentor and is the 2020 RA Promise, Passion and Pursuit Award Winner representing the Emerging Leaders group.

Hear a podcast with Rezarta speaking about her journey from Albania to being a Civil Engineer instrumental in the development of Sydney's transport network.

“As an engineer, it is really exciting when you get to see your project being constructed. You see models and plans of a future road for months, and then to finally see it in real life is truly rewarding,” says Rezarta. "Every project is unique, every day you deal with a different problem and that makes it exciting. There is never an opportunity to be bored."

Outside of work she enjoys travel, reading, Forrò dancing and is a certified nail technician.