Making My Own Way

by Claudia Watts, Junior Contracts Manager

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Growing Up

MWA has always been in the background of my life. Growing up, I’d hear about projects in passing - my dad on the phone, checking emails, or discussing work at home. It was always somewhat a part of our family’s life, even if I didn’t fully understand it at the time. I didn’t anticipate that I would work for the company myself or come to appreciate the time and effort it has taken to build MWA in the way I have.

That changed, when I joined MWA as a Project Coordinator – offered the role on Friday afternoon to start on the Monday, initially on a 6-month contract. I had been temping for the Facilities Management team after graduating, before the last-minute transfer to Interiors. I stepped into the unknown. I had no experience in project management or the construction industry beyond the conversations I’d overheard at home. I didn’t know how being a ‘Watts’ would unfold. However, what became apparent, was that I didn't want to work anywhere else and that loyalty and respect quickly became a driver of motivation, and that motivation translated into progression: within 10 months, I received my first promotion to Junior Contracts Manager. Despite the breadth of knowledge around me growing up, I was suddenly delivering my first two projects unsure where to begin but relying on the expertise of my colleagues. Learning the principles of project management - from BREEAM, programmes, multiple software systems, to delivering on time and to budget, and client management – the last year has been more than just a job; it has been about gaining skills to be able to contribute in a way that does justice to the sacrifices that built it.

The Dual Perspective

Working for your parents creates a balancing act where professional and personal life often overlap. Work conversations rarely stop at the office door; they spill into family life, resurfacing at a round of golf with your dad. Inevitably, it weaves into your personal life, and vice versa.

There is a deepened sense of care and loyalty that makes everything feel personal. MWA isn’t just where I work as it’s also the company that has provided my home, my education, and the opportunities I’ve had growing up.

At the same time, the stereotype of being “the boss’s daughter” is inevitable. It often carries negative assumptions - that a role is given based on a surname rather than merit. I’ve been determined to prove the opposite: to deliver projects from my own ability and to create a career that is mine. Tori has always echoed this - to focus on my own progression, and to establish my own professional reputation.

Still, the reality is unavoidable and there’s a dual perspective: at home he is my dad, at work he is the CEO, but above all remains my dad. Writing an email with him on copy or walking into a meeting with a new client alongside the CEO - my dad - there is an awareness during the introductions that assumptions may follow. Even a year on, I still find myself pausing, unsure whether to refer to him as Matt or Dad, a small moment, but one that reflects the wider reality of balancing family and professional roles in the same space.

Newfound Respect

The biggest shift since joining MWA has been perspective. As children, we rarely understand what parents do at work, or what they sacrifice to build a life for us, let alone the opportunity to contribute to what they have built.  Working for MWA has given me both a glimpse into and a real appreciation for what was once simply ‘my parents’ company,’ but which I now see very differently: the weight of responsibility, the commitment, and the years of hard work that has gone into building and maintaining a business. I don’t view my role as just a job; it’s a chance to contribute to a legacy that has provided me with so much. It’s about loyalty, respect, and determination - because when your family is at the heart of a business, your drive to see it succeed becomes personal too.

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