The Water Talent Shortage Is Also A Diversity Problem

By Lukas Vanterpool

For decades, the sector has been built, led, and operated largely by men, particularly across engineering, infrastructure, and leadership roles. While diversity progress is happening, it has been slow and uneven. At the same time, utilities across the U.S. are facing growing pressure from aging infrastructure, climate resilience demands, regulatory scrutiny, and a workforce approaching retirement. Yet despite the scale of the challenge, much of the industry is still drawing talent from the same narrow pools and approaching hiring the same way it did years ago.

That approach is becoming increasingly unsustainable. Historically, conversations around gender diversity in water were often tied to ESG goals and corporate responsibility initiatives. But from what I’m seeing across the market, this issue is now much more operational than that. Utilities already struggling to hire technical talent cannot afford to underrepresent — or lose — women across engineering, operational, and leadership roles.

This is no longer simply a diversity conversation. It is a workforce capability issue, and one that increasingly affects innovation, succession planning, and the industry’s ability to solve the challenges ahead.

The Water Sector Still Struggles To Attract Women

The water industry does incredibly important work. It protects public health, supports infrastructure resilience, and sits at the center of climate adaptation and environmental sustainability conversations.

But despite that, it is still not attracting women into technical and operational careers at the pace the industry needs.

Part of the issue is visibility.

Water has historically lacked the visibility and employer branding seen in industries like technology, renewable energy, and advanced manufacturing. Younger professionals, particularly women entering engineering and STEM-related careers, often perceive those sectors as:

• More progressive
• More innovative
• More flexible
• More purpose-driven
• Better aligned with modern career expectations

Whether every perception is accurate is almost irrelevant at this point. Candidate behavior is shaped by perception as much as reality.

From what I’m seeing across the market, many utilities are still struggling to position themselves effectively to the next generation of female talent.

The issue is not simply that women are choosing other industries. It is that competing sectors are doing a better job communicating:

• Career progression
• Leadership visibility
• Flexibility
• Inclusion
• Development opportunities

Water already has purpose. What it often struggles to communicate is whether women can realistically build long-term, progressive careers within it.

The Industry Talks About Diversity. Talent Is Watching What It Does.

There is no shortage of diversity statements across the sector.

Most utilities and infrastructure organizations now include diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives within broader ESG and workforce strategies. Many have targets, internal programs, and recruitment initiatives designed to improve representation.

But candidates are not evaluating statements. They are evaluating reality.

They are asking:

• Who is actually in leadership roles?
• Who is being promoted?
• What does progression look like in practice?
• Does the culture genuinely support long-term careers?

That gap between messaging and lived experience is where many organizations are losing credibility.

According to UNESCO, women represent approximately 17.7% of the global water utility workforce, with even lower representation across technical and leadership roles.

That is not simply a diversity statistic.

It is evidence that the sector is still drawing from a relatively narrow segment of available talent while simultaneously facing one of the biggest workforce challenges in its history.

As the International Water Association has highlighted, resilient water systems require diverse perspectives at every level of decision-making.

Increasingly, the organizations making progress are the ones treating diversity as part of long-term workforce strategy, not as a side initiative.

Retention Is The Problem No One Talks About Enough

Attraction is only part of the issue.

Retention is where many organizations are still struggling most.

In my mind, one of the biggest challenges facing the sector is that it still spends too much time talking about how to attract women into water and not enough time addressing why many leave.

Because while visibility around diversity has improved, the underlying workplace experience has often been slower to evolve.

Women entering technical and operational roles still frequently encounter:

• Limited progression pathways
• Leadership teams that do not reflect them
• Workplace cultures that feel outdated
• Less flexibility than competing industries
• Limited visibility of long-term career opportunities

Across STEM-related industries, women are significantly more likely to leave mid-career due to progression barriers, workplace culture challenges, and lack of flexibility.

This creates a cycle:

• Fewer women progress into senior leadership
• Fewer role models exist
• Fewer younger professionals see a future in the sector
• The talent pipeline weakens again

Utilities already operating with lean teams cannot afford that level of attrition.

This Is Now A Workforce Capability Issue

For years, diversity conversations in infrastructure-heavy industries often sat under ESG or corporate responsibility strategies.

But today, the issue is much more immediate than that.

Utilities are trying to solve increasingly complex challenges:

• Aging infrastructure
• PFAS and emerging contaminants
• Climate resilience
• Regulatory pressure
• Digital transformation
• Major capital delivery programs

At the same time, they are competing with private infrastructure firms, environmental consultancies, renewable energy businesses, and advanced manufacturing organizations for the same engineering and technical talent.

That competition is only becoming more intense.

Research from McKinsey & Company continues to show that organizations with stronger gender diversity outperform financially and make better decisions more consistently.

But the operational implications are equally important.

Utilities facing:

• Long-term vacancies
• Burned-out teams
• Delayed projects
• Succession planning challenges
• Growing technical demands

…cannot afford to limit their own talent pool.

This is no longer simply about diversity targets.

It is about whether the industry has access to the skills, perspectives, and workforce capacity it needs to operate effectively in the future.

Utilities Need To Rethink How They Build Female Talent Pipelines

One of the biggest hiring mistakes I’ve seen across the sector is over-prioritizing direct experience while underestimating long-term potential.

Many job descriptions are still written for the “perfect candidate” — someone with:

• Exact utility experience
• Identical technical backgrounds
• Specific years in role
• Immediate readiness

In reality, those candidates are increasingly scarce.

And when organizations insist on hiring only exact matches, they narrow the talent pool even further.

In my experience, the utilities making the strongest long-term hiring decisions are the ones willing to think differently about how they identify, support, and develop female talent.

That includes:

• Broadening hiring criteria
• Building earlier relationships with universities and STEM programs
• Creating clearer progression pathways
• Improving leadership visibility
• Investing in mentorship and development
• Modernizing workplace flexibility

It also requires utilities to rethink how they position themselves as employers.

Because top candidates today are not simply choosing jobs. They are choosing environments.

And increasingly, women entering technical careers want to work for organizations that:

• Reflect modern values
• Offer progression and visibility
• Support long-term career growth
• Demonstrate inclusion in practice, not just in policy

This also requires a more long-term and consultative approach to workforce planning, particularly in sectors where talent shortages are already constraining operational resilience and project delivery, something more organizations are now considering within broader water and wastewater recruitment strategies.

The Industry Cannot Afford To Stand Still

The water sector is entering one of the most important workforce transitions it has faced in decades.

Infrastructure demands are increasing. Regulatory pressure is growing. Technical complexity is accelerating.

At the same time, competition for engineering and technical talent will only intensify.

Utilities that continue hiring the way they always have are going to find themselves competing for an increasingly limited talent pool.

The organizations that adapt — by improving attraction, retention, leadership visibility, and long-term workforce development for women — will be significantly better positioned for the future.

The industry cannot continue trying to solve a workforce shortage while failing to fully attract, support, and retain half the available talent pool.

Lukas Vanterpool is Co-founder and Director of The Sterling Choice, a recruitment partner specializing the water and wastewater sector, with a focus on workforce development and long-term recruitment strategy within technical and infrastructure-led organizations.