Tanya de Hoog’s career across three continents has taught her that the most powerful engineering leaves a lasting social trace.
Tanya de Hoog MIEAust was five years into her career when she landed in London and began work on one of Europe’s largest structural challenges.
The Estádio da Luz, Benfica’s home stadium, is a vast, shimmering Stadium of Light, beloved by an entire city.
But what stayed with de Hoog, now Aurecon’s Chief Engineering, Eminence & Innovation Officer, wasn’t the engineering scale. It was the way people responded to it.
“People were so passionate about their team and that stadium,” she told create. “Many people wanted to be part of building it, often volunteering, because it was part of the fabric of their community. It helped me understand early in my career the impact and importance of engineering beyond the structure.”
By the time it opened to the world, Estádio da Luz had become a civic icon and was to be voted the most beautiful stadium in Europe. For de Hoog, the experience became a lens through which she could see the wider arc of her profession – its impact on communities, cities, environments and even history – and how those insights offer a leadership perspective unique to engineers.
The experience also set the tone for her career, which would cross continents, disciplines and leadership roles, culminating in her appointment as President of the Institution of Structural Engineers in 2024.
The variables that matter
De Hoog is hesitant to generalise, but she believes all engineers bring consistent foundations to leadership and governance roles: a drive to solve problems; a discipline grounded in rigorous logic and technical depth; and an instinctive commitment to public safety, long-term viability and environmental responsibility.
What happens as careers deepen – “when life and career experience add layers” to knowledge and instinct – is what turns those foundations into something expansive.
“Engineers can hold many variables in their heads at once. This means they can see how a single decision cascades across cost, risk, climate, community impact and long-term performance – often before anyone else in the room has made the connection.”
Time is an often-overlooked variable, de Hoog noted. One of her first major projects in the Middle East offers a perfect case study. The client wanted a complex – and costly – retractable roof.
“A nearby stadium was rarely used because fans found the experience too unpleasant in the heat. We felt there might be ways to resolve this problem that weren’t as expensive as a mechanical roof.”
Her team went back in time, exploring modern precedents alongside the Colosseum in Rome. This historical context helped her team develop a passive shading strategy that followed the sun, keeping the seating cool without relying on a complex mechanical system.
De Hoog says this is the kind of thinking that serves boards well: questioning the brief, interrogating assumptions and returning to first principles to clarify the real problem before committing substantial capital.
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Where structure meets society
Over the next two decades, de Hoog developed her craft across Australia, the UK and the US. Her decision to pursue a Master’s in Interdisciplinary Design at Cambridge University was rooted in the belief that engineering leaves a long social trace, and that its influence extends far beyond the design office.
She opened Thornton Tomasetti’s London office in 2006, leading major projects in the UK, Europe, Middle East, and the US, including several community sporting facilities in disadvantaged neighbourhoods. These weren’t grand stadia, but they held just as much social weight.
“These opportunities were an honour. It was about bringing expertise to the community – seeing where the opportunities were and figuring out how to make it work as a team from a business perspective for our clients.”
The business perspective matters. Engineers learn technical precision first; but the moment they grasp the commercial constraints is when they start evolving into leaders.
“Understanding the macro perspective and success factors from the lens of the people who hold the money is critical. This blend of craft, community awareness and commercial literacy is precisely the mix that strengthens decision-making in governance roles.”
The long arc of impact
In 2024, de Hoog made the move back to Australia to take on a new chapter at Aurecon, to a role focused on technical excellence, innovation and inspiring all six generations of engineers working today.
“I thought about what’s next. How could I have the most impact? The possibility to influence engineers more broadly through inspiration, through systems thinking, through rigour, through new and better outcomes. That felt meaningful.”
Holding one of the only chief engineer roles in an engineering consultancy in Australia, de Hoog is relishing the platform to elevate the profession at a moment when the world needs engineers and engineering judgement more than ever. Climate change is accelerating. Disruptive technologies are reshaping the world. Clients are under increasing pressure. The demands on infrastructure, housing, energy systems and community safety grow more complex.
“If you want to make a difference, engineering is the place. We are moving into the age of the engineer.”
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