International Women’s Day 2024: Seven HR Leaders share why we need to invest in learning and development
To mark International Women’s Day 2024, we spoke exclusively to seven inspirational women who are paving the way to create more inclusive working cultures. Here what executives from IHG, Slack, Coursera, and more had to say.
News in Brief
March 8th marks International Women’s Day – a day where women’s achievements are celebrated, while we also reflect on the progress that needs to be made before parity is reached.
To understand what this means for the HR world, we spoke to seven female executive, who shared why organizations need to continue investing in the learning and development of women, as well as how they can inspire inclusion within company cultures.
Here's what you need to know:
International Women’s Day – March 8th, 2024 is finally here.
This year’s theme – Inspire Inclusion – invites individuals to take a deeper look into what it means for women to feel a sense of belonging, relevance, and empowerment, while recognizing the unique perspectives and contributions of women from all walks of life.
Doesn’t this sound a bit like one of the many functions HR leaders have? We thought so, too.
It isn’t easy to gather 3000+ in a room and generate a sparkle in people’s eyes over 2 days. You have created a fun ecosystem for innovation.
That’s why, to celebrate all the amazing women in the business world, we spoke to seven inspirational leaders who are passionate about creating equitable change, both though fostering inclusive environments and continuing to invest in women’s futures.
Here’s what they had to say:
Bianca Stringuini, global head of DEI, Hays
Bianca Stringuini
“To say in a broad sense, inclusive growth will lead businesses to prosper.
“A business with a gender balanced workforce that represents equally the demographics of communities it serves, meaning it will gain and grow with greater diversity in ways of thinking, solving problems and addressing customer’s needs.
“From a productivity perspective, organizations that have higher engagement will have higher productivity and businesses that are fairer and more inclusive have high engagement levels and people willing to “walk the extra mile”.
In my view it is important to focus on equity and make sure that all have access to learning and development in a consistent and fair manner. This is so that you don’t miss any talent due to internal biases.
“Organizations should prioritize DEI initiatives because, in most cases, they are linked to business growth and productivity, so the cost of lack of diversity, or a non-inclusive culture will be far more damaging in the long run for business that want to catch the next wave of economic growth as they will be simply not equipped to do so.
Marni Baker Stein, chief content officer, Coursera
“Female learners on Coursera are outpacing men in achieving skills proficiency – particularly in acquiring the skills that typically require the largest number of learning hours to attain.
Marni Baker Stein
“It is therefore clear that it is not ability preventing women from attaining the most important technical skills, but accessibility.
“The tens of millions of female learners on Coursera are continually proving that they will thrive when they are given access to skills development opportunities: We must ensure that institutions do more to direct their female talent towards learning pathways that empower them to acquire critical skills in AI and other high-demand tech domains.
Investing in women’s learning and development is imperative, but to fully foster equitable environments, modern workplaces must continue to adopt hybrid work frameworks, and flexible learning methods, offering upskilling opportunities that are tailored to women’s schedules.
“By creating this opportunity, we’ll be doing a better job of preparing the entire workforce for the AI-driven workplace.”
Dr Andrea Johnson, chief information officer, Pipedrive
“Over the world, we’ve seen female representation snubbed across industries. It feels like the Academy Awards missed the memo about the one beacon of girl power in last year’s blockbusters.
Dr. Andrea C. Johnson
“For Barbie, how did Ryan Gosling secure a nomination for Ken, without Margot Robbie getting the same consideration as the film’s lead? Unfortunately, challenges around female representation don’t stop with just film. As an industry, technology also suffers from gender inequality. This needs to change.
“Inclusion and representation, across gender, are not just tick-box exercises. They form key routes to creating stronger, more diverse teams, especially when it comes to IT and cybersecurity.
“To combat new and novel threats, inspiring inclusiveness is vital. Teams with a variety of skills and life experiences are required to understand and tackle challenges that tap into our hardwired human concerns and biases.
DEI serves as a superpower in the fight against emerging cyber threats, enabling teams to leverage different perspectives to identify patterns and behaviors designed by criminals.
“Embracing diverse life experiences, cognitive approaches, and skill sets can maximize the chances of effectively countering AI-driven deceptions and other evolving security challenges. By investing in women’s learning and development, organizations can foster stronger and more diverse teams.”
Deann Evans, managing director EMEA, Shopify
“We must recognize the unfair barriers that place individuals at different starting lines, and take action to dismantle them.
Deann Evans
“Choosing to work for and lead organizations that prioritize equitable opportunities is more than just a professional decision. Through championing inclusive practices, we at Shopify are actively trying to set new standards and demonstrate our commitment to creating a truly inclusive workplace.
“For instance, we have adopted a digital-first approach towards work to help drive inclusion. This approach, called ‘Digital by Design’, gives employees the flexibility to work almost anywhere in order to create a safe space for people to work around their needs outside of work and to level the playing field.
“Thanks to embracing digital solutions, barriers to inclusion – from geographical constraints to caregiving responsibilities – are broken down.
Let us all challenge elements of work which may be seen as the “status quo” to create initiatives and become agents of change – leveraging our positions, choices, and actions to inspire inclusion not only on International Women’s Day, but every day.”
Deirdre Byrne, head of UK & Ireland, Slack
“International Women’s Day’s theme of ‘Inspire Inclusion’ gets to the heart of the matter. It’s not just the right thing to-do, but study after study has proven that diverse teams deliver better business outcomes.
Deirdre Byrne
Reflecting on my early days in tech, I was fortunate to have fantastic male mentors in a time when programs for women were limited. However, the lack of female representation in leadership meant there was a lack of role models.
“Now, I’m surrounded by impressive women in some phenomenally powerful and impactful jobs – but there’s more to be done.
“As the number of women tech leaders increases, it becomes essential to address the unique challenges they face. Investing in initiatives that support women’s wellbeing and address workplace issues helps foster a more inclusive environment.
“At Slack, we have created an “Ask Me Anything” channel with the leadership team and a “Talking Menopause” channel, which are great examples of how companies can facilitate connections, share experiences, and encourage allyship.
“As we celebrate International Women’s Day, let’s continue to back ourselves, promote diversity and encourage connections, and invest in creating a more equitable future for all.”
Arusha Gupta, head of HR, Europe, LTIMindtree
Arusha Gupta
“Gender bias is still a reality, but studies have consistently shown that having gender diversity in leadership leads to better financial performance.
“At LTIMindtree, we are committed to advancing the female cause and our goal is to have a 40% female workforce by 2030 and increase the number of women in leadership roles.
We are invested in developing the women leaders – ‘EmpowHer’ is one such program, designed to help women leaders excel in a changing global economy, with the aim to give them the tools and resources they need to succeed in their careers. It comes with a mix of academic, reflective, and experiential learning.
“When developing such inclusion programs, it is important to recognize the different stages of life women may be in. Our ‘Revive with LTIMindree’ initiative is supporting women professionals who are returning to work, offering training and updating of skills among other things.
“Having a tailored approach to women’s experience is essential.
“As a technology business, we also want technology to be in our DNA regardless of function or role.”
Joanna Kurowska, managing director, UK&I, IHG Hotels & Resort
Joanna Kurowska
“Like any other industry, it is crucial that hospitality businesses invest in programs that help to develop and set up successful careers for all of their leaders, while recognizing and addressing the focus on women in leadership roles.
“Zooming into our hospitality industry, if we think about how strongly male dominated it has been, especially with general managers, it can help us see why there have been barriers.
“One way IHG has taken action to tackle this is through our career development program, RISE, which has been in place for more than seven years. We wanted to create a future where those aspiring to become female general managers can rise up and succeed in achieving their ambition, whilst being supported by IHG.
We strive to create the right working environment for all individuals and teams to succeed.
“Whether it’s our female colleagues or other traditionally under-represented groups, driving inclusivity fosters an engaged, diverse and high-performing workforce that meet the needs of our customers.
“Likewise, we need mentors and allies to nurture the next generation of female leaders. A mentor acts not only as a career support, but also creates a safe space for female employees to share what barriers or issues they’re facing in the workplace and what we, as an employer, can do to address that.
“From my own personal experiences, I have been mentored at critical points in my career: those conversations deepened my self-awareness and helped me articulate thoughts which I could not grasp fully. All of this enabled me to charter a professional path for myself.
“To promote a culture of lifelong learning among female employees within an organization, we need to create a strong company culture – which applies to us all: it is all about a genuine desire from everybody in the organization for learning, education, speaking up and amplifying voices.”
