March 8 is International Women’s Day, a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality.
The theme for this International Women’s Day is #EmbraceEquity, with the aim of getting the world to talk about why equal opportunities aren’t enough — people start from different places, so true inclusion and belonging require equitable action.
On International Women’s Day and every day, we at Jumio are honored to work with so many strong, driven women across the globe and are proud to amplify their voices below.
How can women challenge bias in their industries?
“With a lot of hard work and showing up every day ready to get to work. You need to lead by example and set expectations for yourself and your team. You need to work on bringing the next generation of women with you on your own journey so that they get the assistance that you may not have had in your own journey.” — Nicole Sharratt, Vice President, Product Design
“Speak up when you see or experience bias. This could be during meetings, conversations with colleagues, or even in performance reviews. By respectfully and firmly addressing the biased behavior and suggesting ways to improve it, women can help to create a more inclusive workplace. Also, leading by example is essential. Women can model inclusive behavior, be open-minded, and work to create a workplace culture that values and supports diversity and inclusion.” — Deepshikha Pareek, Senior Manager, Marketing Research Team
“As women we have the power to challenge biases within our various industries. We should feel empowered to have our voices heard regardless of our gender, race, ethnicity or status. We are equally as talented as men, if not more so in some aspects.” — Nia Turkson, Strategic Account Manager
“Be an advocate for yourself and others, add value wherever you go, seek positive mentorships, and stand up for what’s right.” — Michaela Caizzi, Senior Marketing Manager, North America
“Support other women, promote women into leadership roles, hire more women in traditionally male-dominated sectors and roles, eliminate pay gaps, and provide mentorship programs for women. Women need to show by doing.” — Jennifer Marsland, Director of Account Management, U.S.
“Embrace questioning why things are being done a particular way. You bring a perspective that is valuable and needed in order for both technology in general and companies to advance.” — Gina Signorello, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary
What can companies do to support women in their chosen careers?
“To support female employees, companies need to listen to what they want and act accordingly. Whether that means offering meaningful workplace flexibility or better career growth opportunities depends on the individual’s needs.” — Viktoria Wehner, Recruitment Business Partner
“Even though the problem’s root is deep down in society and hence companies might not be able to eliminate it completely, there are still many actions that companies can do to improve situations. I tend to think that we are stuck with conversational hype about women in this or that industry, companies speak a lot about equality and the balance of men and women in the industry/team/tech workshop. What I think is important for supporting women in their chosen careers is respect — respect in hiring by evaluating skills, not gender, and respect in salary by proposing the same salary as men in the same position, respect in being human.” — Vera Shalaeva, Data Scientist
“Companies must ensure they have support not just from a career growth perspective but reviewing their policies with respect to parental leave. For all employees regardless of gender, there are so many studies showing that parental leave support is a great way to ensure women return to the workforce.” — Veronica Torres, Worldwide Privacy and Regulatory Counsel
“I believe childcare is a huge issue for working women. As a manager, be flexible around ‘working hours’ — allow team members to work from home, complete tasks in the evening so they can attend their child’s sports event, etc.” — Susan Walker, Chief Financial Officer
“Start with understanding: while some of the challenges professional women face are universal, ‘women’ are more than a collective. We are individuals with unique hurdles. Don’t presume that one size fits all or that everyone will benefit from the same solution.” — Megan Barbier, Vice President, People & Culture
If you could tell your 16-year-old self one thing about life as a woman in tech, what would it be?
“It’s the most amazing career with constant opportunities to learn about exciting new technology! You’ll deal with bias, and men in authority positions will try to tell you who you are and what you’re capable of, but you don’t have to listen to them. Keep a strong sense of who you are and focus on the ideas that are on the table, not the persons in the room.” — Jackie Wheeler, Senior Director of Strategic Marketing
“Don’t expect a cakewalk but never give in and never give up.” — Neha Daga, Senior Finance Manager
“I am not any weaker than or different from what a man in tech can do or accomplish.” — Ervinna Mok, Vice President, Service Quality
“You have to identify that while you may feel at a disadvantage at times, you are not the only one so when looking to make an impact you must advocate on behalf of yourself and all the others who cannot find a seat at the table. We have often been told there are a finite number of opportunities for women in tech — that is false. There are just people with finite opinions about how the world should be.” — Veronica Torres, Worldwide Privacy and Regulatory Counsel
“The hard work does pay off. Women in tech are strong women.” — Brandi Fretwell, Account Executive
“This fast-moving industry can be overwhelming at times, especially when you’re only just starting out. Always be ready to learn something new and come in with an open mindset and you’ll find that being a woman in tech is exciting, not daunting. You will meet and connect with amazing people throughout your career and there is a lot to discover if you’re willing to do just that.” — Viktoria Wehner, Recruitment Business Partner
What does this year’s IWD theme, #EmbraceEquity, mean to you?
“Provide awareness and equitable representation in the workplace, promote inclusive leadership and evaluate workplace equity.” — Paula Arango, Business Development Team Lead
“Embrace diversity — making a change in the mindset throughout our daily actions. Be compassionate and empathize with those who are different, to increase their value by sharing personal experiences as well as being a mentor.” — Kerri Koessler, Enterprise Account Manager
“#EmbraceEquity means going beyond the normal rhetoric, breaking boundaries and recognising talent!” — Nia Turkson, Strategic Account Manager
“Don’t be afraid: embrace the challenge. Have the difficult conversations. Do the hard things. All progress matters!” — Megan Barbier, Vice President, People & Culture
“It comes down to flexibility and looking beyond the neat boxes we try to fit everyone into for the sake of convenience. We ask employees to think outside of the box in order to innovate and help us lead the industry, and we need to take the same approach when it comes to diversity in hiring, taking an inclusive approach to policies (such as flexible work) and communication (such as minimizing colloquialisms and acronyms and ensuring a wide variety of people are in the conversation), and creating equity in terms of compensation, training and promotion opportunities.” — Jackie Wheeler, Senior Director of Strategic Marketing
