International Women's Day 2020

As a woman in a leadership position, I often hear questions about my view on diversity and how I got to where I am today. Perhaps a look into my past will shed light on this subject:

I had the great good fortune to grow up in a home where I was strongly encouraged. Even as a child I was told that I could do and be anything – no matter where I came from or what gender I was. My parents never made a difference: I have a brother and from the beginning onwards, they had the same ambitions for me as for him. My mother herself knows what it is like to gain a foothold as a woman in a profession – as a professor of mathematics she is furthermore also familiar with classic male domains. She was and still is my strong advocate. This environment shaped me in many ways – two of them I would like to highlight.

On the one hand, it helped me to assert myself when I myself entered the professional world. I was driven into the steel trade at thyssenkrupp and not into mathematics – but this meant that I was no less exposed to a male-dominated world than my mother was. I learned to use my "otherness" to my advantage. I stood out as a woman. An advantage and a disadvantage at the same time. Although I stood out, it also meant that I had to fight harder to belong and to build up my network.

On the other hand, I learned how valuable it is to be supported. I am firmly convinced that women should and must support other women. We must be there and encourage each other – just as men do. This has also lead me to engage myself as a mentor. Of course, it is not only women who can support other women: I would not be here today if men had not also supported me on my career path and been my mentors.

#EachforEqual

Even though equality is important to me every day, International Women's Day is always an occasion to draw attention to the fact that we in our society are not yet as far along as we would like to be and that we still have a long way to go. We can already rely on many things: Childcare options, flexible working time models, part-time solutions. Nevertheless, more needs to be done: There are many smart women in business and politics. Here we must have the courage to adapt the circumstances so that they too can move up to the front ranks.

This year's motto of International Women’s Day #EachforEqual is a good appeal, because it is drawn from a notion of “Collective Individualism”. Each and every one of us is part of something bigger. Therefore, how we act, what we say, what we do can have huge impact on our larger society. And if we act together, we can actually make a change. 

You can also watch my video on #IWD2020 and #EachforEqual here: