Larne Launches We Will Chapter for Women’s Empowerment

By Emma Duffy

Magic happened in Terumo Blood and Technologies' site in Larne, Northern Ireland last month when we launched the Larne Chapter of We Will. There was great energy in the room as we were treated to a talk from our guest speakers Christine White, Head of Corporate at Women in Business, Northern Ireland and Lisa Strutt, Leadership Coach and Adviser.

During Christine's talk, we learned how to recognise burnout, how to manage imposter syndrome, and how to focus on our health and well-being. We also learned how to move out of our comfort zone and utilise our We Will network and other networks to help us in our journey.?

Christine shared with us how a recent PWC study assessed that Northern Ireland's economy could benefit from as much as ￡2.3 billion if the number of women in the workforce was increased to the same level as the UK's top-performing region.

The question "what if someone in this room has the answer to your question" resonated with all of us, as we all have something to offer each other in terms of support, learning, and growth.?The encouragement for us to push ourselves out of our comfort zone, as this is where the magic happens, was reinforced as we participated in Lisa Strutt's 2-minute active listening exercise.?The activity involved us sharing our story with the person beside us, where we talked continuously for 2 minutes, and the other person did not interrupt!

We were also given some activities to think about between now and the next We Will Larne event: aim to meet one person we met at the event for a coffee; consider what our "giving strategy" is and what our "asking for help strategy" is; and sign up to some of the fantastic Women in Business Northern Ireland events that are open to all Terumo Blood and Cell Technologies associates in Larne.

Thank you to all who attended and all who?helped to make the event happen.?Thanks,?in particular,?to the?collective Larne We Will Committee led by Mary Clare Skillen,?and the Larne Leadership team for supporting the event.?Larne is delighted to be part of the Global We Will Women's Empowerment network. People are the key to our success in work and life and we will contribute to society by empowering our female-identifying associates to Unlock Our Potential, create belonging and generate opportunities.