Paying it Forward this International Women's Day

?

Today marks International Women’s Day - first declared a Global Day of Recognition by the UN in 1975 to celebrate the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity – anyone who knows me knows this is very close to my heart! Not least as the mom of three daughters. ???

?

The history of IWD dates back much further than 1975. In fact, one of the first mentions of such a “day” dates back to New York City in 1908 when 15,000 women marched through New York City demanding shorter hours, better pay and voting rights. I’m grateful for those women and all who have come since then. I stand on their shoulders; I build on their foundation, and I bear the responsibility for progress.???

?

I’m struck by the role of women throughout time and around the world. I distinctly recall a trip to India about 12 years ago when I was first introduced to the concept of microfinancing. The company sharing their story told me they chose to invest their funds in women. I was intrigued by this choice, so I asked why… why the specific focus on women? The gentleman’s answer still rings in my ears – he told me that they had realized that when they invested in women, women invested in villages, in education, in infrastructure – they paid it forward. Wow! From villages to board rooms, we need to pay it forward. Supporting other women, mentoring and coaching those around us, investing in who is next.???

?

Others will follow us, yet for now, it’s our time. We need to make faster progress to make sure women entering the workforce today can capture the opportunities we know they are more than qualified to take on. As we look forward to a post-pandemic world of work, I believe we are at another pivotal moment in accelerating progress for women. That is why today we chose to publicly announce our goal to reach 50% women in leadership globally by 2025. I am incredibly proud to work for an organization that is boldly stating our gender equality ambitions and taking action to advance our progress, even faster.??

?

Men and women alike need to invest in the next generation of female leaders. We’ve known for decades that diversity is good for business (our very own @Tomas Chamorro Premuzic shares a breakdown of all the data in his latest Forbes article here).?

?

It is our time in history to make a difference – to make progress faster. So, when someone reflects 100 years from now, they look back on HERstory and question why we ever had a day specifically focusing on closing the gender gap as it will no longer be needed.?

?

On this International Women’s Day, I ask you to reach out to 3 women in your life who have made and are making a difference for you. Tell them, thank them, and fight for all of us with differences that you can see and those you cannot see to have a level field of play – to win on merit of performance and to advance on capabilities. That’s my commitment to each of you and my commitment to the 3 leading ladies in my life – my girls Parker, Payton and Piper.???

?

Becky?

?

#IWD #breakthebias ?