In the run up to International Women’s Day being celebrated on March 8th, Paperjam + Delano business club hosted a successful “10×6 Women on Board” event on February 28th with a fantastic line-up of speakers from all fields. The main theme, bringing diversity to the Board, was emphatically explained by all speakers but what resonated the most with the audience was how both male leaders and female influencers can play their role in placing more women on strategic assignments and giving them an opportunity to explore new avenues.
In 2021, EU data showed women occupied 30.6 per cent of boardroom positions across the bloc, but this varied widely country by country, with Cyprus having 8.5 per cent of women on boards, and France more than 45 per cent.
Charlotte Pedersen, from Pegasus Consilium, very aptly stated, “Walk the talk! It is not enough to just talk about diversity and gender equality. Be the role model and a change maker”. Najia Belbal from Women Cyber Force further reiterated that gender equality will only be reached if we “remove the barriers and empower” our next generation.
There were a few gasps from the audience when the picture below of ECB Governing Council was referred to by Anne-Pascale Malréchauffé, from Clearstream, in her presentation. This picture is a snapshot to the theme of the evening that diversity on Board is not only a matter of fairness. It also drives growth and innovation. There are plenty of women qualified for top jobs and they should be able to get them.
At Women Cyber Force, we are proud of the diversity represented in our Board. The support received by not only our fabulous female founding members but also the male leaders from organisation across Luxembourg is truly commendable!
We welcome members, both women and men, from all fields to join us and be a proud part of advocating gender parity. I will end with a quote from the 10×6 event, “Achieving gender equality requires the engagement of women and men, boys and girls. It is everyone’s responsibility.”