The influence of women in society is continuing to grow. For example, Italy and France recently elected female Prime Ministers for only the first and second time in their respective histories. And women’s football finally came into the spotlight as record crowds saw the Lionesses win Euro 2022. But, even as progress is being made, it’s important to remember what’s required to continue driving positive change. That’s why this year’s International Women’s Day (IWD) theme – #EmbraceEquity – is so important.
Most people will immediately think of ‘equality’ rather than equity. Although the two words are often used interchangeably, they have subtly different meanings. While equality means giving each individual or group of people access to the same resources or opportunities, equity is about giving every person exactly what they need to be successful. It means recognising that everyone has different circumstances and giving them the resources they need to reach an equal outcome.
Equity is a must-have in the modern business landscape. But the concept can mean different things to different people. So, to mark IWD 2023, we asked a number of influential women from across our business one question: ‘what does #EmbraceEquity mean to you?’ Here’s what they had to say.
Chanda Azam,
Engineer Apprentice
"I think it’s important to take a step back occasionally and educate ourselves on what we have the power to do as individuals in helping to create a safe space where diversity is celebrated, and recognising that one size does not fit all. Yes, as women we are breaking the mould of a male dominated industry. Yes, companies are starting to get better at recognising the incredible value women bring to the sector. But that’s not enough. More needs to be done in recognising the different obstacles women have overcome to progress their careers in tech, and we are the ones who should be shouting about this.
“I’ve had what some may describe as an untraditional route into tech. I began my career at BAE Systems as a DevOps Engineering Apprentice, an entry-level route traditionally associated with school or college leavers. Yet I was 32, with no real world experience in tech and a son who was just shy of his second birthday. I’ll be the first to admit that the flexible working approach that BAE Systems offers has been the backbone in allowing me to work full time through my apprenticeship whilst juggling childcare. Some of my peers are able to work the standard 9 to 5 hours, whilst I am not. And that’s okay.
“Equality has meant that I have been fortunate enough to have a second chance, and start a career I love. Equity has meant that I have been able to stay in, and progress in a career I love. I’m so grateful for the opportunities I’ve had since starting my apprenticeship, and I would love to play a part in creating the same opportunities for future generations of women, by #EmbracingEquity.”
Alex Hutchinson,
Software Engineer
“When you think of engineers – whether technical or physical – we are more likely to think of males. This bias was evident high school and continued when I went to study Computer Science at university, where there were at least 25 male students to 1 female student. Even when I began my job at BAE Systems, I was the only female out of the 5 graduates hired in my cohort for the Leeds office. This isn’t anything on BAE Systems – it’s purely the fact that women haven’t traditionally gone into technology based jobs.
“I had the honour of being nominated for a TechWomen100 award and attended the ceremony where women from several tech giants were speaking, and it was truly amazing to see the community we’ve created. If I could have had such role models as are around today when I was younger, I would have counted myself lucky. I’m happy to be a role model for new generations, and that we as women have the voices we so desperately needed all those years ago.
“This year’s theme of #EmbraceEquity resonates with me, as being a part of the LGBTQ+ community and being a women in tech could have put me at a high disadvantage. I challenged the norms of technological facing jobs and pushed myself to succeed. I am lucky in the fact that my name doesn't outwardly suggest I'm female, and I often got called "he" in my reports from school. But this made me feel like I wasn't given the tools to succeed – I had to make them for myself. “My hope for the future is that women won't have to give themselves these tools and skills, but are proactively offered them. And, with these steps in equity, we can achieve equality.”
Annabel Snaith,
Account Director
“I work with some amazing women – both colleagues and customers – who teach and inspire me every day to speak up, take up space and play a bigger role in our critical mission to support a safe and prosperous UK.
“Equity, for me, goes beyond equal opportunity. It’s about acknowledging and then removing the obstacles for progress that exist for certain groups – levelling the playing field so that everyone can contribute their best. I’ll know we’ve made it when I turn up to a thought leadership event or panel, discussing the trends at the forefront of our business, and the fact that the panel is 50:50 female to male – or even all female – is not a cause for discussion or a marketing tactic. It just is.
“This year’s IWD theme of #EmbraceEquity resonates with me because it demands action. Passive support won’t drive change. So let’s discuss what is actually needed to create equity in our day to day, and then support those around us to make it so.”
Dr Kathryn O'Donnell,
Chief Operating Officer, In Space Missions Ltd
“To me, #EmbraceEquity means implementing working approaches that allow suitably motivated and qualified people to have comparable opportunities to achieve goals irrespective of their personal characteristics and circumstances. Looking back on my career so far, I can think of two key aspects that would have been helpful. “First, greater recognition of the need for flexible working. Thankfully, this is far more common nowadays, though it is still frequent for regular senior level meetings to be scheduled at times difficult for working parents (early/late). This disproportionately affects women’s ability to take part, so there are still some improvements to be made!
“Second, as a woman in engineering, I would have found it greatly beneficial if senior leaders were coached to recognise leadership/management styles other than their own. Working in a male dominated environment meant leadership styles rooted lacked empathy, and other traits that women are socialised to develop, were only appreciated by a minority which was frustrating.
“With this all in mind, we have done a lot of work to try to ensure our working practices are as flexible as possible to embrace a variety of lifestyles. As a result, we have had great success in tempting highly qualified woman back to work from career breaks (usually due to family commitments). In a recent UN Space4Women survey we punched well above our weight with the working practices we’d embedded to #EmbraceEquity from a gender perspective, which is something we’re proud of and hope to continue to improve on.”
Carly Mohamed,
Field Marketing Manager
“I love my job, but after having my two children I wasn’t sure if I would ever be able to manage it on a full time basis again. Thankfully the business has been really supportive of flexible working and it’s only because of this that I’ve been able to continue working full time.
“I would never be able to successfully balance everything without the chance to work from home – this for me is what #EmbraceEquity means. My working requirements are viewed as individual and I’m not expected to replicate the working pattern of anyone else on the basis that we should all work the same way. I truly believe that a diverse workforce is a better one and by ensuring we #EmbraceEquity we allow for those different experiences, situations and talent to thrive within the business.”
Jen Openshaw,
Software Engineer
“For me, embracing equity means creating a workplace and a society that not only accommodates, but celebrates and nurtures our differences. That could be differences in approach, in temperament, in lifestyle, in responsibilities, in personality, as well as gender. Embracing equity does not mean one size fits all. It means recognising difference and allowing everyone to flourish regardless.
“Too often, workplaces seem designed to work for men, at the expense of women. Without a doubt, things are improving but there is still a mountain to climb. For example, embracing equity means creating a workplace that works for mums. By the age of 40, 86% of women will be mothers. Those same women, who have spent years building a career, are the senior leaders in our organisations. And yet 85% of women leave the full-time workforce within 3 years of having a child, leading to a lack of senior female role models. Embracing equity means creating flexible, supportive workplaces that allow women to continue their fulfilling careers, whilst also being free to dedicate the time they need to their caring responsibilities.
“I wholeheartedly welcome the focus on embracing equity this International Women’s Day and look forward to seeing more progress in the future.”
Mivy James,
Digital Transformation Director
“The key to embracing equity is to realise that in order to enable people to have equal opportunities, they actually need to be treated differently and recognised as individuals. All too often advice given to women in the workplace fails to recognise this and focuses on trying to get women to emulate stereotypical alpha male traits in order to be successful leaders.”
Explore Diversity and Inclusion a BAE Systems Digital Intelligence, or get in touch to find out more.