Fearless girl moves to London #BalanceforBetter

The “fearless girl” statue, which was installed on Wall Street in 2017 facing down the statue of a charging bull, has come to London to mark international women’s day.

Sarah Kaiser, Employee Experience, Diversity & Inclusion Lead, Fujitsu EMEIA has shared her thoughts on what this move symbolises for the celebration of women in under-represented industries such as finance:

“The news that the fearless girl statue has come to London signals something momentous – how much better we, as a nation, has become at recognising the strength of women in traditionally male-dominated industries – such as finance or technology. Although we’ve come a long way in celebrating girls and women, there is still a lot more work that needs to be done to attract female talent into these industries specifically. The simple truth is that a shortage of candidates is partly due to a lack of awareness of the opportunities that exist, and the flawed perception that some groups, such as women, don’t belong in these professions.

“One way we can pave the way for more girls to pursue STEM careers is by telling the stories of some of the great female trailblazers that have shaped our world. The unveiling of the first female statue in Parliament Square – the suffragist campaigner Millicent Fawcett – last year is a prime example of how making female role models more visible will inspire young girls and women to follow in their footsteps. As you can’t adequately think about what people worldwide need if you don’t have a diverse team, providing insight from all perspectives and promoting diversity is crucial for ensuring the future competitive of the economy.”

Wendy Warham, VP Hybrid Infrastructure Services and Networks & Telecoms, EMEIA, DTS, Fujitsu Services has shared her thoughts on what this year’s IWD means to her:

“Driving gender equality within an organisation is about being courageous and transparent enough to face difficult questions on the topic – for which there are plenty. As Fujitsu’s Women in Business executive sponsor for our Women’s Business Network, and given my role on the company’s diversity council, I’m committed to making sure that we, as a company, do the right thing to ensure we are representative on behalf of our workforce.  I’m currently looking at what I should be listening out for, ensuring I do my part to drive the right actions at board level and throughout the organisation. Recently for instance, I had some really productive conversations with top executives at Fujitsu about how we can collaborate to ensure we’re continuously looking for tangible ways to make a real difference to employees.

“That’s why, this year’s IWD’s tagline – #BalanceforBetter – couldn’t be more relevant in today’s business landscape: driving the gender diversity agenda is not just as simple as promoting more women, it’s about getting the right balance in teams, the boardroom and across the whole organisation. Ensuring gender diversity internally isn’t down to just one person or department – it’s about looking at what we can do together to create a better environment in which women can succeed. But in order to make that change, you need everyone to feel connected.”