February 2021
Distribution 5,767
#ChooseToChallenge
by Julie Andress
KeyBanc Capital Markets & STA WIF Co-Chair



March 8 is International Women’s Day.

A global holiday that dates back to 1909, International Women's Day (IWD) celebrates women’s contributions to society, raises awareness about the fight for gender parity and inspires support for organizations that help women globally.

The theme of IWD 2021 is #ChooseToChallenge, which highlights the importance of challenging biases and misconceptions in the interest of creating a more inclusive and gender-equal world. According to IWD.com, "A challenged world is an alert world. Individually, we're all responsible for our own thoughts and actions, all day, every day. We can all choose to challenge and call out gender bias and inequality. We can all choose to seek out and celebrate women's achievements. Collectively, we can all help create an inclusive world. From challenge comes change, so let's all choose to challenge."

Throughout the year, take concrete steps to support women in all facets of your life — support woman-owned businesses, mentor a direct report or someone who can benefit from your knowledge and experience, and send notes of inspiration and hope to your fellow female colleagues, friends and family members.

Over the next couple of weeks, you'll see images of people with hands raised up high in support of this year's IWD across social media and other outlets that champion gender equality. The STA Women in Finance initiative realizes how powerful collective efforts like #IWD2021 are in promoting diversity and inclusion, particularly within financial services. Our industry has made great strides over the years, yet there is still much work to be done. By fostering discussions of diversity and inclusion, encouraging men to take an active role in diversity initiatives, and helping women access networking and career opportunities, STA WIF is committed to continuing this progress.
 
So on Monday, March 8, raise your hand up to show you're in.

Throughout the year, take concrete steps to support women in all facets of your life — support woman-owned businesses, mentor a direct report or someone who can benefit from your knowledge and experience, and send notes of inspiration and hope to your fellow female colleagues, friends and family members. As powerful as industry-wide initiatives can be, the fight for equality begins with each one of us.

Let's #ChooseToChallenge in 2021. I know I will.
Articles of Interest
             
Workplace Equality Improves When Women Mentor Men
Forbes
A recent study from Concordia University revealed that mentoring often helps the mentor as much as the mentee. The authors suggest that the more mentors actually provided mentoring support, the more they saw themselves as leaders. Research from the University of Michigan suggests that mentoring may also have benefits in terms of enhancing gender equality at work. The study argues that when female executives mentor men it helps to remedy inequality at work.

How to Be a “Glass-Shattering” Organization
Harvard Business Review
Advancing gender equality is certainly desirable, but may not seem vital during this turbulent time — yet that assumption couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, losing sight of gender equity right now is likely to put you at a real disadvantage when the pandemic begins to recede.

Best Programs Improving Diversity and Inclusion in Financial Services
Investopedia
The financial services industry has a major problem with diversity. Despite decades of campaigning and many programs aimed at making financial services companies more diverse, most boardrooms remain predominantly white and male.

A Bulletproof System for Career Success
Thrive Global
In the past, the two most common professional goals were usually wealth creation and role advancement. Today, that’s not the case. Career success in 2021 is about creating alignment between your goals, intentions, activities, and environment. But how?

Solving The Workplace Gender Equality Problem Post-Pandemic
Forbes
Many people have taken note of how the pandemic has forced businesses to develop at a much faster rate than they otherwise would have done. But the start of the pandemic suggested that in terms of gender equality, we may actually go backward. Women have dropped out of the workforce at a far greater rate than men since March 2020. 

How to Recession-Proof Your Career
Career Contessa
Recession is a scary word. Whether the economy is currently in one or a recession is looming, it’s not something people like to add to their list of experiences. When there’s talk of recession, it’s often followed by words like layoffs, furloughs, and job loss (cue the panic and anxiety). So, how can you keep your job when there’s talk of terminations?
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