Gender equality: Women need to reinvent themselves
By: Cecile Dick Calmes
Tags: Gender Equality, Marketing, Covid 19, Women In Business, Women

I read women’s jobs are being eliminated at 1.8 times higher the rate than male jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Women are also voluntarily leaving the workforce to pick up the extra home and childcare responsibilities which creates a regressive effect on gender equality.

The “broken rung” that held millions of women back from being promoted to manager has not been repaired. There are two paths ahead. If companies recognize the scale of these problems and do all they can to address them, they can help their employees get through this difficult time and even reinvent the way they work so it’s more flexible and sustainable for everyone. If not, the consequences could badly hurt women, businesses, and the economy as a whole. We can see a regression in progress that will cost us $1 trillion in global GDP over the next ten years.

After my layoff and with a baby on the way, I was wondering how I could still use my social media skills while at the same time learning how to be a new mother. What am I good at? What do I enjoy? What kind of mother do I want to be? What do I want the next career path to be? I had never thought about becoming a digital marketing freelancer until this unusual year.

A good friend of mine recommended reaching out to the Dept. 11 agency. It’s a woman-owned, woman-run integrated marketing consultancy. I immediately loved the idea of working with a community of marketing for women. When women work together, we can improve our workplace, make it more innovative and more successful.

As soon as I reached out to the consultancy group, I felt at ease. I discovered that Dept. 11 is an incredible place and the founder, as much as the staff members, are all supportive, skilled, talented women — and moms. I couldn’t recall the last time I felt such joy at work. Also , I realized that I am much happier when I work with other women.

It is not surprising that Dept. 11 is certified by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE), and as a Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB). I am proud to work for a marketing consultancy that, at its core, not only supports diversity and inclusion, but also promotes it within their organization. They value their consultants and like to work closely with each of us. I believe women supporting other women blended with inclusion for all is the recipe for success.

My consulting journey has given me the opportunity to work in a diverse industry. I am learning every day: from conducting social media audits, research, and analysis to identifying opportunities and creating new social media content.

I encourage every woman and man to join a women-owned business. You will learn how to reinvent yourself with the incredible support of your peers.

As 2020 is coming to an end, there is still time to get curious, to set your goals for next year, and to get out of your comfort zone. I encourage each of you to learn more about entrepreneurial opportunities. We need to admit that this pandemic has forced us to be more flexible, kinder with ourselves and with others, and also to look for the work-life balance we need.

Sources:

McKinsey Women in the Workplace 2020

LeanIn.Org

Women in the workplace.com