Celebrating International Women's Day 2023
It's International Women's Day and at PPDS we are delighted to celebrate women in AV, women in tech and all women across the globe. Our Head of Communications, Vicky Fox, delves into why its important to recognise the women in our industry...
Women in tech are sorely underrepresented. That is no new news and it is a fact that is regularly well covered. Actually, the latest statistics suggest that women currently hold only 26.7 percent of tech-related jobs and, more concerning, that the percentage of women in all tech-related careers has decreased over the last two years. Meanwhile, globally, women account for 47.7 percent of the global workforce.
These statistics show that there is a long way to go to bringing a more balanced workforce into tech. Workplace cultures are evolving, though, and STEM and STEAM programs in schools are opening new avenues and opportunity for all.
At PPDS, our ways of working all lead toward our vision, mission and values. As partners in business we build long-term, trusted, and valuable relationships with our people, business partners and customers. Our collaboration is always based on reliability, integrity and respect. One of the reasons, maybe, behind us bucking the industry trend, with a ratio that is above average for women in tech, and in some teams, significantly so.
For instance, in the UK, women make up over 40 percent of the team. And our latest recruits in both Europe and North America have been women. Check out today's news about AV sales specialist, Kristen O’Connor, joining our North American team.
What's more, when our people from around the globe come together as one - for sales kick-offs, large events such as ISE and InfoComm, and others - it is always great to see that PPDS women, in their roles in sales and operations, through to product management and communications, have a well respected, well represented and strong voice.
Sitting down to write this article, I asked just a couple of my colleagues what that means for them...
Clara Guerra ten Broek, our Lead Europe Sales Support | OBM CS, has been a member of the team since 2021, joining us with experience in a number of leading brand organisations.
Answering the question, 'what does it mean to you to be a woman in tech?', she told us:
"I am thrilled to be part of a technology company, bringing a different approach or perspective to all projects I am involved in.
"I hope to be an inspiration to other women, so they too can embrace the technology world and join us breaking the underlying myth that this is a male industry.”
Meanwhile, answering how working at PPDS is different, Andrea Herczeg-Bakker, who is our Head of Operations for EMEA, and who has worked at PPDS for over four years, and with the Philips brand for over 15 years, said:
“Being a Supply Chain Operations Leader as a woman in our male dominated industry is a challenging role in itself.
"At PPDS I feel that women are embraced, empowered and encouraged to participate in shaping the future of the business.
"I am proud that PPDS is 'Open to Women In Technology' and 'Open to you'.”
Well said, I believe, and inspiring for us, for the industry, and for all our children into the future. Collaboration is key. For me, on International Women's Day and every day, I am super proud to be a woman working in AV, and especially with the teams at PPDS and I celebrate teamwork, innovation and inspiration - not just from women, but from our entire diverse workplace.
