International Women’s Day: Break the Bias with Corporate Ink

Happy International Women’s Day! As a predominantly female agency, this holiday is near and dear to our hearts. Today we reflect on all the progress we’ve made towards gender equality as a society so far, while acknowledging the work that still must be done.

We asked the incredible women who make up our agency – both our internal team and clients – to share what IWD means to them.

This year’s International Women’s Day theme is #BreakTheBias. What do you do daily to break the bias in your workplace?

• “Speak up! In meetings, discussions, whenever you can. Business needs uniquely female insights to be part of every conversation. The more diverse the input, the better the solutions. It’s okay to interrupt to make sure you are heard. Women should not feel the need to apologize for being assertive.” – Jodie Vashistha, Content Marketing Lead at Supply Wisdom

• “By not just “talking the talk”, but actually “walking the walk”. Many companies sincerely want to break gender bias and are working to do so. But I honestly believe that Corporate Ink is ahead of the pack in this regard. Our team members are encouraged every day to step up and lead initiatives, take complete ownership of projects they find interesting, and are empowered to share their ideas on how our workplace can continue to break boundaries.” – Chrissy Azevedo, Account Director at Corporate Ink

• “I do my best to empower women by putting them in situations where they feel empowered. I also remind them to self promote their work and not to wait for someone to acknowledge their contributions. Men don’t wait. Women shouldn’t either.” – Andrea Brody, CMO at Riskonnect

• “I strive to create an environment that encourages dialog, is open to hearing different perspectives, and reinforces that fact that the ability to accomplish a task or shoulder responsibility in any role or aspect of life is not gender dependent.” – Jodi Kukla, VP of Demand Generation at PRO Unlimited

Which gender biases do you choose to challenge – in society, or across PR and marketing?

• “I choose to challenge that both men and women are supposed to fit into a certain mold and be a certain type of person. More and more today we see various brands and companies finally starting to promote individuality and that every person is unique and can be whoever or whatever they want to be, and I think that’s beautiful.” – Abbey Fletcher, Account Executive at Corporate Ink

• “That women are too emotional for leadership positions. Emotions are POSITIVE! Empathy, sensitivity, intuition – these are all emotive qualities that actually make a leader great.” – Tori Vichroski, Account Director at Corporate Ink

• “I choose to voice my opinions, even if they aren’t the most popular ones. More women need to feel free to speak up, especially when they feel no one is listening.” – Anna Morais, Account Coordinator at Corporate Ink

What are your hopes for the future when it comes to gender equality for women in business?

• “That business will not only fill the seats all the way to the top leadership and board positions with a diverse and true representation of society, but that it will also seek to hear, understand, and incorporate these diverse perspectives into decision making.” – Jodie Vashistha, Content Marketing Lead at Supply Wisdom

• “More transparency, fairer opportunities and real action from employers vs rhetoric.” – Caroline Mather, Marketing Director at OAG

• “It is the responsibility of both men and women. Men need to be aware of their natural bias. We all have them and that likely won’t change. What can change is the awareness during critical times such as hiring and promoting employees. Women need to start owning the inequality change. Men don’t think twice when it comes to asking for what they want. They don’t worry about what people think and they often don’t hesitate sharing their thoughts and ideas with confidence. Women need to learn from them. They are as equal as men and should begin to acknowledge that in their actions.” – Andrea Brody, CMO at Riskonnect

• “My hope is that we can see pay and opportunity equality for all. That we no longer define an individual by their gender or race, but simply by the contributions they make to the business. Diversity and uniqueness of thought has been proven to make organizations better, more successful. We need to celebrate that diversity versus be afraid of it. Bias education for everyone in business would help employees better understand and hopefully change behavior that harms portions of our employee base.” – Kathie Gaddy, Director of Corporate Communications at ujet.cx

• “Today, it’s exciting to hear that a woman has been appointed to a major leadership role. In five years, it’s my hope that women in major leadership roles are so common that, though we’re still rooting for them, we don’t think twice about a woman earning the position against a man.” – Anna Morais, Account Coordinator at Corporate Ink

• “It’s important that companies continue to move the needle for gender equality by empowering women with training and leadership development programs and focus on breaking the bias of how we think about gender and family dynamics in the workplace.” – Jodi Kukla, VP of Demand Generation at PRO Unlimited

What does International Women’s Day mean to you?

• “A chance for us all to take a moment to reflect on what has been accomplished and what yet has to be done to be more inclusive of women in ALL aspects of business (from the Board of Directors all the way down). It is a perfect opportunity for us to educate our children on the importance of continually to be aware of the challenges women still face.” – Kathie Gaddy, Director of Corporate Communications at ujet.cx 

• “This is a day where we should honor women leaders who have done so much to bring equal rights and opportunities to women over the years but also reflect on what needs to be done better to create a fully inclusive society.” – Elle Lynott, Senior Account Executive at Corporate Ink

• “It serves as a reminder to everyone to be accountable and take action to help forge a better, more gender inclusive world in and out of the workplace.” – Jodi Kukla, VP of Demand Generation at PRO Unlimited

• “It means awareness. Change doesn’t happen overnight. Having international women’s day means at least for one day, we are reminded to be mindful of bias. Hopefully, that helps build the muscle to continue to practice it.” – Andrea Brody, CMO at Riskonnect

• “It means acknowledging our similarities and celebrating our differences. Applauding the female trailblazers before me and raising a generation of strong women after me.” – Tori Vichroski, Account Director at Corporate Ink

• “Reminds us we have a long way to go still but is a day to celebrate what women bring to society and the world.” – Caroline Mather, Marketing Director at OAG

What’s your number one piece of advice to aspiring market leaders?    

• “It’s not enough to fill the seats with a diverse group. In order to reap the benefits of diversity, unique perspectives must be shared and incorporated into decision making. Companies need to build a culture that actively seeks out women’s unique perspectives and encourages the sharing of these insights. Business should recognize the unique characteristics of women leaders and the culture should encourage them to lead as their authentic selves.” – Jodie Vashistha, Content Marketing Lead at Supply Wisdom

• “Walk-the-walk and root out the underlying gender issues – boardroom bias, patronizing behaviors – those are the hardest to tackle.” – Caroline Mather, Marketing Director at OAG

• “I have a quote by Eleanor Roosevelt on my desk that I read every day “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” This applies to everyone! We must all be confident in our own abilities while respecting others. As a female that has worked with executives (mostly men) my whole career, I could have easily stayed silent in the face of stronger personalities. But I didn’t. I spoke up when I thought it was important, believed in my convictions. Over the years, those leaders I may have feared initially have come to rely on my guidance and my contributions to the business. Each and every person has the opportunity to make a difference – find your path, find your confidence, and never let anyone make you feel inferior.” – Kathie Gaddy, Director of Corporate Communications at ujet.cx

Interested in joining the powerful, female-filled team at Corporate Ink? Visit our LinkedIn page for current job openings.