On 19 June, the EU Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society Mariya Gabriel and Godmother of our Women Talent Pool programme has hosted the Digital4Her conference in Brussels, focusing on building concrete measures to ensure gender equality in the digital sector.

During the Digital4Her Conference, WIL President Thaima Samman, together with 20 high-level representatives from the Digital sector including our Member Isabella Lenarduzzi, Founder and CEO of JUMP, signed on behalf of WIL Europe the Declaration and call to action to EU corporate tech leaders to achieve gender balance in their companies through 4 concrete measures:

• promote an open and female-friendly company culture;
• implement recruitment and human resources business policies fully aware of the importance to invest in women;
• make senior management and top positions (for the most part occupied by men) concretely accessible to women;
• identify potential female leaders and train them to develop their strengths and play high-level roles;

While being a strong acknowledgment of the necessity of having more women in STEM, this Declaration is also a reminder of the work that remains to be done... and of the importance of initiatives such as our network!

On behalf of WIL Europe, Antoniya Parvanova invited EU Commissioner Mariya Gabriel to become Patron of the 4th edition of our Women Talent Pool programme. The EU Commissioner gladly accepted our invitation and will also take part in the kick-off event of the 4th edition of our Women Talent Pool programme, which will be organised with our Premium Partner Orange, in the offices of Orange in Paris, on 15 March 2018.

The objectives of this meeting were the following:

• further introduce our network, highlighting WIL’s effort to help increase women presence and leadership in the digital sector;

• present our Women Talent Pool programme and discuss the Commissioner’s role as Patron of the 4th edition and her talk during our kick-off event;

• discuss future collaboration opportunities, in particular how WIL Europe could contribute to the Commissioner’s agenda and initiatives when it comes to promoting women in digital.

      

On the afternoon of Monday, December 5th, 2016, WIL Europe was honored to be welcomed at the French Representation to the EU in Brussels, for a very high quality networking cocktail with Ann Mettler, Head of European Political Strategy Centre at European Commission.

As the discussion was meant to be informal and warm, in order to foster shares of experiences and exchanges between Ann Mettler and a restricted number of 30 WIL members and WTP Alumni.

François Riégert, Minister-Counsellor, Head of the economic service at the French Representation to the EU in Brussels, opened the evening networking cocktail with few words welcoming to the guests and the talents. He expressed his satisfaction to witness major changes in terms of gender parity in EU institutions in the recent years.

Pinuccia Contino, Head of the Unit “Communication and Strategic Planning” of DG Justice and Consumers and Paulina Dejmek-Hack, Member of Cabinet of J. C. Juncker, as WIL Board Members, introduced the keynote speaker of the evening Ann Mettler to the guests, and emphasized her resilience through the tortuous path toward leadership.

Ann Mettler then took the stage to reflect with the audience on her inspiring path through the European Institutions, entrepreneurship and think tank. Sharing her successes, but also her doubts and difficulties on her way to leadership, she gave a wonderful testimonial of resilience, and a tremendous example that authenticity, passion and hardwork can overcome any barriers. She acknowledged that the path toward leadership is not always easy, but “find a job you’re keen about, and it will worth it”. Either way, she advised women to dare: to dare having great ambitions, and to dare to pursue them. Stepping out of their comfort zone is also risking failure, but that shall not prevent them from trying again, and succeed. “I have not always succeeded, I had major failure too. But I’ve always tried, as hard as I could. And that I can be proud of.”

Anne Mettler, Head of European Political Strategy Centre at European Commission

Talking about her experience in entrepreneurship (as the co-founder of The Lisbon Council, a Brussels-based knowledge economy think tank and innovation policy network) she encouraged any woman, and especially working moms, to try this experience. Being her own boss not only makes you the sole responsible of your success, it also gives more flexibility to adjust working hours with family life requirements.

Ann Mettler closed the session by giving precious pieces of advices to the Talents : Being authentic, be yourself and do not try to be a man, make yourself indispensable to your boss, and bring passion to everything you achieve.

On November 8th, WIL Europe was thrilled to be hosted by the French Ministry for Families, Children, and Women’s Rights, for a powerful yet intimate dinner with the French Minister Laurence Rossignol in Paris. The dinner gathered 16 top-notch women business executives, members of the European Institutions, representatives of non-governmental organizations and academics, to discuss the theme: “How to promote women in leadership roles in Europe / Accèlerer l’accès des femmes aux postes de responsabilité en Europe.” The participants shared with the French Minister Laurence Rossignol insights, best practices, and fostered a common reflection on women’s empowerment at the European level. 

The discussion was structured into 3 sub-themes: Promouvoir les femmes dans des postes de direction/Promoting women in leadership positions; La gestion des talents féminins/Managing women's talents; Les politiques européennes en matière de promotion des femmes, à l'échelle nationale et européenne/European policies to promote women in Europe and the European countries.