By Gabriela Solís, UN WEPs reporter
On the occasion of International Women’s Day, and in line with Principle 4 of the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs)(promote education, training and professional development for women), two of our signatory members partnered up to put together an event designed for women looking to further advance their professional careers.
Through a selection process carried out by Hopscotch, thirty women were picked and invited to spend the morning of the 8th of March learning, networking and showcasing their abilities to Chalhoub recruitment team, a leading company in the luxury-retailing industry looking to hire new talent for their digital section.
Fuelled by breakfast and coffee and after a warm welcome by both Chalhoub and Hopscotch teams, the session opened with guest Pauline Ansari, CDO at MyList, who inspired and motivated the audience by sharing her professional and unusual journey into the digital world, as well as giving inspiring tips and advices to all attendees.
Followed by Pauline, Helen McGuire, Co-Founder and MD of Hopscotch, also added her personal inspiration doses and shared her professional path, which included a change of industry when she created her company. “Moving around is difficult, but is possible”, she said as a form of encouragement to all the attendees who were also looking to take their careers to the next level.
Sarah Sillow, Head of Transformation Projects – Digital Transformation at Chalhoub, took the stand as well and focused on the company’s working culture and goals for the upcoming years. “Start small, fail fast to scale fast”, was a phrase she constantly repeated in order to reflect the company’s vision. She also shared Chalhoub’s digital projects and the features the company is looking for in their next employees.
To wrap up, each one of the attendees was given a unique opportunity of chatting with Chalhoub’s Talent Teams about the day, showcase their abilities and hand over their CV’s; an occasion that filled the room with excitement, a feeling confirmed by one of the attendees. “Digital Women was a great initiative – bringing women together from a similar background. I think every single person should take advantage of this.” Hemalatha
Chalhoub and Hopscotch efforts to bring work opportunities to professional women in Dubai is a testimony of the different ways companies in the private sector can empower women. Having the support and encouragement of the WEPs UAE local network, companies have a compass to guide their women empowerment agenda, while improving their business and the local economy.
If your company has a working force of more than ten employees and your values align with ours, don’t hesitate to contact us to learn more about how can you become a member, through our Outreach Team at hanane.arif@socgen.com and malouf.ag@pg.com.