There are only 10,7 % females in the Dutch boardrooms* and 15% in Supervisory Boards*. So there is much work to be done to help increase these numbers. At Female Ventures we strive to inspire women to make an impact which we believe will help increase the current numbers and support the drive to have more women taking a ‘seat at the table’..
Before telling you about an interesting happening during a recent Female Ventures event, I may need to explain a bit more about the context of our ‘Storytelling’ events.
Female Ventures organizes inspiring and very lively events for ambitious women in business. Young, young of mind, experienced or still a student, our events are open to all. Our attendees are always an interesting mix of various generations, gender, and come from all types of backgrounds. After listening to great stories of women who run their own companies or work at SME’s, Government and Corporate organizations, attendees reach a final sense of epiphany during the talks, leaving them motivated, inspired and empowered.
At the end of each speaker’s presentation, the speaker poses a question – a challenge to the audience. A business-related topic, where she is asking for support. And then it happens, like a catalyst, you see some amazing things occur. All of a sudden, everyone wants the microphone to offer tips, advice, each individual opening up her network for valuable connections, for mentorship offers and more. We no longer sit in our chair, we stand up, we want attention, and yes ,we want to give support!
It’s incredible to witness, each and every time, again and again, the inspiration, the eagerness to help and support others, resulting in great instants of interaction amongst the audience. A synergy that is boundless.
At one of these amazing events, we had a speaker who told us about her career in the Netherlands, in a male dominated tech industry. She spoke about how she managed to be successful and climb the ladder at her market leading employer.
And then, as she came to describe her challenge, she asked for tips and support on ‘How can I create an impact?’ As her employer was expanding ,she felt quite distanced from her Board of Directors and said, ‘ I’d like to gain their attention, to be sat at the same table’ …
All in all, a great challenge was presented and tips and advice flew across the entire room. Gratefully accepted by our speaker and hopefully to be implemented soon, she ended the evening inspired and fully charged and armed to face her next day at work.
And then it happened once more; social media worked. Female Ventures posted a small ‘thank you all’ to the sponsoring event location and to the speakers of the event. The LinkedIn post was viewed by thousands, in only a few days, many liking the post, and amongst them, were colleagues and management team members of our speaker’s employer. It all ended with our speaker’s employer complimenting her on her talk, and in addition, reaching out to Female Ventures, requesting how we could collaborate together.
Personally, I am really motivated and happy to see this transpiring as a result of our events. I admire the ambition to create an impact and I am surprised on how fast we attracted the attention of our speakers’ colleagues and members of her employers’ management team. By telling her story and sharing her ambition on the Female Ventures stage, our speaker already started making an impact. I trust this lady will kick the ball and run towards the goal post, energised and fully charged.
To all the amazing women out there, I say, GO! GO! GO!
*Statistic – Bedrijvenmonitor Topvrouwen 2017, Van Doorne Huiskes en Partners, 6 March 2018