As we wrap up the month, we review the activities and discussion the Collier's team had for International Women's Day on 8 March.
As March comes to a close, it is time to wrap up a month of great activities and discussion the Colliers’ team had around diversity in the workplace, as we celebrated International Women's Day on 8 March.
How can we nurture women in the workplace?
WeiLeng Tang, Managing Director: "Empowerment, awareness and stakeholder education — this is the way forward to advance women in the workplace. Women today are generally well educated and confident.
Empowering them through sharing and learning sessions at the appropriate levels where they can hear first-hand from successful women leaders — insights of their journey and what people don’t tell you. Stakeholder awareness and education are important to manage perceptions and any conscious and unconscious bias."
WATCH: #IWD2021 - WeiLeng Tang, Managing Director
What does IWD mean to you?
Sophia Kim, Senior Manager, Advisory & Consulting: "Over the past years, I have studied and worked in US, UK and Singapore. I am sometimes confronted gender and social /cultural barriers as a female and one of the minority ethnic groups. The ways to challenge them is to believe in yourself and to respect others.
International Women’s Day is personal to me, as it is a time for you to celebrate your own accomplishments as well as to celebrate the achievements of other inspiring women. It is a time for us to recognise it together as a global community and take one step closer to gender equality."
WATCH: #IWD2021 - Sophia Kim and Jonathan Denis-Jacob, of Consulting and Advisory Services
What advice would you give to a woman joining your team?
Stephen Bruce, Executive Director & Head, Real Estate Management Services: "Diversity in the workplace ensures a variety of different perspectives. Having a team with different characteristics and backgrounds means a greater variety of skills and experiences which ultimately drive performance. The advice I would give to a young woman joining our team is to be bold, brave and speak out."
WATCH: #IWD2021 - Jaqueline Choo and Stephen Bruce, of Real Estate Management Services
How do you succeed in a male-dominated environment?
Rick Thomas, Managing Director, Emerging Markets: "Take on a leadership role, step out of your comfort zone. You don't need to have a leadership title to be considered a leader in your office. Whatever your position, find a leadership role you can excel in — whether it's heading up a key initiative, solving problems and resolving conflict, or calm decision making in a crisis — and push yourself to be the go-to person for those situations."
Do you recognise the importance of female being a role model?
LingWei Kong, Director, Capital Markets: "Being a role model is so important! I have a young daughter and I am more conscious of that than ever. A good role model demonstrates confidence and leadership and is not afraid to be unique. A role model also needs to interact with everyone, communicate clearly and show concerns for others. Finally, a role model should have humility and willingness to admit mistakes."
Watch our other videos for International Women's Day:
- Lindy Lim and Bastiaan van Beijsterveldt, of Occupier Services
- Pearl Lok and Steven Tan, of Capital Markets and Investment Services
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