International Women's Day lands on Friday 8th March, and Bank of Ireland is already celebrating it with a series of events to promote the work of women in business and technical roles across the company.When it comes to promoting women in leadership and tech positions, Bank of Ireland fares better than most large businesses in the UK. Women
accounted for around 36% of all management and leadership roles at the company back in April 2018 when the group committed to gender equality in executive hires by 2021, while
the UK average at the time was only 22%.
The bank reaffirmed its commitment this week and launched a series of events to celebrate International Women's Day on March 8th. Over 130 guests from local businesses were invited to the first event this week, featuring guest speaker and world-renowned explorer Rebecca Stephens MBE (the first British Woman to climb Everest and the Seven Summits) to talk about resilience and diversity in business.
The official theme of International Women’s Day for 2019 is "Balance for Better," as the scheme calls on businesses around the world to aim for gender balance in the world of work. This event in Belfast was the first Bank of Ireland celebration this week, but it won't be the last. There are more events celebrating International Women’s Day scheduled in London, Dublin, Galway, Cork, Limerick, Athlone, and Kilkenny.
Bank of Ireland's Managing Director (NI) Ian Sheppard reaffirmed the bank's commitment to gender equality, saying "Bank of Ireland is committed to promoting equality and female leadership across our business. We wanted to create a series of events to celebrate for a full week instead of just one day. As a business leader and also a father of three daughters, I know how important it is for businesses like Bank of Ireland to lead our industry in making sure women have the same opportunities as men."
Source: Written based on press release
About the author
Brendan is a Sync NI writer with a special interest in the gaming sector, programming, emerging technology, and physics. To connect with Brendan, feel free to send him an email or follow him on Twitter.
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