Press Release
RVU welcomes Catherine O’Dowd for International Women's Day - Break The Bias 2022
On Tuesday 8th March the Women’s ERG committee organised a global virtual event across RVU London, RVU India, Rastreator, Confused.com, Mojo Mortgages and LeLynx.
For International Women's Day 2022, the theme is #BreakTheBias, a global call to arms to tackle discrimination, celebrate our differences and forge an equal future.
The morning saw a ‘Bake the Bias’ event, encouraging everyone to bring in their bakes to raise money for our designated charity SEO London. Together we managed to raise a total of £19,261.52!
The afternoon saw a live streamed in person and virtual global event which touched on Breaking the Bias topics, including RVU’s very own panellists:
Head of Product at Confused.com, Rowan Whittington (Cardiff)
CEO of Lelynx, Itzal Arbide (France)
Recruitment manager, Khubrarin Ahmed (India)
HR Business Partner, Rowena Smith (London)
We also welcomed guest speaker Catherine O’Dowd to talk to us about her experiences being the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest from both the south and the north sides.
Why is IWD important, and why do we celebrate it at RVU?
Throughout history, there have been many women who have considerably impacted the world as we know it today. From individuals such as the Suffragettes claiming the vote for women to Marie Curie founding the science of radioactivity and Rosalind Franklin discovering the structure of DNA, women have continually impacted social, cultural, economic and political developments over the course of history.
In a world that is still unfortunately plagued by gender bias and discrimination, it is more important than ever to appreciate such achievements.
With only 19% of the technology workforce being women, another mission of IWD is to increase awareness of women who are contributing to the digital and technological advancements that are innovating the world.
There have been many women who have shaped technology, for instance, Grace Hopper who developed the computer and invented compilers, and so today we continue to encourage women to go against the grain and follow in the footsteps of great technological inventors.
What is the Women's ERG?
The Women's Employee Resource Group (ERG) at RVU is led by a committee of members from across the organisation from a range of different professional backgrounds including legal, content design, software engineering, marketing, performance and finance.
The committee organises a monthly meeting for everyone in the business, including women-identity only events and women and ally events. The three main pillars of the committee are:
Create a safe space and open forum to build community and support one another.
Facilitate two way communication with leadership to voice concerns/ solve problems.
Encourage an inclusive company culture by generating awareness and advancing a respectful culture.
Building an inclusive workplace at RVU
A major factor of IWD is ensuring that women feel both safe and included within the workforce. In a world where 35% of women in corporate sector jobs have experienced sexual harassment and only six countries give women equal work rights, it is crucial as a company to strive to make your workplace as inclusive as can be. Not only for female employees but all employees of different races, sexualities and identification.
Together we strive to Break the bias everyday, and strive to be an inclusive workplace for everyone, and especially women - across all levels and abilities.