Why celebrating International Women’s Day is ever relevant in 2024
Once again, we are proud to celebrate International Women’s Day at Ramboll. This special day means different things to people all over the world. At Ramboll, it is an opportunity to show our commitment to gender equality. It also means creating a safe space for Ramboll colleagues to discuss the barriers women face in our company and society.
“We still have a long way to go.”
At Ramboll, we are on a journey in the Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) space, which involves self-reflection, learning from others’ experiences, advocating for better processes, and challenging the status quo. And most importantly, it means evaluating our efforts and assessing where we are thriving, where we are struggling, and what we are doing about it.
Lone: International Women’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate our progress and to take stock of the challenges we still face. And I’ve been thinking a lot about what we are working towards year after year.
Currently, our global gender distribution in Ramboll is at 37,5% women, 62,5% men, and less than 1% non-binary. Global senior leadership is 27% women and 73% men. And while this indicates progress, our leadership pipeline needs to be stronger, especially when it comes to women's representation.
We have advanced further in our EDI journey with many initiatives focused on education, equitable people processes, and demographic data analytics. Last year, we expanded the global EDI team in our large geographies, which gives us deeper and richer insights into our EDI challenges and opportunities. As a result, we are better positioned to tailor our global strategy to address the intricacies of diverse markets and make sure it is relevant across the organisation.
Do we still have challenges in terms of gender equality at Ramboll? We do. Do we have incredibly passionate and committed colleagues working every day to change that? Yes, we most certainly do!
Michael: International Women's Day is always important for me because no matter how far we have come, we should not assume that we are ‘home safe’. We still have a very long way to go.
It is the first time I have been invited to speak about International Women’s Day as a leader in Ramboll. It means a lot to me because I want to encourage awareness of gender inequalities, voice my support, and try to lead by example.
I think it is good that we have these conversations because they remind me that we all have a degree of biases based on our experiences. I am fully aware of the privileges I have had in my career and my life in general. I am a white, 50+-year-old male, which has shaped my experiences and the world I’ve been exposed to. It is so important to be aware of these biases and privileges because this is how we can move forward and inspire inclusivity.
We need to keep on being ambitious and keep focusing on how we achieve gender equality. I think we are on the right track. We should all appreciate the diversity of the teams we bring together, different people who can work together as allies toward equality. We all have a part to play in reaching gender equality.
“Do we still have challenges in terms of gender equality at Ramboll? We do. Do we have incredibly passionate and committed colleagues working every day to change that? Yes, we most certainly do!”
Lone: At Ramboll, we are proud to be a company with a strong purpose, and we consider our people to be our strength. Creating a culture where everyone thrives is at the heart of what we do – and I am always open to listen and actively take on issues we need to address, processes we need to rethink or investigate dynamics that work against inclusivity.
I invite all Ramboll colleagues to share their different experiences of inclusion and the challenges we come across to help us continue making real progress towards achieving gender equality.
Michael: Inclusivity is where we need to make an impact, and that’s where I try to be a role model. I want to encourage everyone working at Ramboll to reflect on their biases, be an ally, and support gender equality.
Lone: We know that succeeding with gender equality requires a strong focus on leadership, a systemic understanding of the root causes of gender inequalities, and proactive allyship. And that is our focus in 2024.
One of the areas we will work specifically on is fairness in pay to achieve pay equity and be more transparent about it. We need to ensure that we apply the principle of equal pay for equal work.
Michael: We all have work to do – and you can count me in! I will be focusing on leading by example and speaking up when needed. Together, we are on a journey to a more inclusive society and a more inclusive workplace.
Article authors: Debbie Spillane and Sofie Campbell.
Want to know more?
Beata Pyszniak
Global EDI Manager
+49 1522 2582202
Tina Gaardsøe Albrechtsen
Director, Global Equality, Diversity & Inclusion
+45 51 61 61 97