2023 Q1 Newsletter
Cultivating Inclusion in 2023 and Beyond
The WEC quarterly newsletter explores the latest thought leadership on women empowerment and DEI, showcases the significant efforts and progress made by our committed Members, and highlights special announcements and updates about the council.
Thought Leadership
Explore the latest learnings on women empowerment and diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Inclusion is essential to business success and social impact.
Studies show that inclusion yields substantial benefits. For employers, inclusion helps to attract, retain, and leverage the full potential of a diverse talent pool and leads to more loyal, motivated, and committed employees. For employees, it increases job satisfaction, engagement, productivity, and innovation. For teams, it improves group dynamics and collaboration. For women, it reduces instances of discrimination and harassment. For customers, it enables better services and products targeted towards a more diverse customer base. All this serves to benefit the business, and moreover, inclusion enhances decision-making, performance, profitability, and sustainability. Lastly, from a societal standpoint, it reduces bias and increases awareness and acceptance of differences.
Inclusive cultures empower every employee to be their authentic self, use their voice, develop their potential, contribute their value, build genuine connections, and feel a sense of dignity and belonging at work.
Unfortunately, inclusion is still not the norm. Time and again studies underscore the consequences of failing to make inclusion a top priority. Research by Bain found that employees who experience low inclusion are up to six times more likely to actively pursue new jobs compared to employees experiencing high inclusion. Another study found that the most common indicator of a toxic work culture is non-inclusion. Toxic cultures drive talent away, and for those who stay, their health and wellbeing suffer with increased anxiety, depression, and burnout. The issue is even more severe when you take gender into consideration. Women are 41% more likely than men to experience toxic cultural elements like non-inclusion, microaggressions, disrespect, and abuse. It’s worse for women leaders in the C-suite who are 53% more likely to endure these challenges and mistreatment. As a result, women are quitting their jobs at alarmingly high rates in corporate America. In fact, for every woman promoted to director level, two female directors are leaving.
Inclusive leadership is a set of behaviors that anyone can develop.
The good news? Everyone – whether you are a senior leader, people manager, contributing employee, part-time staff, etc. – makes an impact on the experience that we all have at work. Company culture is created by the collective, by the behaviors and actions of every individual within a group. Every individual has the power and potential to take action and make a positive impact by being inclusive with the people at work and in their lives. Supported by WEC’s independent research published in a 2022 DEI Report that captures the best practices and leadership insights of 15 MNCs in China, we have created a framework of the six standout attributes of an inclusive person and effective ways to develop them.
The WEC’s Six Standout Attributes to Be Inclusive
- Self-awareness – is unpacking and shedding your biases and blind spots. Develop self-awareness through self-reflection and by seeking external feedback to fill the gaps in your self-knowledge.
- Authenticity – is being your true self and opening the door for others to be their true selves. It starts with understanding yourself (self-awareness) and sharing your unique story and perspective and inviting others to do the same.
- Empathy – is treating everyone with compassion and recognizing that we all deal with unspoken challenges and demands. Build empathy by listening deeply to and acknowledging the different realities and experiences of others.
- Transparency – is being honest and encouraging/enabling others to be honest by embracing divergent views, creating psychologically safe spaces, and establishing open lines of communication.
- Accountability – is being self-motivated and responsible for driving results. It requires a trust-based and flexible approach that supports everyone to work in a way that fits their individual needs and circumstances.
- Passion – is truly believing in and committing to creating an inclusive culture, by being a role model, and showing up for others through advocacy and actions.
We’ve all heard the saying, “Be the change you wish to see in the world”.
Take these proactive steps to become more inclusive in 2023 and beyond!
Sources
Catalyst, ‘Why Diversity and Inclusion Matters’
MIT Sloan Management Review, ‘The Toxic Culture Gap Shows Companies are Failing Women’
Women Empowerment Council, ‘2022 DEI Report’
Member Spotlight
Learn about the significant efforts made by our passionate and committed WEC Members to empower women and drive diversity, equity, and inclusion in their organizations or the wider community.
Inclusive Leadership – Anyone can make a personal impact at work
What is inclusive leadership, first of all? Most definitions revolve around the ability to lead heterogeneous, diverse teams in an efficient, effective, and bias-free way. I would add to this definition that inclusive leadership makes all members of a team feel valued, respected, and able to contribute.
In practical terms, an inclusive leader behaves in a way that rules out any discrimination or favor based on color, race, gender, geography, personality traits, etc.
Why does inclusivity matter? The business world is increasingly diverse. Not only our workforce, but also our customers and the image and identity of our companies are rarely homogenous. A couple of good reasons:
- Research shows that highly diverse and inclusive teams make better decisions and outperform competition.
- Attrition, a global concern during the “Great Resignation” in the aftermath of the Covid pandemic, decreases when employees feel valued, and there are few better ways than inclusivity to make an individual feel appreciated.
It stands to reason that an inclusive leadership style benefits companies and therefore managers and leaders should embrace and adopt it to improve results.
If you don’t practice inclusivity out of personal conviction, do it at least for the sake of business performance! (Although personal conviction helps…)
How can we help bring inclusivity to the workplace? It typically starts with self-awareness. Understanding our own biases is a necessary first step to mitigate or eliminate them. Cultivating personal relationships with colleagues (and making sure they are real, not transactional relationships), showing empathy, encouraging participation, promoting alignment, are all good ways to create an inclusive team. Being vocal about the importance of diversity and displaying public commitment to the concept of inclusivity is also helpful.
One final thought: leadership in inclusivity is not limited to managers and executives. Every coach knows the importance of individuals in the dressing room of a sports team that serve as role models for their peers and encourage the right team dynamics. Let’s all play our role creating an inclusive environment, and enjoying its benefits!
Article by Fernando Vallina, Lead Country Manager, ExxonMobil China
Build Inclusive Leadership Practices into Merck’s Culture with Localization
Inclusion is one of Merck’s DE&I focus areas, and inclusive leadership is critical to fuel a high-impact culture where we care, thrive, and belong to make employees associated with us feel welcome and empowered. However, building inclusive leadership practices in a multinational company is not easy. We want to share our global and local approach in this article and welcome exchange.
DE&I at Merck: Top-level Commitment with Measurable Goals
Merck is a vibrant science and technology company headquartered in Darmstadt, Germany with a history dating back more than 350 years to 1668. We share a love of science and a passion for technology through our three business sectors: Healthcare, Life Science, and Electronics.
At Merck, DE&I is not a “topic,” an “issue,” or a “hobby.” It is a critical people and business IMPERATIVE that can truly impact our people, industry partners, customers, patients, and global business. Our DE&I commitment has three focus areas: Inclusion, Gender Parity, and Culture & Ethnicity. With each focus area, we use measurable dimensions to capture the progress:
- Inclusion: (1) The completion rate of the Inclusive Leadership Workshop; (2) The Inclusion Index Score from the annual EES (Employee Engagement Survey).
- Gender Equity: The ratio of women in leadership positions.
- Culture & Ethnicity: The ratio of global leadership positions shared by ethnic minority groups.
Inclusive Leadership Workshop: Global Target 100% Completion
Merck Inclusive Leadership Workshop is a 2-hour workshop seeking to raise awareness of DE&I and discuss the real-life practice of inclusive leadership. As a part of our global DE&I commitment, the enterprise-side rollout started in mid-2021, and all people managers are mandatory to complete it by the end of 2024.
The ILW project team is composed of not only DE&I colleagues but also cross-sector and cross-functional supports who bring an extensive network. With the unwavering support from all levels of management and the efforts of 150+ volunteer facilitators, the global completion rate has achieved 60% by the end of 2022, which means 7,000+ people managers completed the workshop.
The workshop is available in 11 languages and contains market research and videos emphasizing the importance of the topic, highlighting success stories in the company, and revealing the existing gaps. Participants exchange thoughts, share experiences, and discuss possible actions.
Localize the Workshop in China
Due to the different demographic profiles and cultural context, Chinese colleagues hardly feel resonant with the standardized contents and consider the topics “too western”. Therefore, we reflected on our local approach and modified content-wise:
- Differentiating the definitions of Diversity and Inclusion is fundamental and necessarily needed to raise awareness and build understanding.
- Instead of addressing “labels” that are commonly used in DE&I discussion, we emphasize individual differences to extend people’s understanding and discussion.
- The scenarios are collected from local employees, so participants can easily relate to themselves and are more willing to share.
- Being inclusive and “Disagree openly” (one of Merck’s high-impact culture behaviors) are not conflicting—we can be respectful to people meanwhile share different opinions.
Facilitators play a significant role, too:
- They guide employees to find the connection between stories and their daily work. For example, participants always feel connected when they hear the caregiver’s story, so facilitators will use it to deep dive into the discussion like “how to support your team members as a manager to fulfill the responsibilities of different identities in our lives” and “What do you need if you were a caregiver”.
- “What if” questions are often used during the scenario discussion to ignite conversations and reflections.
- For open sessions, facilitators encourage sharing and exchanging. For closed sessions, facilitators will accommodate the team goal and may emphasize reflection/collaboration more.
- Facilitators are encouraged to make tweaks based on their styles. Regular exchanges are organized for best practice sharing.
The Workshop is just the Beginning: Walk the Talk
Inclusion is not Diversity and is more challenging to be achieved. People managers are the significant links in delivering employee experiences that interpret and reinforce the desired culture. A workshop is not a “mission completed” but the beginning of an intentional journey for the managers to open their eyes to observation and ears to listen. Rooting from their daily work and needs, they will find their approach to achieving inclusive leadership.
Inclusion is everyone’s business. Together, we are building inclusive leadership practices into our global culture. No matter how far along we think we each might be, we can all do better.
Article by Julie Jiayu Fu, China DE&I Business Partner, Merck
Progress Report
Catch up on this quarter’s special announcements, programs, and speaking engagements.
Special Announcements
This quarter the WEC says a heartfelt goodbye to three council representatives: Bill Arnold, President at ConocoPhillips China; Fernando Vallina, Lead Country Manager at ExxonMobil China; and Helen Hu, Deputy CEO, Head of Legal, Volvo Cars Asia Pacific. These outstanding leaders are moving on to new countries and regions, and we have no doubt will continue to make a positive impact and be at the forefront of driving change beyond China. We wish to celebrate their invaluable contributions toward shaping the direction of the WEC, being influential role models and champions of gender equity, and moving the needle for women.
Watch the inspiring, parting messages from Bill Arnold and Fernando Vallina who honorably served as the WEC’s Beijing Co-Chairs.
WEC is also thrilled to welcome the incoming China business leaders of ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips who will bring new perspectives and fresh ideas to push the WEC forward in our efforts to advance gender equality in businesses in China and beyond.
What have incoming China business leaders Markel Hübinette and Jean-Marc Taton learned about the value of DEI?
Lastly, a huge congratulations to WEC representatives Xiaolan ZHOU, Executive VP and President at Bayer China and Shirley WU, Senior VP at Dell China for being recognized on the Forbes China 2023 Outstanding Women in Business 100!
Programs & Speaking Engagements
Female Leader Speech at YCIS Shanghai STEM Week
On March 1, Poh-Yian Koh, Vice President of Operations at FedEx China, was invited by WEC to give a speech to students at Yew Chung International School of Shanghai. In her speech, she encouraged the next generation of young women to be brave in pursuing their dreams and goals, even in male-dominant industries. Her advice to girls was:
- Embrace failure and bravely pursue your dreams.
- Study hard, ask questions, and make good use of resources.
- Take initiative and seize opportunities while you are young.
- Define your strengths and leverage your advantages.
Beijing Social Luncheon in Celebration of IWD
On March 8, WEC, in partnership with INPOWER ONE, VIVA and Mosto, organized a social luncheon with more than 50 women leaders in the Beijing community to celebrate International Women’s Day. The event was headlined by Ashley Liu, a successful entrepreneur who is now the Managing Director of Keywords Studios.
Inclusive Leadership Roundtable & Reception Co-Hosted by the Finland Embassy
On March 15, WEC co-hosted a women leadership roundtable with the Finland Embassy at China World Hotel Beijing. In celebration of Women’s History Month and the importance of inclusivity, the Empowering All to Be Inclusive Leaders roundtable was attended by high-profile women leaders from the international community, including the Ambassador of Finland Leena-Kaisa Mikkola, Ambassador of Uganda Oliver Wonekha, and Ambassador of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago Analisa Low. The leaders exchanged ideas on how to become more inclusive, using WEC’s framework of the Six Standout Attributes of an Inclusive Leader – self-awareness, authenticity, empathy, transparency, accountability, and passion. They also shared the personal ups and downs in their own journeys and how they have developed leadership skills to maximize their impact throughout their careers as women in high-level positions. The roundtable was followed by a reception at the Residence of Ambassador Mikkola, attended by over 90 members of the international business community in Beijing.
Girls in STEMM Visit to Intel
On March 28, WEC organized an impactful visit for 24 high school girls from CIS, Keystone, and DCB to Intel’s Beijing office. This is WEC and Intel’s first Girls in STEMM (GIS) partnership, which turned out to be a wonderful opportunity for aspiring young girls to learn about high-tech, the role that women play in a high-tech company like Intel, and the importance of having more women in this industry. They listened to speeches from some of the Intel Beijing team’s top leadership, including Tony Jiang, VP for Government Affairs of Intel China, and Yali Liang, VP of Sales, Marketing, and Communications. Tony Jiang introduced the Intel culture and explained that women play a critical role in a high-tech company. There are many female leaders in Intel, such as April Miller Boise, Michelle Johnston Holthaus, Sandra Rivera, Ann Kelleher, and Rui Wang (Senior VP & Chair of Intel China), who serve as role models for the girls proving that women can be successful in the technology industry and contribute to the company growth and development. Yali shared her story of how she started out as a Mechanical Engineering major, then embarked on her career in the tech industry. Through her own inspiring personal stories, she encouraged the girls to follow their passion, experiment with different fields and paths, and not be afraid of joining the high-tech industry.
Inclusive Leadership Workshop Co-Hosted by the US Embassy Beijing
On March 30, in partnership with the US Embassy Beijing, WEC co-hosted an Empowering All To Be Inclusive Leaders workshop bringing together a select group of WEC leaders with young professionals and entrepreneurs from Beijing’s local and international communities to exchange insights and ideas on how to cultivate inclusive leaders in any workplace environment. Our distinguished line-up of thought leaders, including our very own WEC co-chair and VP of Operations at FedEx China Poh-Yian Koh, in addition to friends of WEC including Andy Truong, Executive Director of Canadian International Schools, and Aisha Moffett, Founder and President of CORE, were able to inspire the young professionals in attendance on how they can make an impact personally in the workplace, and the young entrepreneurs to think of how they can approach inclusive leadership as they build their companies and start-ups. The event was well-attended, with over 80 registered guests.
International Women’s Day V-Talk at Volkswagen
On March 7, Volkswagen China hosted their International Women’s Day V-Talk with Su Cheng Harris-Simpson, WEC Founder and President, as their keynote speaker. Su Cheng was invited to share her story of navigating the many challenges that stand in the way of working women who seek to climb the career ladder and release their inner potential, and the hard choices women must make to juggle work and life. Through insights from her own life and experiences as a professional coach for women at different levels, up to executive leadership, Su Cheng encouraged Volkswagen employees to TRUST (Tenacious – Resourceful – Unapologetic – Superpower – Take Action) themselves, using her own framework of self-empowerment for women.
International Women’s Day Empower Hour in Shanghai
On March 10, the Consulate General of New Zealand and the Consulate General of Canada co-hosted a Women’s Speed Talk Breakfast in Shanghai to celebrate International Women’s Day. Diane Ho, WEC Partner, was invited as a guest speaker to share her insights on empowering women in the workplace from the perspective of health and well-being. In her speech, she explained why women’s empowerment is so important. According to UN Women, women’s empowerment promotes economic diversification and income equality and supports overall economic growth. She encouraged participants to prioritize their health and well-being by “managing energy rather than time”—measured along the four dimensions of mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual energy. Diane strongly advocates for all women to know their value and take time for self-care. As the safety message goes, “put on your own oxygen mask before helping others”.
International Women’s Day Celebration at Schwarzman College
On March 8, Schwarzman College hosted a women’s speed networking event to celebrate International Women’s Day. Su Cheng Harris-Simpson, WEC Founder and President, was invited as a keynote speaker. Attended by over 140 young and talented Tsinghua students and Schwarzman Scholars, Su Cheng’s keynote speech walked the audience through her life story of how she has grown over the past 30 years of her career, and the insights of her journey as a woman entrepreneur in China, in addition to how women can be empowered to take charge of their own paths and how men can be better allies. Following her speech, Su Cheng joined in a panel discussion on the topic of “Can Women Have It All?” with other women leaders in the Schwarzman and Tsinghua community. Sharing her own insights on the importance of recognizing the role of women at home and in the workplace, the value of building a strong and diversified support system, and the many different layers of women empowerment and gender equity, Su Cheng inspired many young women in the audience.
