On April 19th, Dow hosted an Inclusion Day focused on women empowerment as part of an Inclusion Week highlighting Dow’s ten volunteer-based, employee-led DNI Employee Resource Groups. The Monday event held at the Shanghai Dow Center featured a social lunch, keynote speech, and moderated panel discussion.
The social lunch was an opportunity to connect with executives and decision-makers from multi-national corporations committed to building diverse and inclusive cultures in businesses in China. Taking the lead from Yoke Loon Lim (President, Greater China, Dow) attendees exchanged effective strategies and raised questions around best practices for including diverse perspectives into collaboration and decision-making.
The keynote speech was delivered by Nancy Abella, Consul General Shenyang, US Embassy on the topic “Embrace Your Superpower”. She was introduced by Co-chair of Dow’s Women Inclusion Network, Hannah Zhong, as an “influencer, leader, explorer, and adventurer” with 20 years of experience in the US foreign services on international assignments that include Gambia and Afghanistan. Nancy delivered an inspiring speech about the importance of role models and the value of knowing your own superpowers. Here are key takeaways from her speech:
“It was more likely that I could do it when I saw it was possible for someone else like me.”
“My identity as a woman in a leadership role can affect other people so now it matters more.”
“ERGs are a great way to represent and be a voice for your group.”
“Find the key ingredient of your own special sauce.”
“You don’t have to fit the model to be the right person for the job.”
“Stop thinking about models of leadership; instead look in the mirror, understand your strengths, and supercharge your superpowers.”
The following panel discussion featured several experts including Su Cheng Harris-Simpson (Founder of SCHSAsia & the Women Empowerment Council), Shang Rong (VP, Corporate Communications, Microsoft), and Nancy Abella (US Consul General in Shenyang), moderated by Heidi Xu (Senior Product Director, Dow). They discussed the vital topic of “How an Organization can Build and Sustain an Inclusive Culture”. Overall, the Dow Inclusion Day was a fantastic chance to learn, share, and participate in raising awareness and deepening knowledge about inclusion.