International Woman’s Day was created after women got the vote in Soviet Russia in 1917. By 1975, the United nations had adopted it from then on the 8 ^th of March became a day to unite women across the world; to create awareness of inequalities and discrimination against women, and to recognize women for their own achievements.

When doing a bit of research, I realized that women in New Zealand are truly inspirational and throughout history we can see that New Zealand has become a real role model to all other countries out there.

The 2019 United Nations woman’s day theme is think equal, build smart, innovate for change. What can we do to build a society where woman and men are more equal in the workplace?

Think equal – I was brought up in a time where women go to school, get married, have kids and if you had a job, that was great. And I think because of this it is my opinion that women tend to underestimate themselves in the workplace. I can see that that with my daughters generation, we are teaching them from a young age that you can be whatever you want to be and you can be proud of whatever career you choose.

Build Smart – it is not only about having woman at the top management level but also making sure that you have women on all levels within a business. It’s about promoting women from within and implementing structures to support successful women.

Innovate for change – flexibility for working mothers has become one of the hottest topics in recent years. Women do want to be in leadership roles but with personal responsibilities that was not always possible in the traditional mindset of work. Women want it all, a successful career, a white picket fence and a family. And with technology and acceptance of change, women can have it all.

The time for change is now. What are you doing to promote women in the workplace?