ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, was proud to participate in a Girls Experience Industry Day in Melbourne on 7 April, 2014 and Sydney on 14 April, 2014 in conjunction with a number of other leading global companies who are members of the National Association of Women in Operations (NAWO).
NAWO has been established to encourage and facilitate more women into operational roles and to develop the pipeline of talented women. The aim of the open days was to introduce high school and pre-career girls to exciting fields such as R&D, innovation and technology.
The open days included a morning site visit to one of the participating companies followed by a careers fair where all the companies came together to showcase their company and the careers available. During the morning sessions the girls learnt about the technologies and skills required in the respective businesses, and were also encouraged to participate in hands-on activities.
In Melbourne, participating companies included ABB, BP, Coca-Cola Amatil, Mondelez, GlaxoSmithKline, and Ridley. In Sydney, participating companies included ABB, BevChain, Bluescope, CHEP and Goodman Fielder.
“We were pleased to welcome a number of girls to ABB on the NAWO Girls Experience Industry Days,” said Rebecca Roberts, Country HR Manager for ABB in Australia. “The girls heard from our female graduates and senior managers on their experience in working in a global engineering company and also had hands-on fun interacting with ABB’s robots and building solar powered toy cars. These are the kinds of technologies that we work with every day.”
“NAWO is creating a number of development programs and networking opportunities for women in industry, but it’s also important that we attract and engage young women in their formative years of thinking about which career path they will take. Understanding how a business runs, ie ‘the engine room’, is critical for women to be strong leaders and we are working with industry to create opportunities for women” said Angela Tatlis, Chair of NAWO.
"If you look at engineering, females comprise approximately 10 per cent of the Australian engineering labour force. This is a very low number when you consider women make up 51 of all professionals in Australia,” Tatlis added.
To find more about how NAWO supports women and industry see their website www.nawo.org.au
