Work hard to prove your value - Women urged
Women have been advised to work hard to prove the value that they bring to their work place and wherever they find themselves.
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That, it has been explained, is the best way get men to embrace the value and diversity that they bring to their work place and also appreciate their contributions.
The advice was given by panellists who spoke at a two day-conference dubbed, Global Women’s Professional and Business Exchange Conference and Expo.
The panellists, include the Director of Tema Port, Sandra Opoku; the Chief Executive Officer/SVP, Wholesale and Diagnostics of MPharma, Sophia Baah; the Chief Finance Officer of MTN Ghana, Antoinette Kwofie; a judge at the Superior Court of California, USA, Belinda Hundy; a Global Human Resource Specialist, Toni Howard, and the Founder and CEO of African Women Rising, Rev. Nana Sekyere.
They shared their success stories in their careers and how they dealt with the challenges that came their way, especially those related to gender.
Value
Ms Kwofie said Africans had been raised to believe that men were superior to women and it was for that reason that when women found themselves in an industry that had so many men, they were bound to be perceived as not capable of bringing about much value.
However, she said, if women under such circumstances could work hard and make their voices to be heard and also be counted, it would help to overcome the stereotypes that they were often branded with.
Mrs Opoku said women should prepare adequately ahead of meetings by arming themselves with enough information on the subject in order that they would be able to make meaningful contributions at the meetings.
This, she explained, would get the men to value what they say and also start asking for their opinions on issues.
Balance at meetings
For her part, Ms Howard said women have the ability and influence to bring balance at meetings by offering solid solutions that would cause men to come back to them for their opinion.
On how women could balance their work with other roles they played, Ms Hundy advised women to have a strategy for everything they wanted to do.
Responding to a question on how to handle threats of sexual harassment young ladies faced at their workplaces, Ms Baah urged institutions to put the right measures in place for people to report such cases and also let them know about them so they could seek help.
Threats of harassment
Rev. Mrs Sekyere urged young ladies who faced threats of harassment in their workplaces to stand up and defend themselves and also be able to say no to their abusers.
Speaking about the conference, the President of the US-Ghana Chamber, Florence Torson-Hart, explained that the conference, which was its fourth edition, sought to bring women businesses and professionals together to expand business opportunities and sharpen their leadership skills.