Back in the swing of things and recharged after a very exciting end to last week – Accenture’s celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD)! For those of you that don’t know, the United Nations established IWD as a way to celebrate the many accomplishments women have made and also raise awareness of continued struggles women face around the world. Accenture takes every opportunity to celebrate this day and I was so pleased to be able to participate in not one, but two separate celebration events.

 

Starting on Thursday morning, March 8 (actual IWD), I was able to view a global webcast where our CEO and other key leaders spoke about Accenture’s inclusive culture and interviewed a few of our most senior women who manage major clients around the globe. To hear these women leaders’ stories and career advice was inspiring.

 

Friday I went to our local Pittsburgh IWD. The event was well attended by not only Accenture employees, but many women from our key local clients. We started the day with introductions and icebreakers so we could get to know our table-mates. We then covered the Accenture global research study, The Path Forward, around business trends and gender. Next, our Location Managing Director, who is also a member of our global Women’s Leadership team, lead us through a workshop based on some of our internal training. Following was a panel discussion featuring senior female leaders from Accenture and two of our clients. I was very impressed by their perspective on growing a career, encountering unexpected challenges, and their thoughtful answers to tough questions.

 

After a quick break to grab lunch, we then joined the North American webcast out of New York which allowed us to further connect with IWD celebration event attendees. One of the stories shared by a New York client presenter was about taking on a new role, which really resonated with me as I recently made a career transition. I think my key takeaway from the entire day was to have more confidence in myself and my abilities and to help others be more confident too!!

 

As a side note, in conjunction with IWD, Accenture also launched a Pinterest page (where this blog is featured – our Accenture recruiters are getting so famous!) and locations around the world provided real-time IWD updates on our Women at Accenture facebook page. I even posted an update from Pittsburgh! It was really neat to see the shared experiences from my global colleagues and the positive energy it created.

 

Though I know that one day focused on women is not enough, and I still face challenges as a woman in the business world, I feel refreshed and positive about the outlook for my own career. I also know that 20+ years down the road when my daughters are in the work world and enjoying their own IWD that we will have made great progress. What an amazing day that made me even more proud to be an Accenture woman!