The majority of working professionals in the Middle East report that their organisations are doing enough to create gender balance in the workplace, as revealed in a new survey commissioned by Canon and conducted by YouGov, with a sample size of more than 2500 working professionals in the GCC and Levant. The survey explores the attitudes to women empowerment in the workplace, coinciding with International Women’s Day 2020 (8 March 2020).
The survey was conducted as part of Canon Middle East’s focus on culture, relating to its employees, customers, partners and communities including women and coincides with the launch of the company’s internal campaign SHE Rise, launched to mark the occasion in support of female empowerment. The programme features inspirational talks from female leaders in Canon as well mentoring, training and feedback sessions designed to support women in the workplace.
83% of respondents said that they had noticed an improvement in diversity and gender balance at work in the last five to ten years, with 64% agreeing that females in the region are well presented at management/board level in their organisation. The results also showed that flexible working arrangements (39%) followed by training programmes (38%) and fair parental leave (36%) were some of the most prevalent benefits introduced by their organisations helping to create a more level playing field and empower females.
Furthermore, 60% of respondents felt it was important that their organisation collaborate with educational institutions such as universities and colleges to support women into the workplace, which can include efforts like internships and scholarships.
Mai Youssef, Corporate Communications and Marketing Services Director, Canon Middle East, said: “The survey findings are extremely encouraging as we can see there is an overall positive sentiment to women empowerment in the workplace in the Middle East, with most having seen an improvement in terms of policies and gender balance in the last five to ten years. At Canon, we have a strong commitment to women and the community, something that is engrained in our organisation as part of our corporate culture of kyosei.
Veronica Juul-Nyholm, Human Resources Director, Canon Middle East and Central and North Africa, said: “Our SHE Rise campaign has been designed to support women empowerment and is testament to our ongoing commitment to females and their advancement. The programme will focus on the delivery of talks and mentorship for young females working in the organisation supporting them to enhance their skills and not just perform in their roles but feel confident to pursue their career objectives.”
Zafar Shah, Research Director, Data Services, YouGov MENA, said: “It is encouraging to see an exceptionally high proportion (87%) of middle eastern respondents reporting that their organizations currently implement some initiative to support women at work. While working professionals in the entire region report progress towards women’s professional empowerment through balancing their gender ratio and representing women at the management level, we see the UAE & Lebanon leading the way in this regard.”
The SHE Rise campaign is a multi-stage programme of engagement, involving 10-15 young women from across the organisation as a first stage who will benefit from coaching, mentoring and training. Those participating will enjoy a presentation and Q&A session, amongst other activities as part of the programme.
International Women’s Day (IWD) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality. Taking place for well over a century, with the first IWD gathering in 1911 supported by over a million people. Today, IWD belongs to all groups and is not country nor organisation specific.
Canon understands the value and strength of women, and for this reason it also established a work environment that supports women to excel and achieve their potential in the workplace. As a result, more than half of Canon in Middle East and Central and North Africa’s leadership positions today are filled by women. Canon also encourages women to return to the workforce and achieve success after a career break. For instance, it introduced extended maternity leave and flexible working hours to provide more career opportunities for women in the technology and imaging industry.
