d o h a di a ry
How Women Work Around Obstacles The How Women Work conference will tackle a variety of issues concerning women and the way they work.
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Most women’s lives are defined by “juggling” - juggling work and family, ‘me-time’, ‘mummy-time’ and ‘loving-spouse-time’, juggling caring and loving with being strict and disciplined, etc. There are things we are willing to compromise on and there are other things that leave no room for compromise - they have to be done 100 %. At the 2013 How Women Work conference, we look at several areas of life and a variety of issues that concern women in Qatar today. On our Advocacy Forum we discuss how to actualise our talent at work and find or create the flexibility we need in the workplace. The forum consists of several women who have successfully created the ideal working conditions for themselves. Lea Grubb Lonsted, HR Manager at Maersk, will also give some insight into the perspective of multinationals on part-time and job-sharing in Doha. We are hoping to also be joined by some policy-makers to join us and add the government perspective. Climbing the career ladder is another ambition that presents women with tricky choices. Our keynote speaker on Day 1, Suzanne Grant, has extensive experience with entrepreneurship in the region and is an advocate of getting more women on boards through her role as an Ambassador of Sit At The Table(tm) (SATT), an organisation that connects women with the resources to bring more qualified women to corporate boards. The topic of women on boards will also be debated, the motion being “This house believes that companies with fewer women
on the board are worse off”. This interesting and highly relevant topic is sure to spark off ideas and comments. Especially as the Qatar National Development Strategy (QNDS) has set the aim to increase women in leadership by 30 % by 2016, while at the same time emphasising the importance of women being primary caretakers of their children - more juggling will be required. Another area that presents a challenge in many women’s lives is personal finance. Although statistics show that women are generally more successful investors, as they research options more diligently and are less willing to take risks, many women still shy away from taking responsibility for - or even an interest in - financial matters. Our workshop ‘Women & Wealth’ is designed to take the participants on a little tour of personal financial planning to show how to tackle the issue. The facilitator, Farhana Khan has many years of experience in operational, strategic and financial management. Another great dream that is often hampered by too many obstacles is that of starting a business and being able to define tasks and times autonomously. Common obstacles on the way to entrepreneurship are: Difficulty in finding relevant and reliable information Challenge of having to deal with agencies and authorities that are mainly staffed and frequented by men Lack of encouragement and role models
In order to empower women to overcome these and other obstacles, we have several offers during the conference: Our “Coaching and Mentoring Pit Stop” will provide opportunities for participants to experience the benefits of having a coach or mentor The Majlis Session will enable women to familiarise themselves with the many agencies that provide support for women in Qatar and to get advice right then and there in a safe and comfortable environment. The 90-second pitches will give participants the opportunity to pitch their idea or service to the audience and to potential investors. The many workshops aimed at entrepreneurs and executives explore topics such as the legal framework of partnerships in Qatar, some insights into sales and marketing and a panel to explore the concept of social entrepreneurship. So how do women work around obstacles? I believe there are many answers to that question, but surely some of the essential ingredients are: Holding on to our dreams and seeing them through Fierce determination coupled with ability to compromise Firm belief in win-win solutions In my experience women excel at the art of creative solution-finding of knowing how to choose their battles. We live, learn and thrive - and we like to support each other while we’re at it
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