“An Equal World is an Enabled World”

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By Katariina Kujala, VP and Corporate Secretary, General Counsel, SAC Wireless

“How will you help forge a gender equal world? Celebrate women’s achievement. Raise awareness against bias. Take action for equality.”

A gender equal world has been generations in the making. I was born and raised in Finland. In 1906, Finland became the first country in the world to recognize the political rights of women. In 1920, the United States granted women the right to vote. 100 years later, we can appreciate both how far we’ve come and the many challenges that lie ahead.

So how do we put the International Women’s Day mission into action? We must not rely on other people to change the world; progress begins with each and every one of us.

Change doesn’t come easy. We all have biases and limiting beliefs to some degree. To grow, we need to acknowledge these and strive to overcome them. Wireless is a male-dominated industry — for now — but that’s steadily changing. Change is good for innovation, for productivity and opportunity.

I am proud to announce that in 2020, SAC will be the exclusive fellowship sponsor for the Women’s Wireless Leadership Forum Fellowship; we’ll give the selected recipient free membership, access to mentors and support in the industry for a year. We also formed a Women in Wireless Employee Resource Group to provide support, enhance career development, and contribute to the personal development of women throughout the company. This ERG isn’t exclusively for women, everyone is welcome to participate as students, teachers, managers and mentors.

I encourage you to join me in taking an active role, however you can, to make a positive difference at work, at home, and in your community. Serve as a mentor, join one of our ERGs, support empowering organizations, and model good behavior.

Let’s not forget that an open door for one person does not close a door on another. The wireless industry is growing incredibly fast. We need to fully utilize everyone’s talents and create new opportunities in order to stay competitive and grow our company to meet demand.

New opportunities must be equal opportunities — for women, for everyone.

 

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