Ford Celebrates International Women’s Day in China
On March 8, Ford China held a virtual International Women's Day event that brought Business Unit leadership Mao Jingbo, president of Lincoln China, and Steve Majer, Director of Human Resources, together with employees for meaningful dialogue about the company's initiatives to empower women throughout the company.
Hosted by Sharon Gao, Ford China Director of Purchasing as well as chairwoman of Women of Ford China, the virtual talks were titled "Disrupting Ourselves and Capitalizing on Our Strengths" and were framed through the lens of The Plan to unify and connect Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity (DEI) principles and initiatives with the greater vision of the company.
Gao spoke in detail about Women of Ford China's action plan for the year ahead, which covers recruitment programs, power networking opportunities and training sessions that bolster the skills of women in the workplace – not just in career development and leadership roles, but also to support their wellbeing and sense of community outside of the office.
Steve Majer shared his insights during the discussion, stating that it is “essential for our workforce to reflect the diversity of our customers” for business success, but that the greater benefits are on the internal levels: "More importantly, fostering a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment is core to The Plan and it’s how we demonstrate Care For Each Other... We know that a diverse workforce isn’t just good for business – it’s also good for employees. Staff in inclusive teams are more effective, innovative and able to problem-solve. They feel valued and part of a respectful work environment."
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Ford Celebrates International Women’s Day in China
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Ford Celebrates International Women’s Day in China
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The IWD talks concluded with a panel discussion and Q&A session with Lincoln China President Mao Jingbo, who discussed her own journey to becoming a top executive for a major automotive brand within a male-dominated industry. She also introduced how the making of Her Way – the tailored approach that Lincoln took to cater to female customers – has helped the brand achieve brilliant sales performance since it was launched. She also answered questions from employees who asked about insights and takeaways from her professional life, and her future vision for Lincoln China. The event presented a unique opportunity for Mao, as a member of the BU leadership team, to share her insights with employees from a female leader perspective at Women of Ford.
During the week leading up to March 8, the Unions of Ford in China also organized an activity for women employees to have their professional portraits taken in the office. As part of the project, participants had their headshots taken and were asked to give their views on self-empowerment, discovery and career development as women in the workforce. Here are some of the portraits, along with their personal quotes, which depict the women of Ford China.
