EV Summit, the organization that promotes the advancement of e-mobility based at Oxford University recently held a series of online sessions, Top Women in the EV world in 2021.
In the words of Rashida Noray, EV Summit’s Managing Director, “automotive has historically been a male-dominated industry and we’re making sure that we put a spotlight on the women in the industry who are making strides towards our sustainable future.”
The series encouraged stimulating debate between panels made up of inspiring women in our sector from across the world. This covered Marketing & Communications, HR, OEM’s to Engineering, NGO’s and Campaigns.
Our CMO, Bárbara Calixto, was a guest speaker on a session focused on how women can drive leadership and inspire change in the EV industry.
Wallbox CMO, Bárbara Calixto
Addressing diversity in the workplace
It was important for us to not only be visible, but to take the lead on something that is non-negotiable: diversity at work. In a crowded marketplace, we want to stand out not just because of the groundbreaking technology that’s behind our smart charging and energy management solutions, but because of who we are and what our values really stand for.
While the top of the automotive industry tends to be dominated by males, we carried out a survey late last year which provided key insights into the demographics of EV owners in some of our markets.
42% of current EV owners are women.
Wallbox survey
And as Barbara heads up our Marketing team, she was forthright in stating the importance of “reflecting the balance on the user-side of the industry internally”.
She went on to say that “by having more women in the company you hear a different point of view, a different way of analysing and building things. You can change this dynamic”.
And it’s very true. In what is one of the fastest growing and rapidly-changing industries on the planet, inclusion and diversity has never been more important.
Over the last 12 months, we’ve grown to almost 600 people around the world, while the number of women in leadership positions has jumped from 4 to 23
To date, more than 150 women work with us from the production line right through to the design of our products, while we now have 2 women as C-Levels too. As Barbara said during the session, “don’t fit people into roles or skill sets that may not come intrinsically. Women may sometimes move away from more tech-oriented male-oriented positions.”
Catering to the wants and needs of today’s and tomorrow’s EV customers will be vital, so this figure looks only set to increase even more in the near future.
While the end of the event included an interactive Q&A session among the speakers and audience members, check out some of the key takeaways from an engaging afternoon with stakeholders across the industry.
Q (EV Summit): How do you think flexible working can help women reach leadership positions?
A (Barbara): “It took a global pandemic for us to learn some of this! The flexibility of technology is very important – the more people and companies who commit to this – which they have done in the last year – the better it will work”.
Q (EV Summit): “What advice would you give someone making a big career change, Bárbara?”
A (Barbara): “I’ve done this a few times in my own career, so I hope this can be valuable!”
“Focus on what you can transfer from one area or job to another… As we’ve said before, women are particularly good at seeing what we can’t do, compared to men. That goes for applying for jobs.”
“Building relationships, networking with people who are willing to make a bet on you. I think that’s a good way to make a start.”
You can find more about the work EV Summit are doing here.
