Athens, January 19, 2023 – Olympia Group highlighted the need to advocate female participation in leadership positions during the Equality Lounge® organized by the Female Quotient, in the context of the World Economic Forum. Specifically, Tatiana Fafaliou, member of the Olympia BoD, participated in a thematic discussion titled “The Women at the Table: a Conversation with Switzerland’s Boardroom Leaders,” as a speaker invited by The Boardroom and The Female Quotient – an organisation striving to foster gender equality in the workplace through various initiatives.
As a member of the executive network supported by The Boardroom, Tatiana Fafaliou joined other female professionals with a track record in Board Positions in Switzerland and Europe during a panel that addressed the issue of low female representation in Corporate Boards, which is estimated at 20% worldwide.
Moderated by Diana Markakis, Founder & CEO of The Boardroom, the discussion also featured Christine Graeff, Global Head, People at Credit Suisse Group AG and Jacqueline Hess, Nominated Board Member & Vice-Chair of the Board at Vontobel Swiss Financial Advisers. The participants shared their experiences and discussed the prospects and challenges currently taking shape, while emphasising the significant benefits of women’s equal participation in management positions.
According to data presented by The Female Quotient, companies prioritising women’s equal participation in leadership positions are 75% more likely to bring innovative ideas to the market, achieve 1,7 better management results, and are 1,4 times more profitable.
As Ms Fafaliou explained: “It is crucial to create a pipeline of female professionals who aspire to take leading roles within a business ecosystem. It is equally important for senior male board members to stand by these women, mentor and inspire them to hone their skills and claim more space in upper management levels. In an environment brimming with new challenges, we must dismiss prejudices and stereotypes and create conditions in which women can play a decisive role at the Board level – in other words, we need to formulate a corporate strategy that incorporates different perspectives and contributes to sustainable development.”
With a strong presence at international events such as the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Cannes Film Festival, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and South by Southwest (SXSW), the Female Quotient’s Equality Lounge® has drastically altered the business agenda and sparked real change, through a network of leaders taking action for gender equality in the workplace.
It is noted that Olympia is a founding member of The Boardroom in Greece, while Olympia Executive Chairman Yiannis Karagiannis has joined the Organization’s Advisory Board. Likewise, Tatiana Fafaliou, a member of Olympia’s Board of Directors, is a founding member of The Boardroom, while currently, five female executives from Olympia’s portfolio companies are taking part in the training and empowerment program laucnhed by The Boardroom in Greece.
Olympia Group and its portfolio companies actively participate in initiatives that aim to advance leadership skills for female executives and promote contemporary corporate governance practices with an emphasis on equality and diversity.