The empowerment of women at a global scale is, in all certainty, one of the most remarkable social revolutions of the twentieth century: millions of women worldwide who used to depend economically on men fought to be able to take solely control of their own fates. The trend on more working women is most likely going to increase in the next decades: just in Europe women have filled six million of the eight million new jobs created in the last 15 years. Recent studies show that increasing women's participation in the labour market to male levels will boost GDP by 21% in Italy, 19% in Spain, 9% in France and Germany, and 8% in the United Kingdom [2]. Nevertheless, in spite of the general trend for gender equality policies in society and in the labour market, gender gaps persist in Europe, were women only represent 21% of board members of the 620 biggest listed companies in 2015. 'Women in Power' wants to come up as a tool to support equality and gender-balanced corporate boardrooms by giving women working in the traditional sectors (footwear, textile and furniture) the opportunity to acquire abilities and competences that enhance their sectoral skills and make it possible for them to reach top executive roles, therefore promoting gender equality and the advancement of women in Europe. 'Women in Power' also wants to facilitate the access and participation in a learning path specially developed for a collective of women who are often low-skilled in terms of secondary and tertiary education, but who have a deep knowledge of the industry they work in, thus setting its main goal in promoting women leadership and participation in the decision-making process. As women represent half of the global talent pool, it's imperative that they should have the same opportunities to be at the forefront of the European economic and social scene. The training course developed under this project will make available for working women a high quality educational path in an European context created specifically to meet their professional needs. The European consortium gathered to carry out this project is composed by seven VET providers, business associations, SME's and professional women associations from Spain, Lithuania, United Kingdom, Romania and Malta. 'Women in Power' will work towards the following objectives: 1.- To develop new learning approaches and teaching strategies toward gender leadership education, defining a European learning pathway on leadership specifically developed for women working in the traditional sectors. 2.- To develop a course for women to promote basic and transversal skills to achieve executive roles within their industries. 3.- To define a training methodology that improve the learning process and that is specifically tailored for women working in the footwear, furniture and textile industries. 4.- To promote transnational partnership, to gain experience in international cooperation and strengthen the capacities of education for women. At the end of the project three intellectual outputs will have been developed: - IO1: two reports will have been drafted, the first one detailing the professional profile of European women working in traditional sectors, and the second of them giving a solution to the problem by developing a training path to help them break the glass ceiling. - IO2: a complete course for women to promote basic and transversal skills in order to achieve executive roles within their industries. - IO3: an intuitive and innovative platform that will host the designed training path, increasing social capital, competencies and professional skills of women. The expected impact as a result of this project’s outcome provides, which includes the consolidated training methodology developed by all the partners, will ultimately provide the development that women need in order to be empowered in furthering their career. The effect of this project is anticipated for women inside or outside the corporate mainstream, including entrepreneurs, academics, civil servants and senior women with professional service backgrounds. The development of this project will assist in raising awareness with policy makers, stakeholders and general public of the issue through seminars and project dissemination in general (press conferences, events, online materials and news), as well as give room for potential legislative solutions. It will also increase the number of people discussing the issue of women and leadership in relevant industries, as well as trainers' awareness of needs of women education towards professional empowerment. Furthermore, the project outcomes (freely available in different languages) can be widely applicable and used well beyond the countries involved in the project, serving also as a basis for further development and adaptation to various contexts.
The empowerment of women at a global scale is, in all certainty, one of the most remarkable social revolutions of the twentieth century: millions of women worldwide who used to depend economically on men fought to be able to take solely control of their own fates. With women having filled six million of the eight million new jobs created in the last 15 years, recent studies show that, not only women’s economic empowerment is central to realizing women’s rights and gender equality, but also that companies greatly benefit from increasing employment and leadership opportunities for women, which is shown to enhance organizational effectiveness and growth. Nevertheless, in spite of the general trend for gender equality policies in society and in the labour market, gender gaps persist in Europe, were the boards of largest listed companies across the 28 EU Member States had 28 % women and 72 % men in April 2019. As women represent half of the global talent pool, it's imperative that they should have the same opportunities to be at the forefront of the European economic and social scene. 'Women in Power' wants to come up as a tool to support equality and gender-balanced corporate boardrooms by giving women working in the traditional sectors (footwear, textile and furniture) the opportunity to acquire abilities and competences that can enhance their sectoral skills and make it possible for them to reach top executive roles, therefore promoting gender equality and the advancement of women in Europe. The European consortium gathered to carry out this project is composed by seven VET providers, business associations and professional women associations from Spain, Lithuania, United Kingdom, Romania and Malta. At the end of the project three intellectual outputs have been developed: - IO1: a report that identifies and compiles what skills and competences have helped women from different nationalities, sectors and backgrounds to move up within their professions, and what learning needs they have to continue growing in their careers. - IO2: a complete course for women to promote basic and transversal skills in order to achieve executive roles within their industries. - IO3: an intuitive and innovative platform that hosts the designed training path, increasing social capital, competencies and professional skills of women. The final ‘Women in Power’ training course can be accessed at http://training.womeninpower.eu/ With an estimation of more than 89,306 people directly reached of all target groups identified by the project partners and over 9.000.000 potential impacts in radio, TV and digital media, the project will ultimately provide the development that women need in order to be empowered in furthering their career. The effect of this project is anticipated for women inside or outside the corporate mainstream, including entrepreneurs, academics, civil servants and senior women with professional service backgrounds. The development of this project will assist in raising awareness with policy makers, stakeholders and general public of the issue through seminars and project dissemination in general (press conferences, events, online materials and news), as well as give room for potential legislative solutions. It will also increase the number of people discussing the issue of women and leadership in relevant industries, as well as trainers' awareness of needs of women education towards professional empowerment. Furthermore, the project outcomes (freely available in different languages) can be widely applicable and used well beyond the countries involved in the project, serving also as a basis for further development and adaptation to various contexts.