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At Capitalise, we’ve committed to celebrating women’s achievements, raising awareness against bias and taking action for equality. In 2021, we started our own Women’s Network to do just that - and have since made this community part of our fabric as a business.
So, in celebration of Women’s Month in South Africa, we wanted to give you a little insight into what we’ve been up to and the benefits we’re already seeing - one year in!
When we started our Women’s Network, we knew we wanted to get all the females within our business together, to discuss topics that were important to the members, to create a safe space to talk and to deliver education to the whole network - men and females alike.
We set out strong goals and missions for our network to help guide our development and progression.
Our mission:
We are committed to empowering the women of Capitalise to achieve success - whatever that means to them individually. We aim to provide opportunities for women to connect and support each other.
We aim to both signpost and deliver education and access to opportunities/experiences that contribute to the personal and professional development of our members, meeting their needs at the right time in the right way.
Our values:
We support our members by providing opportunities for development, creating a network of valuable connections and fostering success through personal and professional growth.
To put our goals into action, we’ve been organising different activities that we believe make a real difference to Capitalise, in a fun and engaging way - inclusive for all.
Here’s a quick rundown:
Lunch and Learns
We’ve been hosting Lunch and Learns, presented by the women of the network - to both educate the whole network on important, and often overlooked topics as well as encourage confidence for the women participating.
Sessions we’ve held:
We’ve also been tying these lunches with themed weeks for all to get involved in. For example, a supercharge your confidence week which included watching Ted talks and encouraging daily affirmations.
Events
We’ve been hosting some events - helping to create that space where everyone could talk openly and be heard. During our most recent event with an external speaker, colleagues could share their own experiences and talk about challenges they’ve faced.
The women of Capitalise found the event really refreshing, commenting on how good it was to see men from the business getting involved too. This is a real driver of cultural change within our company.
Creating a safe community
Being a part of our Women's Network is a great opportunity to learn from the thoughts and experiences of others.
As well as company wide meetings, we also make time for women-only sessions where we can come together, discuss the network and align our values to the change we’re creating in the company.
With the network in full swing, we wanted to hear from the women about the benefits they’ve felt being part of this community.
Ana, in our funding team, explained how she feels the network has personally benefited her.
“The women’s network provides me with a sense of solidarity and empowerment within the workplace, especially in the tech industry which is still a very much under-represented space for women. The network paves the way for women to not only grow through shared experiences but also allows us to be the best versions of ourselves by providing a platform to discuss our thoughts, hindrances and achievements within and outside of the workplace."
With it being Women’s Month we also spoke with Victoria, our Partnership Manager living in Cape Town. From the interview, it became clear that Capitalise, with the help of our women's network, has created a brilliant inclusive and flexible workplace. That supports her in her two roles - her Capitalise role and new role as a mother to her one year old daughter
Find out more here to read the full spotlight interview. Additionally, If you’d like to find out more about what it’s like to work at Capitalise or you already know you’d like to join our team, take a look at our job openings.
Capitalise believe in creating a diverse, sustainable future. So we come up with new ideas, and see existing ones in a new light. We work with the people who share our vision, taking action to make a difference. We challenge businesses to find new ways to guide their futures.
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