By Women in Mobility
Women continue to be under-represented in the mobility sector, particularly in technical occupations, and those who do exist are not visible enough. The leading women in the mobility sector, however, do exist. They are technically competent and inspiring, and as role models, they ensure that more talented people choose to work in our industry. In order to increase their visibility, the Association of German Women Entrepreneurs (VdU), Berlin Partner for Business and Technology GmbH, IHK Berlin, the women’s network of the Pro-Rail Alliance, the German Transport Forum, the The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and Women in Mobility (WiM) are publishing the list of female executives in the mobility sector for the second time.
In order to promote professional discourse, all 100 women will be invited to a joint #wimluncheon on 1 October 2019 at the #railwayforum in Berlin. More information about the jury, the goals and the event: www.wim-luncheon.de
#womeninmobility
Prof. Dr. Silja Hoffman is one of the 100 #leadingwomen in the #mobilitysector.
“These women are so different and yet have one thing in common: they show diversity and change the world of transport.”
Kristina Kebeck, GIZ
Background
In 2016, at the initiative of Larissa Zeichhardt, leading associations joined forces at the InnoTrans trade fair to invite entrepreneurs and managers from the “Around the Track” departments to a “Ladies Lunch”. “When I learned that in the EU only 17.5 percent of employees in local public transport are female and less than 10 percent of them work in technical areas, I had to take action.” A study published by the EU Commission put the proportion of women in the entire transport sector at 22 percent. The greatest imbalance in 2016 was in road construction and rail technology, where women accounted for only 14 percent.
The aim of the first publication of the top 100 women in the transport sector (2017) and the corresponding network event at the 5th Railway Forum in Berlin was to make role models visible. Larissa Zeichhardt and the organising team of Women in Mobility, Berlin then formulated a goal: “The proportion of women in the rail industry is to rise from currently 22% to 40% by 2020”. At InnoTrans 2018, it became more than clear that the industry is striving for women’s networks: 800 women came together to network at the Women in Mobility InnoTrans Luncheon.
Women in Mobility (WiM) is a professional women’s network in the mobility sector. The Berlin Hub is one of four in Germany and aims to improve the visibility of female executives.