Jabil Joules Europe Power Hour Showcases Diversity
Beth Walters, Senior Vice President of Communications and Investor Relations and creator of the Jabil Joules initiative, recently presented to employees of Jabil’s Kwidzyn, Poland and Tiszaujvaros, Hungary, sites as the latest installment of the Jabil Joules Power Hour program.
Her presentation, “Building a Better Jabil: How to Help Jabil and Your Career,” included examples of how she’s navigated her longstanding career at Jabil. Specifically, she spoke to how an employee can help Jabil achieve success, how the manufacturing industry continues to evolve, the journey of embracing diversity and the importance of celebrating success.
Read below for some insights from Beth’s presentation.
How You Can Help Jabil
Beth made the main focus of her Power Hour about how to help Jabil, while building your own career. Her main advice was to “see the big picture of Jabil – how do the key drivers of our business relate to each other, work together to produce profitable growth and relate to the job you do.” Beth advised listeners that it is vital to know and understand how your actions and decisions affect key company measures and the objectives of your company’s leadership. It is important to note that, “success is not luck and not being at the right place at the right time, but it is in fact learning the business, understanding your role and demonstrating your value to the business,” explained Beth.
The Changing Face of Manufacturing
Manufacturing today is very different from how it has been perceived in the past, and this is something that Beth highlighted during her Power Hour. With the statistics showing that three quarters of women are underrepresented in manufacturing, it was important to showcase what manufacturing looks like today. In order to achieve gender diversity at Jabil, the perception of manufacturing needs to be changed globally. The fact that women make up 47 percent of the labor workforce, but only 27 percent of the manufacturing workforce, shows that there is a huge opportunity for Jabil to champion the importance of gender diversity.
“Manufacturing offers opportunities for challenging the norm and is a great, innovative career,” stated Beth during her presentation. It is not a predominantly male career anymore and women are vital to the success of manufacturing as diversity allows for many advantages such as different viewpoints and wider industry knowledge.
How Do We Get to Diversity?
“For a long time, people just assumed diversity would take care of itself, and I don’t think that’s the case. I think we have to be intentional about thinking about it,” Beth noted. With this in mind, the creation of the Jabil Joules program is focused on helping Jabil create a dialogue and networking about how to achieve greater diversity.
During the Power Hour, Beth shared tips about how to get there. Being a role model is important to encourage women at Jabil, and giving women feedback helps with their personal development. Having a work-life balance is also essential in order to maintain a healthy body and mind.
Celebrating Success
Both sites in Kwidzyn and Tiszaujvaros have already achieved success with regard to the initiatives they have carried out to spread and promote the values of Jabil Joules in championing greater gender diversity. The Power Hours were a really great way to share the success of these sites, while recognizing the good work they have already achieved. In Kwidzyn, a number of initiatives have been accomplished; for example, English conversations to practice foreign language are underway. Also, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, the Jabil Joules team and friends get together to connect, exercise together and build stronger bonds. This helps to focus on maintaining a work-life balance.
In Tiszaujvaros, the team has achieved a number of accomplishments. As part of their recent Jabil Joules event, they hosted a presentation about different ways of thinking – men vs. women, to encourage thinking about how we can work better together and start a dialogue about closing the gender gap. They partnered with a local kindergarten to support Jabil families. In July, 120 employees participated in a run through the city, with each individual wearing a Jabil Joules t-shirt to raise awareness and educate people about the program. Last year, the site management also painted car parking spaces dedicated for use of pregnant employees.
During the remainder of the year, Power Hour sessions will continue at Jabil sites in South America and Asia.