March is Women’s History Month! In celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8, SpotHero is hosting a special panel for female-identifying employees and friends to discuss how they #breakthebias against women in their personal and professional lives. In preparation, panelists shared a little bit about their stories on LinkedIn. You can read selections below and stay tuned for more stories and posts in honor of Women’s History Month from SpotHero.
Varvara Alva, Chief Financial Officer
“Don’t wait for confidence. In a business setting, women tend to doubt themselves more or wait for the ‘right time’ to speak up. Often, we wait to do this when we finally feel confident that we’ve gathered enough information to join the conversation. Based on my experience, most of us already have enough to contribute. Taking a chance by speaking up about an issue weighing you down is all that’s needed to create momentum.”
Karen Bartuch, VP, Brand Marketing
“Getting good at what you do is no easy feat. When people see leaders shining, they often only see that bright moment. Through this lens, success can look easy or even like it’s always been there. From my experience though, it’s been a winding journey through valleys, hikes up mountains, and smaller scale summits to get where I am today. It can be HARD to choose the path you know is right. “
Beth Hayden, Chief People Officer
“I try to lead by example and bring my authentic self to work and to my interactions, and I encourage others to bring their authentic selves as well. It’s important to be yourself at work, so that’s how I show up every day. Being yourself is important because, well, everyone else is already taken. And that’s ok! You are enough as you are. Nobody’s perfect, but I’ve always done my best work when I’ve felt comfortable and encouraged to be who I am.”
Michelle Jackson, Sr. Enterprise Growth Manager
“Trusting my instincts is one of the most important ways I break the bias. Working in sales, it was always my desire to develop genuine connections with the clients I serve. I’ve leaned into this in my role, always doing my best to lead with strength and with kindness. In this way, my instincts have served me well. When I build strong and genuine relationships with my clients, I’m better able to serve my clients because they know and trust me. These relationships also make the work feel less like work and more like fun.”
Lynette Midy, Director of Engineering
“I break the bias by working to prioritize my overall professional goals. In any job, it can be easy to feel overcome by all of the demands of day-to-day work. It’s important to me that I work on my own professional development while in any role. I strive to continuously challenge myself by learning new technical or soft skills. The moment I sense I am getting comfortable I find the scariest, gnarliest, and most complex challenge or assignment, and I take it head on.”
Happy International Women’s Day!