Meet Reema, Hannah and Thelma. Three very successful women with very different life experiences which have led to lasting careers at E.ON.
Reema first joined the E.ON team as part of the Finance Undergraduate Scheme, before being fast-tracked onto our graduate programme and has now been with us full time since September 2016. Hannah came on board in 2008 as Governance and Risk Manager, and over the last 9 years has moved up to become the Vice President for Internal Controls Regions and Distribution within the Corporate Audit department. And since starting with E.ON as a Customer Service Advisor 6 years ago, Thelma has gone on to become our Employee Reward and Benefits Specialist.
Here are their thoughts on women’s rights in the workplace and the world.
Let’s start with an easy one. What three words would you use to describe yourself?
Reema: Motivational, ambitious, achiever.
Thelma: Confident, resilient, determined.
Hannah: Honest, thoughtful, unexpected.
What’s your favourite thing about working for E.ON?
Reema: I love how E.ON values and embraces an individual’s personal development and supports them throughout.
Thelma: My favourite thing about working for E.ON is also the range of roles and opportunities available to develop yourself.
Hannah: The range of opportunities at E.ON is definitely impressive. When I first started here, I didn’t think for a moment that I’d still be here nearly 10 years later. But my favourite thing about working at E.ON is the people. The incredible, smart and kind people that I have worked with over the years have made coming into work fun and are the reason that I’ve stuck around so long.
Why do you think that International Women’s Day each year is so important, and what does it mean to you?
Reema: Society still symbolises women through fashion and beauty but I want to celebrate women who embrace their integrity, their intelligence and talent in aspects beyond their physical appearance.
Thelma: It gives a voice to women all over the world and is a reminder of the inequality that still exists so that we can all continue to take positive actions towards shaping the future. Personally, I believe it is an opportunity to recognise the achievements of women in their careers and personal life as well as their contributions towards making the world a place of equal opportunities irrespective of gender, ethnic, cultural or social differences.
Hannah: It makes me angry that we need International Women’s Day! This is not a fight I expected to still be having in my 40s. And the World Economic Forum predicts that the gender gap won’t close until 2186 so it’s not going to be fixed for the next generation either. International Women’s Day is therefore a call to action and it has prompted me to think about what I will do to speed things up.
Reema: We women are still fighting the battle to be seen as equal in the eyes of society. In such times we need to recognise and value the achievement of women across the globe. Women are an integral part of the development within society and academia, as we are: inventors, educators, thinkers, strategists and leaders in business as well as technological development. My favourite saying is – an educated woman educates a nation!
What is the biggest issue facing women today?
Thelma: There are several issues, however in the context of the work place I believe the biggest issue is the struggle to balance career progression opportunities against child care and home life commitments.
Who is your favourite female role model?
Hannah: Felicity Aston MBE. The explorer and first woman to ski solo across the Antarctic. I had the good fortune to hear her speak about this a couple of years back and met her briefly afterwards. She’s a legend. Hugely inspirational – even if you’re not all that outdoorsy.
Reema: Khadija Bint Khuwaylid – a very rich and successful business woman in the Middle East.
And final question - if you could pick a woman, past or present to have dinner with, who would you choose and why?
Reema: Fatima Al Fihri – she established the world’s very first university. I would like to understand how she had come up with this idea and whether her intentions were for the entire world to adopt such a model for higher education as it does today.
Thelma: I would like to have dinner with TV chat show host and philanthropist Ellen Degeneres. She is a resilient and determined woman who stood up for what she believed even at the risk of her career. Now hugely successful, she continues to inspire and show kindness to people irrespective of their race, gender or background.
Hannah: Victoria Coren-Mitchell. Highly intelligent, very entertaining and it would be a great opportunity to get some coaching on my Poker technique.
Discover more about E.ON and their career opportunities here.