Oradora especial:

• Ragnhild Melzi, Vicepresidenta, Americas Society/Council of the Americas

Panelistas:

• Scarlett Alvarez, Vicepresidenta, Chief Stakeholder y Jefa de Sostenibilidad, The AES Corporation
• Maria Teresa Arnal, Directora General, Google México
• Evelyn Vilchez, Directora General, Chevron Energía de México
• Alberto Chaia, Socio Senior, McKinsey & Company, México (moderador)

Aunque las mujeres son un 50 por ciento de los graduados universitarios en México, solo ocupan un 20 por ciento do los puestos ejecutivos en las empresas privadas. Un panel de profesionales femeninas compartieron sus ideas en la conferencia de la Red Hemisférica de Mujeres de AS/COA en la Ciudad de México.

• Aprenda más sobre nuestra red de mujeres.
• Vea más videos de la conferencia.

Welcoming Remarks:

• Susan Segal, President & CEO, AS/COA

Panel Conversation:

• Angel Gurría, Secretary-General, OECD
• Alexander Mora, Minister of Foreign Trade, Costa Rica
• Andrés Gluski, President & CEO, The AES Corporation; Chairman, AS/COA (moderator)

Business leaders need to be aware of Latin America's core inequality problems and should address inclusiveness issues, as much as productivity ones, to boost growth in the region. That is how OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría framed the conversation about sustainable growth in Latin America at the 2017 COA Symposium. Gurría pointed out that Latin America has only 60 percent of broadband internet coverage, compared to 90 percent among OECD member countries, which widens the inequality gap in the region. Costa Rica's Minister of Foreign Trade Alexander Mora talked about the country's goal to join the OECD and transform itself into a research and development center, growing beyond the tourism industry. 

AS/COA's Susan Segal opened the event before the panel saying the organization's CEO Forums have been discussing how business leaders and other sectors are adapting to the digital age and the importance of guiding business toward sustainable growth.

• Vea la transmisión del evento en español en Facebook.
• Learn more about the BRAVO Business Awards. 

Speakers

• Susan Clancy, Research Director, INCAE Center for Collaborative and Women’s Leadership
• Cristina Díaz, Senator (Nuevo León), Senate of the Republic of Mexico
• Nicolas Grabar, Partner, Cleary Gottlieb
• Jeanne Pollès, President, Latin America & Canada Region, Philip Morris International
• Serena Fong, Vice President of Government Affairs, Catalyst (moderator)

Gender equality is a matter of competitiveness, but when it comes to people's unconscious bias, the workplace can present invisible challenges to women. Unconscious bias "is not men's fault against women," said INCAE's Susan Clancy during AS/COA's Sixth Annual Women's Hemispheric Network Conference, explaining there is data showing women also evaluate women differently than men. Panelists discussed how to learn to recognize and interrupt those biases and change the culture in the office. 

Nicolas Grabar talked about strategies to talk with men about recognizing unconscious bias, such as educating speakers before meetings. Jeanne Pollès spoke on the importance of being yourself as a professional, challenging assumptions about women working in leadership positions in the private sector, and making an effort to rethink our own preconceptions about others. Cristina Díaz, senator for the Mexican state of Nuevo León, noted how women's participation isn't just a matter of equality but also raises a country's GDP and makes the economy and society more competitive. And Clancy talked about how women can be upfront about their needs to achieve leadership at work and what systems have to be implemented in organizations to ensure recruitment, job interviews, and performance evaluations are not defined by biases. "Don’t try and fit yourself into traditional expectations for what your firms want. You are not the man who worked there for the last 50 years," said Clancy. "You’re something differently entirely and you need different things. Ask for them. Don’t drop out, don’t quit. Ask for what you need, and then show them."

Learn more about the AS/COA Women's Hemispheric Network Conference. 

Speakers

• Lyana Latorre, Senior Director of Corporate Social Engagement, Arcos Dorados
• Monica Macia, Managing Director, Head of Loan Syndications, Americas, HSBC Securities (United States)
• Gabriela Neri, Founder & Creative Chief Officer, Neri Design Group
• Marco Ambrosio, Growth Strategist for North America, SapientRazorfish (moderator)

"Sometimes you just have to speak slower and louder to make your voice heard as a woman," said Monica Macia during AS/COA's Sixth Annual Women's Hemispheric Network Conference, discussing how women are perceived throughout their career and what they can do to build a personal brand that helps them achieve their goals. Panelists discussed networking strategies, multitasking, and other "super powers" useful to building one's personal brand.

Learn more about the AS/COA Women's Hemispheric Network Conference. 

Speakers

• Susan Segal, President & CEO, Americas Society/Council of the Americas
• Gina Diez Barroso, President & CEO, Grupo Diarq

Since the Women's Hemishpheric Network launched six years ago, it has hosted 27 events across nine cities in the Americas and rounded up more than 80,000 views of its videos on YouTube, said AS/COA President and CEO Susan Segal in her remarks to kick off the network's annual conference in New York on October 19. Segal went on to introduce the keynote speaker of the day, Gina Diez Barroso, who shared her life story about how she came to be the CEO of Grupo Diarq and founder of CENTRO, a university in Mexico City. Diez Barroso gave an account of her development from childhood, when she lost her father—her greatest mentor—to the first time she sat at a boardroom and made the case for including the female perspective in business. "If men don't want to believe women are a business opportunity, they are leaving money on the table," she said.

Learn more about the AS/COA Women's Hemispheric Network Conference.