Research shows that diverse
teams perform better and are more innovative, often suggesting promising
results for business.Despite so, the lingering issue of gender disparity
between male and female representation in the technology industry continues to
be a hot topic for many activists, government authorities, and public-alike.
In line with this year’s
International Women’s Day 2021 (IWD 2021) theme #ChooseToChallenge, four
superwoman from the fast-growing smartphone brand Infinix looks to share their
personal story in challenging biases and misconceptions within the tech space
through a #SHEPOWER video released by the company. The video can be found at (https://youtu.be/3gRg8Ox7LZY).
The #SHEPOWER in Infinix
Founded in 2013, Infinix is
a frontrunner in combining stylish design and cutting-edge smartphone
technology in their products. As a brand who aims to connect with the
youths via their product innovation, the brand is also not one to shy away from
burning social challenges – in this case, empowering women to take a stance in
some of the most challenging environment. This time it is encouraging some of
those women to share their stories. The #SHEPOWER means lot of more
meaningful to Infinix than many other brands as the company seeks not only to
foster the technological and innovative development of some of the
less-privileged regions, it seeks to advocate social changes by promoting
gender equality, as much as we don’t want to admit, some parts of the worlds
aren’t very friendly to women who wants to develop a career of her own.
Fully
aligning with the global goal, the company keeps growing its investment to
contribute to turn Pakistan into a regional tech hub, and it just got one step
further towards its mission and local commitment to put Pakistan on road to
progress and prosperity. Infinix is contributing to Pakistan’s economy, while
at the same time empowering labor, especially women, in the country. In the
manufacturing facility at Pakistan, 60% of the workforce is comprised of women.
Talking of the women
empowerment in Pakistan that how it has drastically increased over the past
years, it would be great to mention Zuofyshan Ahmer, the community manager at
Infinix Pakistan.
Owing to her profuse talent
in singing, she had a global chance to portray her euphonious vocals and
participate in the Guinness World Record for the most people in an online rap
play.
"Being the only female
layman candidate amongst the 5 other professional males with exceptional
singing skills was not an easy thing to deal with. However, I had to be the
strongest of them all as I was leading them as well through the platform of
Infinix while representing my country, Pakistan", said Zuofyshan while
expressing her victory with glee.
Meet Shams Talaat, a
23-year-old marketer in Infinix, Iraq. Despite being in a place that
has the lowest female employment rates in the world, Shams has always been a
fighter when it comes to gender equality. Last year, she marched hand in hand
with male and female protestors down the streets of central Baghdad as one of
the organisers of the gender equality rally which made international headlines.
“We want to feel heard, equal – and be free to represent our own
voices,” said the young girl who have just graduated
from Nahrain University, one of the top universities in Iraq. “It’s
uncommon for women to work in technology company here. Being part of this
industry, in Infinix, in particular, means a lot to me because I am part of a
vision that aims to provide great technology at an unbeatable
price for my country. At the moment, I’m the only female member in my
office – but I believe that things will change as we continue to promote a safe
and inclusive working environment for aspiring women who wants to take a stab
at the tech industry in Infinix,” continued Shams.
Another employee which
shared her story comes from a transcontinental country where it spans the
northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia – the Arab Republic of
Egypt, a place which ranked 136 out of 145 countries worldwide in gender
equality. Amani, the Head of Human Resources Department at Infinix, Egypt, has
over 10 years of working experience under her belt. During her time with
Infinix, Amani has been invited to attend the biggest HR conference in the
middle east HRSE 2019 HR Summit and Expo.
“In Egypt, women are under
tremendous societal pressure to get married and raise a child. Traditional
Arabic culture sees us as weak and one that needs protection – even getting out
of the house alone is a trouble for us. That’s why I take great pride in my
work and what I’ve achieved so far,” shared Amani when asked about her views on
common difficulties faced by female employees in their country. Despite the
scrutiny, she was able to excel in her performance: “It was very challenging in
the beginning because the brand was growing so fast that I needed to establish
a team and expand it by three times of its original size in such a short
period. Regardless, we did it in the end. Not only so, I also
managed to finish my post graduate studies in Human Resource and Law while
working. It’s truly a blessing.”
The last sharer comes from
a place which represents a promising future for a highly progressive nation
that has committed to itself to promoting greater gender equality in its once
male-centric workforce – the People's Republic of China. Jessica a 25-year-old
mobile structure design engineer at Infinix Shanghai is turning heads with her
talent in what seemed to be “a man’s job”.
With a childhood dream to
be a fashion designer, Jessica finds joy in putting her creativity and passion
into every aspect of Infinix mobile design: “ It’s a dream come true in an
unexpected way. I’m really glad that fashion plays a critical role in Infinix’s
product creation – it gives me an opportunity to see my ideas come to life in
an everyday product like smartphones.” One of her greatest achievement includes
a crossover project with popular mobile game PUBG where her designs were
featured heavily on many prime advertisement spots.
Today, there are greater
acceptance for women in the workforce globally. Infinix has never stopped to
take challenges on, with a workforce of 42% women, it will continue to drive
gender equality and diversity. It is not the ratio that counts but the culture
of fostering diversity. In fact, the COVID-19 pandemic has also sped up the
marathon for women’s rights in multiple aspects. That being said,
companies – in this case, those in technology sector – will still need to
relook and improvise some of their efforts in promoting gender equality in the
workspace to ensure a sustainable change.
