Women in communication: interview with Deborah Giaccone of GSK Consumer Healthcare
Coming of age is certainly an important milestone, both for a person and for a brand and, in this very particular case, for ours.
As the female turns 18, we have decided to start a Women Empowerment project that focuses on women who work in the field of communication.
Deborah Giaccone, Southern Europe Director CGA - Communications & Government Affairs for GSK Consumer Healthcare, answered 5 significant questions for us, explaining the importance of fostering an exchange of positive experiences, to achieve the right awareness in terms of diversity and inclusion.
1. What is "being a woman" like in the world of work?
Speaking of women and work, two themes came to mind. The first is that of fullness: the fact of working, as well as being a mother, living in a big city and having a working husband by my side allows me to express myself fully. Furthermore, the job I carry out is also a great passion, which sharpens my sense of completeness in combining all aspects of my life. The second theme is that of the challenge, understood as continuous personal and professional evolution, as the achievement of right balance between the various situations. In this regard, I became interested in the "Balance for Better" initiative, promoted during the "International Women" s Day, based on the concept of balance, which I believe to be of significant importance in the life of every woman, especially if combined with motherhood.
Looking at my personal experience, for most of my professional career I have not had the perception of being discriminated against for my gender, but I must admit that I have experienced situations, generated by individuals, in which I have had the opportunity to think that my opinion or my contribution were not considered on par with those brought by a male colleague. Fortunately, these were sporadic episodes, which occurred mostly in contexts, such as the economic-financial one, traditionally of male prerogative.
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2. What was "women empowerment" for you at 18?
At 18 for me women empowerment meant being able to achieve my independence and autonomy. It meant being able to decide what to study and, consequently, shape my future with my own hands, doing what attracted and liked me the most. Listening to passion and instinct as real engines that push to achieve goals. Fundamental in orienting oneself on this journey is having the opportunity to confront or be inspired by people who have followed a professional path similar to the one we want for ourselves, especially taking into consideration the absence of initial tools that support these choices, typical of those who are starting a new path. I was also lucky because my parents supported me in my decisions, which prompted me to put all the effort necessary to demonstrate that I have chosen the right path for me and that I am at the " height.
3. Three words you associate today with "women empowerment"
Choice: women empowerment for me is having the possibility and the ability to choose. If I think about my personal experience, empowerment is being able to carry out my work within a company or as a consultant, deciding to do it in a more or less flexible way.
Today empowerment is also being able to work using tools that allow you to play all your roles in the best possible way, from work to personal: for this reason the second word is, without a doubt, agility.
Finally, I believe that the concept of empowerment is closely connected to the issue of skills: in today's world of work it is absolutely necessary to continue studying and evolving, because every profession is constantly changing and thinking of remaining crystallized in what has been learned in the past. it means stopping and not keeping up with the change. One must never be pleased with one's experience, but one must continue to work and study hard.
4. What would you say to the 18-year-old yourself?
At 18 I was sure of what I wanted my path to be: I was sure I wanted to work in the world of communication, even if I did not have a real "preparation" and knowledge of this context. I believe that at 18, precisely by virtue of the inexperience that characterizes that phase of everyone's life, it is almost impossible to make a decision about one's future in a fully conscious way. Therefore, it is essential to listen and try to understand one's passions. , those passions that will allow us to highlight our abilities once we have landed in the world of work. To the 18-year-old I would say to enjoy the journey more: in the challenging dimension in which I had entered, in which the focus was to want to demonstrate that taken the path that suits me best, I spent a lot of time focused solely on the professional field.
5. How much need is there to talk about women empowerment today and what should be done?
Surely there is still a lot of talk about it, because there is so much to do. There are working realities that boast very advanced projects in this perspective and others that, on the other hand, are still in their infancy on the issue of women empowerment; I am fortunate to work for a company, GSK Consumer Healthcare, with a very advanced level of awareness and constantly improving from the point of view of practices to support employees, regardless of gender.
In addition to talking, concrete examples of initiatives that are having positive implications should be given, in order to focus attention on them and maximize efforts towards something that actually has a practical and positive feedback on the workers.
Every company should treat the issue with the seriousness it deserves, because today working on diversity and inclusion is no longer a choice, but a duty. This translates into concreteness, experimentation, listening to employees and, on the other hand, it must lead women to be more daring, thus increasing their visibility on a professional level. In concrete terms, we at GSK CH have the free “P4P” (Partnership For Prevention) screening program which offers a wide range of examinations and prevention initiatives aimed at employees and their families; the internal coaching and training program on a global level, the partnership with Valore D and, again on a global level, a partnership with LEAD Network (Leading Executives Advancing Diversity), to facilitate the development of female leadership and dialogue on gender inclusion.
