{"id":5241,"date":"2019-06-12T11:25:35","date_gmt":"2019-06-12T15:25:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adsknews.autodesk.com\/?post_type=stories&p=5241"},"modified":"2019-06-12T11:25:35","modified_gmt":"2019-06-12T15:25:35","slug":"female-employees-find-new-footing-at-our-first-ever-autodesks-womens-summit","status":"publish","type":"stories","link":"https:\/\/adsknews.autodesk.com\/en\/stories\/female-employees-find-new-footing-at-our-first-ever-autodesks-womens-summit\/","title":{"rendered":"Female Employees Find New Footing at Our First-Ever Autodesk\u2019s Women\u2019s Summit"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\" What if we gave women at work more of the training, community and support they needed to reach their full potential? What if we gave them a place to come together to learn and discuss their daily struggles, whether it\u2019s a challenging conversation with a manager or a navigating the next step of their career? These are the questions that led us to create Autodesk\u2019s first-ever Women\u2019s Summit, a 2-day event meant to celebrate and engage with women at Autodesk. More than 300 female employees and channel partners from over 20 countries came together in Barcelona, Spain, to network and gain insights into successful career growth at Autodesk. Our Office of Global Diversity and Inclusion and the Autodesk Women\u2019s Network (AWN) sponsored this inaugural event with the goal of helping them strengthen their knowledge of Autodesk\u2019s business as well as form new and transformative connections through networking, setting themselves up for success in today\u2019s ever-changing workplace. The Autodesk Women\u2019s Network is one of the largest employee resource groups (ERGs) at Autodesk today, totalling 800+ members and growing. Present in 45 offices across 27 countries, this group\u2019s mission is to empower women at all levels of Autodesk to develop and realize their full potential. The immersive two-day EMEA Women\u2019s Summit is the perfect example of AWN\u2019s commitment to personal and professional growth for women at Autodesk. \"\" In Barcelona, Autodesk\u2019s Chief Human Resources Officer, Carmel Galvin, presented the audience with a thought-provoking look into the positive business impact of women in the workplace\u2014like the fact that more women leaders are proven to make companies more profitable<\/a>\u2014 and the common issues women can overcome, such as change resistance and the confidence gap. Using her own career path as an example, she demonstrated how combining the right mindset and behaviors can result in a successful, purpose-filled career. Women weren\u2019t the only presenters at the event. Attendees got to hear from business leaders within Autodesk\u2014both male and female\u2014 who shared advice from their own career successes. Derrek Cooper, a senior director of Autodesk\u2019s manufacturing product group, stressed the practice of not letting anyone, including yourself, limit your potential. \u201cTake risks!\u201d was the number one lesson from Kerry McIntosh, a chief of staff for the Autodesk Research team. Julie Sokley, a VP from the global sales org, explained the secret advantages of being a life-long learner, and Diana Colella, a VP of business strategy, \u00a0closed out the sessions by focusing on the importance of mentoring & networking. \"\" After two days, participants left the summit armed with tools to take control and further their career at Autodesk and beyond. What were their takeaways? We asked and here\u2019s what we heard: <\/p>\n