Three international athletes have shared their thoughts on a range of issues impacting women in the workplace, after insurance giant AIG hosted a targeted event earlier this week.
Ruby Tui, Rhiarna Ferris, and Kat Whata-Simpkins – all members of New Zealand’s national Black Ferns Sevens team – spoke with AIG employees, stakeholders and selected brokers on Tuesday afternoon.
Organised by the AIG’s Women & Allies employee resource group, the event saw the top sportswomen weigh in on a variety of topics, including the challenge of creating a strong team culture, the importance of effective communication, and the resilience required to overcome career barriers.
“That culture aspect is so important because you’re never going to be at your best if you’re not comfortable in your environment or there’s tension within the team,” said Olympic athlete and former player of the year, Ruby Tui.
“There’ll be times when, as a team, we aren’t all going to agree – but it’s about having a culture where we all respect each other and understand where everyone else is coming from, without judgement,” she continued.
Tui also told attendees that effective communication is of the utmost importance but admitted it’s been a long road to building the skills she has today.
“You have to get to that point where you’re willing to talk to someone else if you have a problem but you’re also able to listen to what others have to say too,” she told attendees gathered at Parramatta’s Gatehouse Tea Rooms.
“It’s taken me years to be able to communicate the way I do now and it’s still a constant learning process because you need to understand how other people prefer to communicate and be communicated with.”
AIG’s Women & Allies network is just one of the insurer’s many employee resource groups, which are designed to build inclusive leaders and support employee engagement by leveraging education and cross-cultural experiences.
In addition to Women & Allies, the insurer also operates a variety of other employee resource groups, including Disabilities & Allies, Veterans Leadership Network, Working Families, Black Professionals, and Young Professionals.
