When will women have equality? The belief that “being a woman means you can only be a backbench” or “when a woman gets married and has a family, she can only be a housewife” or “when it comes to work, women are not decisive, unlike men, so it is difficult for women to become executives” are examples of beliefs that most men have about women, or even women themselves may have had this belief as well.
But these beliefs are no longer applicable to women in this era. Today, women’s potential is equal to that of men, or perhaps even greater. Because today, it is found that women have risen to play many important roles in many areas, whether they are business owners, executives, or leaders of famous and important organizations or agencies.
Especially in our country, Thailand, in today’s Thai society, women have much more rights than in the past. This can be seen from the increasing acceptance of women’s roles in entering the workforce or becoming executives in organizations.
Thailand has a very high proportion of female executives, with the third highest proportion of female CEOs in the world and the highest proportion of female CFOs in the world.
Referring to data from a survey by Grant Thornton, this survey reflects opportunities for Thai women in private organizations that are more open and have more opportunities to grow in management than in other countries. As a result, the issue of gender equality, especially in the workplace, has become something that many companies or organizations in our country give importance to and are trying to push for this to happen in a tangible way.
Similar to SC Asset, this is another organization that seriously emphasizes Gender Equality in the Workplace by focusing on supporting gender equality in the organization because here, the executives believe that the power of female employees, no matter where they are in the organization, is another important power that can help male employees lead the organization further than before.
At SC Asset, they provide opportunities for female employees to have roles in the organization equal to male employees in almost every aspect. And here, there are also a high number of female executives and supervisors in many sectors.
So, how seriously does SC Asset take this issue? And how do the female employees here feel about this? Let’s take a look at what these employees have to say about how Gender Equality in the Workplace here affects their work.
“An organization worth working for should be one that is open and gives women the opportunity to showcase their strength and abilities.”
Ms. On Orwisa Phonsong, Head of Marketing and Sales : Ms. On told us that before she started looking for work, she looked at many companies but finally chose this one because “they gave opportunities for women.” After working here, it really was like that because over the past 10 years at SC Asset, we have seen that women really do have equal opportunities as men because the executives here give opportunities to all employees. The growth opportunities here, the executives really look at the abilities of the employees without looking at the employees’ gender.
Ms. Orn told us that being a woman is not really an obstacle because “We are women in the digital world. We don’t have to be just housewives. Women can do many roles and duties. If women like us don’t stop developing ourselves, have a passion for work, have positive energy, and look forward, women can also succeed.”
From Ms. Orn’s example, she has proven that over time, from the beginning as an ordinary female employee, she was able to grow here until she became an executive.
“In today’s work, don’t let the limitations that come from being a woman be limited. If there’s something that men can do, women can do it too.”
Ms. May Phataraporn Srimuanglop, Community Management Manager : Ms. May told us that we women need to have self-confidence. Even though we may not know or be good at everything, we must believe that we can learn from that matter.
“Our beliefs must be built from small points. We can fail or get discouraged, but don’t give up.” Nong May said that in working, problems and obstacles are something that we have to face. Asked if we have ever been discouraged? Yes, we have. But we have to see that everything always has a way out. Because we don’t work alone. We can still learn or find answers to those problems from other people. Or sometimes we ourselves can be a refuge or a helper for others when they have problems.
As SC Asset, Nong May, who has only been working here for a little over a year, told us that the work culture here is very different from her previous place. Here, everyone at every level, from executives down to lower levels, is approachable. Employees, whether female or male, are treated equally.
For example, when there is a problem at work, it is easy to ask for opinions, advice, or help. This makes it so that when a problem occurs, it can be solved in a short period of time. With this kind of organizational culture, it feels like family more than coworkers. Recently, Nong May received the Miss SC Grand Sale 2020 award from SC Asset, an award that she is very proud of for working with this organization.
“Our eyes may not be able to see as well as others, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do as well as others.”
Ms. Fasai Yanisa Ruengchai, Student Trainee in Artificial Intelligent (AI) : Fasai is a visually impaired person, currently studying in her first year at the Faculty of Law, Thammasat University. Fasai told us that the reason she has to work and study is because she wants to prove herself, as she believes that she can work and study at the same time. Both her academic and work performance are good. It turns out that Fasai’s academic performance last semester was a GPA of 3.67, which shows that a petite woman like her can really do it.
“Most people tend to think that disabled people can only do simple jobs and cannot do the same jobs as normal people or difficult and complex jobs. But let me tell you, that is a misconception. In fact, we can do better than that.”
In terms of work, Nong Fa Sai told us that at SC Asset, they give opportunities to everyone, including people with disabilities. Working here, they taught Nong Fa Sai that if we stand still, do not dare to try new things, or do not give ourselves the opportunity to experiment or learn new things, we will be stuck or regress in the end. This is another inspiration that made her come to work and take responsibility for the AI Platform for SC Asset, even though Nong Fa Sai herself did not have any knowledge about this before.
Nong Fa Sai told us that she was lucky to work with SC Asset, a company that truly provides opportunities for people with disabilities. She also told us, “I want you to look at people with disabilities with an open mind. People with disabilities may have some limitations, but we can build on their abilities and other skills to make up for them.” Opportunity and equality are things that people with disabilities want to receive, and they want to feel valuable and for people to see their true potential.
A petite woman who doesn’t see her visual impairment as a limitation has shown that she can do it very well, just like normal people like us – Nong Fa Sai Yanisa Ruengchai
“Every profession, every position, is important and honorable because everyone works professionally. So don’t look down on anyone’s profession.”
Khun Pui Pathama Srithong, Security Officer : Nong Pui is a ticket dispenser and parking ticket receiver in the security unit taking care of office buildings. Many times, Nong Pui feels that many people don’t understand. They often view her profession, including her colleagues in the security unit, as worthless and unimportant. They don’t know the truth about what they do each day. We have to facilitate, solve problems, or do many other things that many people may not know.
“Sometimes I feel disheartened that the work we do is lowly or that the work we do is worthless.”
Nong Pui told us that every day she would have to face some problems, but it was normal, such as charging customers extra for parking, which caused her to have some temper tantrums because this type of work is service work. Nong Pui told us that her job is to provide service, even if others say that the work is lowly, Nong Pui will not take those words to heart because she has been doing this work to the fullest for the past 10 years.
What she got was not just income for her family, but the happiness she got from working at a job she loved, working with dozens of good co-workers, and many more good customers who respected her and saw her career as important for her to continue to serve. Because this place for Nong Pui is another home, a home that is a big family.
“Women like us, if opportunities don’t come to us, we have to go out and look for them or create opportunities for ourselves.”
Khun Petch Napapat Srichasobhon, Contact Centre Manager: Khun Petch oversees a department where the majority of the staff are women. Khun Petch tells us that even though the department has a lot of women, it doesn’t mean that men won’t be given a chance to work there. In fact, men can do this job, and they might even do it better than women. This is because what women have that men lack is understanding customers and attention to detail. If any man gets these two things, he will be successful in this field and may easily go on to work in other fields as well.
“Failing often is an experience. The more you fail, the better you become. Fail and get back up, learn quickly, and develop quickly.”
When it comes to opportunity, women like us don’t have to wait for an opportunity. Khun Petch says that she has come this far, not because she is good or she waited for an opportunity. She started by giving herself opportunities to start learning new things. Khun Petch also says that just because we don’t know doesn’t mean we can’t know. Just because we can’t do something now doesn’t mean we won’t be able to do it in the future.
As SC Asset, Khun Petch said, there are always new things happening at the company. The executives themselves give every employee the opportunity to try and do new things. Khun Petch himself never refuses any opportunity that comes his way. If the boss tells him to try something new, he is ready to try it first. Even if he makes mistakes, he will learn from it because this is the path to self-development.
Conclusion
All of these stories are examples, inspirations, and insights into work and life from five strong and capable women from SC Asset who have shown that women in this era can also be equal.
At this point, on the occasion of International Women’s Day , which falls on March 8, I would like to invite all organizations and agencies, whether they are government, private, or community, to rise up and promote and support gender equality, and to jointly push for women to receive opportunities and have a role in driving organizations towards success, together.
#ChooseToChallenge #IWD2021 #WomenBehindSC’sSuccess
#SCSuperWomen #SCASSET
