As North America’s Women’s History Month draws to a close, we at ACCO Brands reflect on how our locations around the globe celebrated International Women’s Day this year. Thanks to the efforts of our employee Women’s Network, ACCO Women Partnering for Success (AWPS), this important holiday and month were met with enthusiastic participation.
On the North America side, our Sidney, NY location handed out personalized “thank you” cards and purple ribbons for employees to wear in support of women. Kettering, OH hosted a breakfast, with donuts and coffee, where senior AWPS members hosted a Q&A panel. They also printed posters with short bios of all the AWPS members at that location, so employees could get to know them a little better. Our Headquarters in Lake Zurich, IL hosted a Kahoots Trivia game via Microsoft Teams, asking questions about famous women throughout history for prizes!
On the International side, we saw participation from Europe and Asia. Poland put together a video showcasing the women of ACCO Poland, they also hosted trivia and purchased a number of books about important female figures for the ACCO Library. Benelux sent out an email with information about International Women’s Day to express their support. EMEA South (which includes Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey) hosted a group call with the women in that region and the women in Italy were all given flowers of appreciation.
EMEA Central (which includes Austria, Germany & Switzerland) brought in two external speakers that discussed women’s empowerment and work/life balance & mindfulness, followed by sending out a Thank You note. France printed posters, distributed Thank You cards, and celebrated the success of women externally via LinkedIn. Portugal celebrated with a special menu in the restaurant for everyone and gifts for the company's women. In Asia, Singapore hosted an hour-long gathering with female-lead dialogue and an exchange of topics and ideas.