Post by Emma Forrest

How do you mark #IMD2026 as a business, a day to listen to the experiences of women, stand up for our worth, and acknowledge the barriers still faced by female colleagues, while not being cringe or disingenuous?   As chair of Ørsted Ireland’s GenderIN the key part for me is values over words. The committee has worked with management to implement notable policies following recommendations to improve our workplace for everyone, including women.   Among these are: Career breaks Unpaid leave A menopause policy Gender neural language in our recruitment processes Career coaching workshops   We still have progress to make. As a company we are about to start a new chapter, standing on our own two feet under a new name and brand. This juncture presents a new opportunity to revisit our strategies, rethink our values, and reset targets.   In preparation for that, today, we took time to get an outside perspective on leadership, the importance of teams and trust, and being a female in a male dominated industry with Marie Gleeson who delivered a super engaging talk on ‘Overcoming Challenges and Surviving the Storm’.   Thank you, Marie, for being so forthcoming with your learnings, to Ørsted for the funding support for this event, and to all my female colleagues for making our everyday work, and our business outcomes, so much better. With special thanks the Sarah Thatt-Foley, Sinead O'Riordan and Sarah Clune for their assistance and support in getting the event off the ground.   Happy International Women’s Day.