Saturday’s Females in the Broadcast Industry ‘Changing the Conversation’ event saw women gather to discus measures they were taking to encourage diversity in the industry.
Guest speaker Claudia Vaccarone, Eutelsat’s head of market research and customer experience, said that after experiencing “general uneasiness” within the satellite sector (in which women comprise just 30 per cent of the workforce) she and her female colleagues formed an official network, funded by Eutelsat.
“The aim has always been to turn the conversation into something more actionable,” she said. “We didn’t want it to be polemic or political but we did want to provoke change, raise awareness and inspire women to achieve more, and introduce them to other women working in the wider ecosystem of the aerospace and broadcast industries.
Vaccerone added that initiatives have included inviting consultants to speak on issues from career development to public speaking.
Vaccarone added that Eutelsat participates in a mentoring programme, matching female employees with mentors from businesses all over Europe.
HBS’s office director Cosimi Lise revealed that the company is actively targeting and encouraging women to sign up to its live video production training, launched with EVS in April.
FBI chair Sadie Groom also put out a call for more industry associations to join in the support for women working in the industry, and spoke of her desire tto launch an awards event to raise the visibility of women working in the industry.
