Today we are celebrating International Women's Day. As a family business, this is something that we believe strongly in at Mash Direct and today we are taking the opportunity to get the message out that there is still plenty of work to be done.
In the corporate world there has been a reverse as the proportion of retail Chief Executive vacancies being filled by women plunged 40% last year [1] while in the traditionally male farming industry there has been great progress as the percentage of women entering the farming sector has increased by 26% in the last three years. [2].
There is still a long way to go and Tracy has been speaking at the International Women's Day Inspire Conference at Titanic Belfast and was also speaking this morning at Deloitte to inspire women to make their voices heard. Tracy was awarded Outstanding Businesswoman of the Year in 2015 [3] as well as the All Ireland Award for Women in Agriculture [4] and believes passionately in advocating for more women to lean in and take their place at the top tables of industry.
The farming industry is taking big strides in big muddy boots and we hope that this progress will help to inspire other industries.
[1] http://www.irishnews.com/business/2015/11/20/news/mash-direct-boss-scoops-outstanding-businesswoman-gong-328540/
[2] http://www.nigoodfood.com/comber-businesswoman-tracy-hamilton-has-won-the-prestigious-all-ireland-award-for-agribusiness/
[3] https://www.fginsight.com/news/role-of-women-in-agriculture-more-important-than-ever-as-number-of-new-entrants-rise-2747
[4] http://www.retail-week.com/7005462.article
