AUTHOR: MARIA CHRONOPOULOU | PHOTOGRAPHY: VASILIS KOUROUPIS
– I would like to ask you a few things about Women on Top. First of all, what exactly is it?
– Women on Top started in 2012 as a network through which every woman could find the mentor she needed to help her cope with challenges in the workplace. It started from my own personal need to network. Back then, I was pregnant and working in the media industry in a very demanding position. I wanted to hear from another woman who had gone through something similar – I wanted to know how other women managed to maintain a work-life balance or a career plan, but I was having trouble finding this woman. Nor did I want to discuss these delicate issues with my colleagues or boss. I wanted help from a more experienced professional in the industry; I thought that if it’s difficult for me to find this woman living in Athens, working in the media and somehow benefiting from a personal network, how hard would it be for a woman living in a smaller city who wants to change her job or to evolve professionally? Where would she get the support that she needs? So, we decided to build a network where every woman could find a mentor to aid her in her professional development. It started as a Facebook group and developed gradually from there.
– What problems have you encountered over the years?
– Over the years, we have come across problems facing all working women in Greece, as well as women who do not work but who would like to do so. Thus, we have evolved as an organization with the objective of securing equality in the workplace and professionally empowering women. This has resulted in the organization of seminars and workshops.
– So through its mentors, Women on Top covers the whole spectrum of issues facing women in their professional lives.
– I would say that Women on Top uses mentoring as a tool to empower women professionally and strengthen their position in the labour market.
– Are the mentors volunteers?
– Yes, they are not rewarded economically. However, they derive great value and recognition from the mentoring relationships that they create.
– If a woman has a specific job and is seeking guidance, what kind of process does she have to go through?
– Initially, she needs to contact us by filling out a form expressing her interest in mentoring, which can be found on our website. After we receive the form, we evaluate her application mainly on the basis of whether the woman is actually ready for mentoring. Mentoring is not equivalent to coaching or psychotherapy; it is a very specific process based on the sharing of experience and knowledge. Therefore, the woman receiving mentoring it must be in the right frame of mind to organize her thoughts. Once we conclude that she is ready, we begin to look for the right mentor for her, either inside or outside of our network. If a mentor does not belong to our network, we suggest that she joins Women on Top and do mentoring through it. Thus, we connect the interested woman with her mentor and monitor their collaboration from its very beginning, asking for feedback approximately every two months. This way, we can ensure that the relationship develops in the best possible way for both parties.
– Do you define a specific number of sessions?
– We define a specific duration lasting for three, six or twelve months and we request that our mentors be available for a minimum of one session per month. It is possible that a mentor will be able to make more sessions, but we ensure that this will be the minimum.
– How long does each session last?
– It depends on each woman’s needs, the method of communication and the availability of the mentor and the mentee.
– Which is the subscription cost for the mentees?
– It costs 50 euros for three months, 70 euros for six months and 100 euros for a year.
– If a woman living abroad wants to use your services either as a mentor or as a mentee, can she do so?
– Of course.
– Are you an NGO?
– Currently, we are an informal group in the process of establishing itself as a non-profit organization. We are being greatly supported in this process by HIGGS, which has organized a very interesting training and support programme for existing and future/aspiring NGOs.
– I see. Have you received any funding so far?
– Everything we do is self-funded. Our main sources of revenue right now are corporate partnerships, the subscriptions paid by mentees and the delivery of seminars.
– How exactly do you operate with companies? If an enterprise is willing to invest in its female workforce, what process should it follow?
– The company gets in contact with us. We have several service packages for internal mentoring programmes, as well as seminars to empower women by improving their employability and soft skills. These packages may also involve training seminars on corporate culture – which deal with women’s equality in a corporate environment – as well as seminars on work-life balance.
– What was involved in the collaboration with Microsoft?
– Microsoft wanted to do something related to women for Women’s Day, and they contacted us to see what we could do. This resulted in the Woman to Woman programme, an external mentoring project (i.e., mentoring outside of Women on Top network), where 10 Microsoft executives mentored 16 women from the general population who wanted to work in the field of technology. A programme such as this could greatly benefit a company, because aside from the issue of corporate responsibility, it is also an excellent experience for the company itself, being given the opportunity to meet and subsequently collaborate with women interested in the company’s field of expertise.
– Do you believe that Women on Top is somehow related to the crisis in Greece, or is there no relevant connection?
– I think there is a direct relationship between the two. The programme started in the middle of the crisis and is related to it in many ways. Firstly, because the crisis has substantially increased unemployment – particularly for women, because women are usually the first to lose their jobs – and secondly, because many women have decided to make a change in their professional lives and mentoring helps a great deal with this.
– What are your plans for the near future?
– Our plans for the near future are to hold a series of workshops on various topics with the aim of professionally empowering unemployed, employed and self-employed women. It is important to mention that, alongside the workshops, creative activities will be offered to the participants’ children. Moreover, we are about to announce a programme for companies willing to invest in their female workforce and set equality as a priority for their corporate culture, their activities and, last but not least, their budget.
– Perfect! Thank you very much for all of this important information, Stella.
– Thank you as well.
