In the 2022 Standard Bank Gender Empowered Awards, Enel Green Power South Africa (EGP RSA) has been named as one of the top Gender Empowered companies in its sector. This award recognises those companies that create initiatives to celebrate and uplift women and organisations, thereby contributing to gender empowerment.

The 2022 Gender Empowered Award looks at all aspects of companies’ policies regarding women empowerment, as well as sustainability and financial support for related programmes. Standard Bank Top Women is the number one and longest-running gender empowered awards programme for top women and women-led companies — amplifying both individual and company successes in diversity and inclusion. These annual awards recognise and honour outstanding leadership, inspiration, vision, and innovation in organisations that help women rise to the top of the economic ladder. Covering all key economic areas and recognising businesses at all levels. Achieving this award recognises the efforts EGP RSA has been making in support of women empowerment in the company.

EGP RSA is committed to empowering women in the organisation by giving them a voice and the opportunity to showcase their talents and leadership abilities. This is achieved by implementing programmes that support the wellbeing of all employees, but that also accommodate the unique needs of women in the workplace.

“The working environment at our company centres on work-life balance and wellness, with programmes designed to support these, for example, virtual yoga sessions, as well as insurance for wellness and COVID-19, a balanced life, mental wellbeing, and more,” says Abigail Fidelis, EGP RSA’s Head of People & Organisation: Southern Africa.

“This is in keeping with our 2022 wellness drive, which we have allocated budget for.”

Part of EGP RSA’s human resources strategy is an element entitled ‘Talent Blooming’ – so named because of its reference to flowers blooming and flourishing, and how flowers are often used to describe women. Just as flowers require the right soil and sufficient water and light, so do employees require the right environment, time and context in which to grow and flourish – this is what EGP RSA aims to provide for all its employees, and it is something that particularly benefits women.

“Women also provide valuable mentorship in our company. We have a large team of women in senior management, and any employee can approach them for mentoring and job shadowing,” says Fidelis.

EGP RSA encourages an open culture and strives towards fulfilling its values of Trust, Responsibility, Innovation and Proactivity (TRIP). This allows leaders to make decisions that will have a positive impact on their work and their teams, while at the same time achieving high levels of productivity.

Fidelis says, “At Enel, we nurture everyone’s talent – regardless of their gender – through empathetic leadership. We use a soft leadership style, which is inclusive and results driven. We treat all employees as equals. They all receive the respect and dignity they deserve, and their differences and contributions are all celebrated. We also don’t have a gender pay gap – everyone is paid equally according to their skills and experience, regardless of their gender.”

Achieving this award is important to EGP RSA – while it recognises the company’s efforts in going beyond the call of duty to retain and empower talented women, it also enables the company to forge ahead with additional programmes planned for 2022 and beyond. Whilst the award is a South African one, and a first of its kind for EGP RSA, it is being celebrated by Enel Green Power globally.

A new project on the cards for EGP RSA is ‘Back to School - STEM for Women’. This project will facilitate young female employees with STEM qualifications and technical roles going back to their respective high schools and acting as role models for female matriculants and sharing with them the benefits of following a career in engineering and the renewable energy sector. This is being piloted in South Africa as well as in other countries. Fidelis adds, “We have other inclusive workplace programmes such as bias and harassment training initiatives, which started last year in November and will continue on.”

Another project that has already been running successfully for a few years is EGP RSA’s Parental Programme. Fidelis says, “If we want to retain women, we have to accommodate them. We acknowledge that the women in our organisation who are of child-bearing age need our support. We offer this through parental information and learning programmes such as CPR and massage for infants and provide support when they return to work from maternity leave, which can be an overwhelming experience. We will also begin a hybrid/flexible work scheme soon, which will assist women with family responsibilities.

EGP RSA is driven to attract talented women in this engineering and renewable energy space, and aims to be an employer of choice and to create an appealing environment for women to work in. “This award means a lot to our company and to the country as well. We’re on a mission to get to a point where we employ 50% male and 50% female employees, and I believe this award will assist us in our endeavours,” concludes Fidelis.

Contact Enel Green Power South Africa, Phone 010 344-0200, communications.egprsa@enel.com