Celebrating Women in Automotive

It’s always great to be able to shout about the hard work being done by people working in the automotive industry. The fact that it’s International Women’s Day gives us the perfect excuse to do just that, but we don’t only celebrate this once a year. The IMI Diversity Task Force has been tenaciously championing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion throughout the industry, with some great initiatives planned to bring the issue of diversity and inclusion to the top of the agenda.

It’s also a fact that one of the biggest challenges facing the automotive industry right now is recruiting and retaining a skilled workforce. At first glance you might think that there’s no link between these two things, but the Diversity Task Force know that by making the industry more open, welcoming and diverse, we’ll naturally widen the talent pool and encourage more people from all walks of life to join our exciting sector.

There are already many women thriving in the automotive sector, 19% of the sector in fact. Whilst this number needs to go up it’s still worth celebrating those already in the industry. What we need to do is get their stories out there to inspire others. So, let’s do that.

Lesley Woolley: IMI COO and Patron of Automotive 30% Club

The IMI’s very own COO, Lesley Woolley, has been working in the industry for three decades. Lesley has helped lead the Diversity Task Force since 2021, which resulted in the publication of the Diversity Task Report in 2022. She’s also a patron of the Automotive 30% Club, which is pushing to have 30% of the senior leadership roles filled by women by 2030.

Lesley hopes that this work, and improved visibility of women in the sector will inspire younger generations. She says: “Many have gone before us to open doors for women across all sectors of business and industry; it’s our responsibility now not to waste the efforts of those trailblazers. Girls at school should be able to see that they can do whatever they want, in whatever sector they choose.”

Bethany Creaser and Natalie Dickinson

The IMI Skills Competitions 2022 was a huge success and a fun time for everyone involved (registration for 2023 is open right now by the way). These competitions celebrate the most talented apprentices the industry has to offer, and in 2022, Bethany Creaser got all the way to the Refinishing finals, going on to take home the silver medal. Hear her talk about the equipment she used in the video below:

This month we’ve got the IMI Annual Dinner and Awards ceremony, where we are celebrating automotive excellence! Natalie Dickinson has been nominated by VWG for the Apprentice of the Year award, seeing as she (among other things) was the first learner at VWG to pass all her assessments with a distinction level grade.

Siti Abdullah, Emma Carrigy and Hayley Pells

The roles available in the automotive industry can be as diverse as the people occupying them. For example, IMI member Siti Abdullah has built up a wealth of practical and theoretical knowledge in her long automotive career, and currently works as a Key Account Manager for Brembo. In regard to diversity she believes, “As a woman in automotive, you do need tenacity. I think it’s important that everyone can see people like themselves in automotive to be inspired to join.”

There are multiple routes into automotive too. I bet you didn’t know a background in statistics could find you a role in automotive. Neither did Emma Carrigy until about five years ago when she became the IMI’s Research and Insights Manager. Now she’s forever delving into the numbers and providing valuable insights to help drive the future of the sector.

Someone with a powerful agenda at the IMI is our Policy Manager, Hayley Pells. Hayley has a huge amount of hands-on experience in the industry, having run her own garage. Right now, she’s the voice of IMI members and the wider sector, particularly with the DtF MOT Consultation. There’s not a piece of automotive policy that doesn’t go through Hayley at some point. On the issue of women in automotive, she says, “breaking barriers and challenging gender stereotypes in the workplace is a mission we should all be passionate about. As female vehicle technicians and MOT testers, we are proof that women have a valuable place in this industry, and our skills and expertise are just as important as our male counterparts.”

Happy International Women’s Day

We already have so many talented women working in the automotive industry, and it’s important that their stories are heard if we want to attract more to the sector. It’s also important we emphasise how varied the world of automotive is, so any skillset will find a place.

#EmbraceEquity #IWD2023 #automotive #IMICommunity