Alcatel-Lucent and UNESCO join forces to bridge the high-tech gender gap
Paris, October 17, 2014
Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) has announced today that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with UNESCO that will see the two organizations working together to promote gender diversity. The agreement was signed in UNESCO’s Paris headquarters by Alcatel-Lucent CEO Michel Combes and UNESCO Director-General, Irina Bokova.
Alcatel-Lucent has made gender diversity a corporate priority. These efforts are supported by StrongHer, an internal employee network that drives awareness of the issue and launches diversity initiatives within the company. Originally started in 2011 as a grassroots movement by six female colleagues in France, StrongHer now has more than 1000 member in 50 countries and is regularly consulted by company management on diversity and other topics.
The signing of the MoU with UNESCO reflects the success of StrongHer and global recognition of it as a best practice that could be replicated across all industries to address a clear need for greater gender diversity especially in the technology sector. According to UNESCO, globally women make up only 29% of the world’s researchers, less than 10% of science advisory boards of the world’s top 100 high-tech companies and only 6% of CEOs of IT companies. Further, societies have created a culture that does not encourage girls to pursue scientific and engineering educations or even to express their ambition to do so.
Commenting on the agreement, Michel Combes, CEO of Alcatel-Lucent, said: “I am very proud to give my personal support, and that of Alcatel-Lucent, to this initiative with UNESCO. The technology industry – and, indeed, all industries – need to do much more to promote gender diversity at all levels. True innovation comes from human diversity creating a diversity of ideas, leading to invention that drives innovation within companies like Alcatel-Lucent. The StrongHer initiative is one example of diversity in action.”
ABOUT ALCATEL-LUCENT (EURONEXT PARIS AND NYSE: ALU)
We are at the forefront of global communications, providing products and innovations in IP and cloud networking, as well as ultra-broadband fixed and wireless access to service providers and their customers, and to enterprises and institutions throughout the world. Underpinning us in driving the industrial transformation from voice telephony to high-speed digital delivery of data, video and information is Bell Labs, an integral part of the Group and one of the world’s foremost technology research institutes, responsible for countless breakthroughs that have shaped the networking and communications industry. Our innovations have resulted in our Group being recognized by Thomson Reuters as a Top 100 Global Innovator, as well as being named by MIT Technology Review as amongst 2012’s Top 50 “World’s Most Innovative Companies”. We have also been recognized for innovation in sustainability, being named Industry Group Leader in the Technology Hardware & Equipment sector in the 2014 Dow Jones Sustainability Indices review, for making global communications more sustainable, affordable and accessible, all in pursuit of the Group’s mission to realize the potential of a connected world.
With revenues of Euro 14.4 billion in 2013, Alcatel-Lucent is listed on the Paris and New York stock exchanges (Euronext and NYSE: ALU). The company is incorporated in France and headquartered in Paris.
For more information, visit Alcatel-Lucent on: http://www.alcatel-lucent.com, read the latest posts on the Alcatel-Lucent blog http://www.alcatel-lucent.com/blog and follow the Company on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Alcatel_Lucent.
