A message from Marcela Vizcaychipi for International Women’s Day 2023

I am not sure if my biggest influence is strictly from industry but here we go.

Joan of Arc, patron of France had a great effect on me when reading history in my teens. Joan of Arc came from a peasant family. She was a 17-year-old illiterate young lady who had a major influence on Charles VII back in the early 1400. She was one of the first if not the first female military leader in history. Joan followed her heart. Joan had a vision.

In those days a vision from a woman was simply not acceptable. She was accused of blasphemy; she was considered insane. Even when Joan tried to help Charles VII, she was cross examined. Joan was exposed to strict scrutiny before her ideas and vision were taken forward. Despite Joan of Arc changing the course of French history she was sentenced to death and burned alive.

Joan of Arc always made me think about women in leadership roles and made me realise that visionaries or innovators are normally outside the Gaussian distribution. There is still a long way for our society to accept that outliers are different, and we all should be more open to change and be less judgemental.

IWD is a day to reflect on where we come from and where we are heading. Flexibility and adoption are key to a long and healthy harmonious society.

Happy IWD23!