This year, the United Nations defined the following theme for International Women’s Day: “For an inclusive digital world: Innovation and technology for gender equality.” At Reservamos SaaS, we wanted to reflect on this topic and speak with prominent women who are part of the bus sector, and who are changing the game of innovation and technological development. We spoke with them about the impact of women’s participation in accelerating innovation and technological development, and how they are driving growth in the sector through their ideas, talent, and vision.
Their example and trajectory demonstrate that the presence of women is key to forging new paths toward a more equal and technologically advanced future.
From your sector, how can we contribute to achieving a more inclusive digital world?
Thanks to the advancement of new technologies, it is increasingly necessary to have digital spaces where users are fully integrated. Users today need to interact with our services in the fastest and most efficient way possible.
We must move towards generating digital content and offers that are increasingly inclusive and diverse.
For GTP, advancing the digitization of our services and products is a commitment to our customers.
The passenger transportation industry must be able to contribute to digital, labor, and social inclusion, where everyone has access to a more empathetic and collaborative world.
Who is your role model? Which women do you admire and why?
I greatly admire Malala Yousafzai, because, since the age of 11, she has been fighting for women’s rights, and dared to go to school, a place forbidden for women in Pakistan. It was at that moment when she was shot in the head and was close to dying.
On October 10, 2014, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, and she is an important activist for children’s rights and the youngest winner of this prize.
How can we encourage professional development and training for women in the business and technology fields?
Promoting and strengthening spaces for women’s career progression is essential in every organization, especially in this industry where the role of women was very excluded for many years.
We have the “GTP Academy”, a platform for free courses and training, where our employees can access online content, with the aim of offering learning and growth opportunities within the company.
It is necessary to create development opportunities within companies, encourages the attraction and retention of talent, and empower our teams, who are the main asset of our companies.
From your sector, how can we contribute to achieving a more inclusive digital world?
People who strategically work with products for the digitalization of services in general often say that everything is designed to be inclusive. However, unlike retail, I see very little empathy with the public that traditionally uses transportation, which is specifically my area of specialization. Stereotypes are constructed of the customer that still seems distant from the passenger. There are some prejudices that need to be overcome, such as discrimination based on age. I believe that deep immersion in the daily life of bus stations would competently cover all audiences.
On the other hand, it is necessary to understand that a good digital or traditional service is continuous, and for that, security must come first. The passenger’s safety needs to rely on the quality and supervised service because they are not in a position to evaluate such security at the time of boarding. And legal security for the entrepreneur who will only make long-term investments if they have this perception of the company’s environment.
Who is your role model? Which women do you admire and why?
I have many women and men who inspire me, but in honor of them, I would always and continuously mention Luiza Helena Trajano, who, for me, was the manager who best-understood inclusion and the idea of sharing within the Brazilian scenario. In our association, it is worth mentioning that over two decades ago, ABRATI chose a woman for the Vice Presidency, Sandra Oger, as well as Thereza Christina Villela, a lawyer who has worked in the transportation environment since the 1980s, being a pioneer in women who opened a valuable path that I cannot help but recognize and thank for paving the way for me.
How can we promote wage equality and gender equity in the business and technology environment?
Training and above-average performance may not be the fairest way, but at the moment, it is the only way for women to have their value recognized. In the future, I believe this will change, but for now, what I can say to everyone is to study, be curious, and dedicate yourselves more and better so that your recognition is infallible. If not, change your environment, and seek out other women to offer you support and help; life reserves surprising situations.
From ABRATI’s point of view, how can companies and society in general support women to overcome the challenges of gender discrimination in the workplace and technology environment?
ABRATI was one of the first transportation associations to have the participation of pioneers in the board of directors, directors, and auditorium of entity members. Our desire is for passenger transportation to become an increasingly opportunistic and growing sector for women, and for that, ABRATI functions as a network of support and encouragement.
