Measuring Gender Equality in the Workplace
In 2019, BBC featured two GCL2014 alumni, Mia Perdomo from Colombia and Andrea de la Piedra from Peru, for their GCL project Aequales as one of the "101 Ways Work is Changing Today." Founded five years ago during the GCL program, Aequales launched the first-ever gender equality ranking system for companies in Latin America to promote gender equality in the workplace.
Mia and Andrea met during their GCL2014 program experience. De la Piedra explains her motivation when she applied to the Global Competitiveness Leadership Program:
“I applied to Georgetown knowing I wanted to create a social enterprise. When I met Mia, that path became even clearer.
Perdomo recalls how they met:
I lent her a copy of Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In. And I asked her if she wanted to build a project with me. The rest is history.”
Now, Aequales works with more than 800 corporations in the region. Mia, Andrea and their team launched the Aequales Community, with more than 90 organizations publicly committed to gender equality in Colombia, Mexico and Peru. Aequales has also developed the PAR platform, a technological tool for companies to access comparative data, share best practices and get to know organizations in Latin America. PAR was a finalist in the MIT Inclusive Innovation Challenge and in Startup Peru.
Perdomo states:
We aren’t going to stop until we’re in every Latin American country. We have big dreams.”
Read the full article by Lucy Sherriff at BBC
Andrea de la Piedra
Journalist, activist, and businesswoman. Co-founder of Aequales, a consulting firm that aims at closing the gender gap in corporations, while promoting women leadership in Latin America. CEO of Aquales in Per. Co-creator of the PAR ranking and of the Aequales Community. Andrea holds a journalism degree from the Peruvian University of Applied Sciences (Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas). Recognized in 2018 as UN Mission Ambassador 2030. Recognized with the Award of Change Protagonist (Premio Protagonista del Cambio (UPC)) and member of the worldwide network of social entrepreneurs, Youth Action Net. Recognized as Business and Entrepreneur Woman by the Chamber of Commerce in Lima. She is alumni of the Global Competitiveness Leadership Program of Georgetown University. TedxLima and TedxWomen Speaker. Her work, together with that of Mia's, was recognized by BBC as one of the 101 ways that the work is changing today.
Mia Perdomo:
Mía Perdomo is a businesswoman and activist. Co-founder of Aequales, a consulting firm that aims at closing the gender gap in corporations, while promoting women leadership in Latin America. CEO of Aquales in Per. Co-creator of the PAR ranking and of the Aequales Community. Mia holds a psychology degree from the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana and a master's degree in human rights from the London School of Economics. She is alumni of the Global Competitiveness Leadership Program of Georgetown University. Recognized as one of the 100 most successful managers according to Revista Gerente, one of 100 women that are transforming Colombia according to La Silla Vacía, one of the Colombians that are inspiring according to Revista Semana, and one of the 101 people that are changing the workplace according to BBC.
About Aequales:
A consulting firm that provides tools to close the gender gap in the workplace in Latin America by providing measuring tools, consulting services and technology. Aequales is present in Perú, Colombia, and México and develops the PAR ranking, the first gender equity ranking for organizations in Latin America. They also led the Aequales Community, a community of companies that strives for gender equality.