Innovate Like a Girl

A recent advertising campaign garnered national attention and praise for exposing the damaging repercussions of using the phrase “like a girl” as an insult. The ad featured a mix of young women and one pre-teen boy who were asked to demonstrate throwing, running or fighting “like a girl.” The results were not a flattering portrayal of feminine ability: arms flailed; shoulders slumped; and general weakness prevailed. 

Next, several pre-adolescent girls were asked to do the same thing, with wildly different results. The little ladies, with fixed stares of determination, grit their teeth and sent imaginary balls rocketing through the air; landed devastating blows to invisible adversaries; and with viciously pumping arms and legs, sprinted record-breaking miles. 

“We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained.”  — Marie Curie

The above quote resonates when considering that women are often under-represented in technical fields. Is it a byproduct of generations of girls being told that certain areas are “for boys?” The aforementioned advertisement implies that the younger set of girls had not yet been conditioned to believe that certain things were not “for girls” or that doing something like a girl meant doing it badly. This certainly didn’t stop Madame Curie, who conducted landmark research on radioactivity — and one could say she did it like a girl — earning her place in the history books.
 
This issue of HT highlights the phenomenal group of women being honored as Top Women in Foodservice Technology. From rising stars to innovators to the influencers receiving lifetime achievement honors, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to call out the work that is being done by women in a field typically dominated by men. 

It is our great privilege to share their stories and our hope that more women will be inspired to join the ranks of innovators. From my perspective, after learning about these women’s accomplishments, I am quite certain that innovating like a girl is something we should all strive to achieve.

To read the March cover story on our Top Women in Foodservice Technology award winners, please click here.