I imagine the six-year-old me asked a lot of questions about Valentine’s Day. Why do we celebrate it? What does “Be Mine” mean? Do cupid’s arrows hurt when they hit people? (Actually, that last one came from my 6-year-old daughter, who also has lots of questions.)
Then there was a long spell where I was perfectly content to just sit back and celebrate it. Chocolates, hearts, flowers, what’s not to like? I can even remember wanting to be the best at it, stressing over how to create the most perfect Valentine’s surprise anyone had ever received.
For whatever reason, maybe my daughter’s influence, the fact that I’ve already snuck into and finished most of my chocolates, or possibly the rise of #GalentinesDay, this year I reverted back to my 6-year-old self and decided to consult Google for a refresher on what this holiday is all about.
Oh, It's Only the Best Day of the Year
I’m very busy so it was a short Google consultation. But here’s what my “what is Valentine’s Day” search returned:
Val·en·tine's Day
noun
February 14, a day when it is traditional to send a card, often anonymously, to a person one is romantically involved with or attracted to.
Wow, have we done a number on this holiday. According to Wikipedia, the total V-Day expenditures in 2017 topped $18.2 billion, or over $136 per person. Holy sweet cannoli!
But getting back to my point... I was actually quite charmed to be reminded that traditionally there has been a significant anonymous component to Valentine’s Day. It made me think about all of the hundreds of thousands of anonymous company reviews women have sent to each other — sent for each other, really — on InHerSight. Every company review, positive and negative, is a small but mighty message of love and caring for each other, for the companies we work our butts off for, and for the next generation of women.
Ovaries Before Brovaries
So in honor of Valentine’s Day, here are 15 of the powerful “valentines” women have sent to each other and to their companies this month on InHerSight:
“Amazing, progressive company. What you put into your work is truly what you get out of it. No gender bias, extremely diverse culture.”
“Working at Hasbro has changed my life. The values are not just some words on a plaque. Hasbro leaders and colleagues are passionate about our mission to make the world a better place for children and their families. Working here has made me want to be a better person and do more to have a positive impact on the world.”
“Although striving to be an equality organization, not reflected in diminishing number of women in the workforce, especially engineers.” 🙄 "
“Embarrassing policies for a company run by women comprised primarily of women. CFO and CHR male controlled. All they care about is producing numbers for Wall Street on the backs of working mothers by making women feel inferior in their own skin."
“CB Insights is a very balanced workplace. I am challenged in my work while also achieving a work life balance. Unlike previous jobs I've held, I have time and energy to focus on my life outside of work. I also feel safe and respected as a woman. I am supported by my female coworkers and respected by my male coworkers. CB Insights is a great fit for me and was exactly what I was looking for."
“I’ve never felt so supported with any other employer. I have a very young child, so I must be flexible in my work. No one puts you on the “Mommy Plan” when it comes to growth and leadership opportunities. They support a full 4-month maternity leave as well as full benefits for domestic partners!”
“I believe about 40% of the Ultimate workforce works virtually (from home). There is tremendous support for your needs as a virtual employee. I love being able to choose where to live based on what my family needs rather than where my employer is located.”
“The company is great to work for if you are right out of college and looking for media experience to build your resume. There are great leadership programs that allow you to grow professionally and multiple departments you can shadow to find out your passion. Since I would recommend this company for new career seekers, once you advance there is a stopping point and not much more to do/enhance where you may find yourself feeling like you have hit your peak. Otherwise, the people are great to work with, fun activities, and laid back atmosphere.”
“The lack of paid maternity leave is punishing mothers/fathers for spending time with their families.”
“Avanade has genuine interest in, and actively supports, promoting women. In an industry that is heavily male dominated we will not see a 50/50 split in gender until we have young women coming up through schools and then coming up through the industry. That takes time. We are working on supporting young girls in STEM and the shift is happening, but everyone has to also understand this is not a trend that can change on a dime nor is it isolated to Avanade. This is an investment in the future.”
“I very much enjoy working at Humana. The flexibility I have being a single mom has been wonderful as well as WFH/WAH. They have multiple avenues for training and multiple ways to network and volunteer! Not only that I enjoy coming to work every day!”
“I’ve never felt so supported with any other employer. I have a very young child, so I must be flexible in my work. No one puts you on the “Mommy Plan” when it comes to growth and leadership opportunities. They support a full 4-month maternity leave as well as full benefits for domestic partners!”
“They put out a declarative statement recently on how they would not tolerate sexual harassment or discrimination. Despite this, they still have yet to do anything about the main offenders of discrimination. It’s been reported so often, it is hard to believe they will continue to overlook this - but they will. They keep burying their heads in the sand as if we all don’t know they know about it. It’s shameful at this point.”
“In the last 5 plus years the organization has transformed into a family friendly work environment where I feel like I can be awesome at work and be active in my kids' lives. It's amazing to get this at a place where I also love the work I do!”
Leave your company and the future women who work there a "valentine" by clicking here. (It’s anonymous!)
At InHerSight, our mission is to improve the workplace for women by measuring it. We bring women’s insights together into a common framework to show where companies excel and where they fall short so more women can find their ideal workplace. For more on women in the workplace follow InHerSight on Twitter or Facebook.
