Diversity and female representation is critical not only for the success of VECKTA but for all companies. And although the representation of women on corporate boards continues to increase, it is still relatively low, especially in the tech and energy sectors.
Announcement of Uma Gopaldass as VECKTA’s Latest Board Member
In September we announced the addition of Uma Gopaldass as the newest board member at VECKTA. Uma is a Board-certified governance counsel with over 30 years of global operating experience across the Natural Resources, Technology, and Engineering industries.
Her company, Leading Lotus, guides executives to navigate a myriad of business challenges including securing financing, building investor confidence, and targeting strategic markets.
Uma aligns with our company values to challenge limits, adapt purposefully, and empower co-creation. And we understand the importance for companies, even from a startup stage, to consider their board and leadership team composition.
“The power of a diverse boardroom brings strategic value and competitive advantage to a company,” says Uma. “It is no longer only about financial oversight, audit, and comp. Boardrooms today have to help their Leadership team navigate an array of business risks driven by geopolitical, social, technological, and environmental challenges. These additional demands on the Boardroom can only be fulfilled by a diversity of minds, backgrounds, and experiences. I am very fortunate to be part of VECKTA’s incredibly talented Boardroom. A boardroom that has welcomed my expertise with confidence, and is leading the way to be truly diverse.”
Leading Courageous Women to the Boardroom
“Women are 50% of the population, yet are only 20% of corporate board members,” says Michele Ashby, CEO/Founder of ACE LLC (Ashby Consulting Enterprise LLC).
“We need more women on boards because they bring added value and leadership to the boardroom and deserve to be there. Women are dedicated, loyal, and willing to participate in the room where the biggest decisions are being made. Research shows that company boards with women on them have higher ROI, so it makes sense”.
Michele’s company ACE leads courageous women into the boardroom through coaching, and offers a specialized board certification course both online and live. In addition, Michele’s company helps women to find corporate board seats and they are proud of the number of appointments for the ACE Grads so far. Uma is a graduate of the ACE program.
“Our goal is to train 1,000 women to sit on corporate boards and help build diversity in the boardroom to build a better world.”
Increasing Representation in Mining, Energy, and Software
And finally, Gareth Evans, our Founder, and CEO at VECKTA came from the environmental sciences industry early in his career where there was a 50-50 representation of females and males. “It became very obvious how challenged other sectors were, particularly mining, energy, and software,” said Gareth. “Diversity of representation, thought, culture and experiences are directly linked to more success. At VECKTA we are committed to a diverse team to create the best possible outcomes, which is critical to ensuring we create a more sustainable, profitable while securing a thriving energy future.”
