Celebrating – and championing – women's career choices

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), which charts data on female participation in the port entity workforce, provides sobering data on the average participation of women in the industry.  
 
The low global average of 18% is “far from an equal distribution of roles,” according to the intergovernmental body.  
 
So how, on International Women's Day, does APM Terminals reflect on progress made in redressing the gender balance in the sector, and why should more women consider a career in logistics? We asked Sander Hubbers, Head of People Function at APM Terminals for his thoughts on how APM Terminals aims to lift the standard of responsibility and meet its Diversity and Inclusion targets.  

Achievable targets 

Assessing the Group's ambition to increase the numbers of women in management and leadership roles, Hubbers says: “We are keen to dispel the idea that logistics, ports, and terminals should be any less an attractive career choice for women than men. Opportunities for women in this sector today have rarely been equaled.” 
 
“We will always seek the best candidates for the job. What we want to overcome is any ‘self-filtering’ where people – regardless of gender, or any other reason – imagine that they do not fit in here, and therefore do not apply in the first place, and at the same time fight biases that select-out great diverse talent. That would be a tragic loss on both sides,” he says, pointing out that recruitment policies, mentorship programs, anti-harassment protocols, flexible work-life balance initiatives and communications drives are employed throughout the company.  

The importance of Gender Equality 

It is well-documented that diverse teams and organisations perform better and deliver stronger results when they contain people with a variety of backgrounds, experiences and personalities, says Hubbers. “We seek to facilitate diversity of thought. Our industry is rooted in the exchange of ideas, and the easing of trade and connection across the world. Inclusion, curiosity and acceptance are part of who we are as a company. Inclusion and representation help us to understand our customer needs better and build the connections we nurture in the communities we serve.”  

Paving the Way  

Hubbers’ views are echoed by Marliz Bermudez, Managing Director at APM Terminals Mexico. She’s one of a small but increasing number of female terminal leaders working on the frontline at APM Terminals globally. Having worked in the sector for almost 20 years, 17 of which with APM Terminals, she has been consistently ranked among the top 100 most important people in the industry in her country, placing 36th by T21, Grupo Comunicación y Medios this year.  
 
Bermudez was further recognised just this month as one of the most powerful women in Mexican business by Groupo Expansión. While grateful for the acclaim, she points out that her position in the public eye and as a leader entails responsibility. “‘Power’ translates to the level of power to influence, to inspire, and to create a more inclusive future for all,” she says.  

No illusions 

While her own career success means that she serves as a role model to up-and-coming women professionals, she is under no illusions about the gender gap in the industry. “The percentages are still considerably low, especially given the dynamic environment that port terminals offer,” she says. The effort to attract more women into the terminal environment has been longstanding. 
 
APM Terminals was the first operator in the country to hire women across all roles within the stevedoring union. “This was a major step. Recently, in the last two years, we have implemented ¨The Network of Professional Women in the Maritime Industry¨ aiming to drive a culture that promotes equal opportunities; genderless recruitment; integral development between mental, professional and leadership well-being. Several sessions have taken place, including participation from other port operators in our Lazaro Cardenas terminal, customs house brokers and port authorities." 

Empowering through inclusion 

As a leader, she focuses on continuing to promote the recruitment of women and ensuring their retention by empowering them with training, maintaining safe working environments and enabling a sustainable gender equality ecosystem within the business. 
 
Ultimately, she says, the focus needs to be on inclusion. "Inclusion means recognizing the need to open doors for others, in our various industries, and to continue opening pathways so that more and more women can say: ‘you know what? I opt for a job on the dock. I choose to be the one who operates those gantry cranes’. That's an approach that we haven't had enough of – not yet...” 

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Marliz Bermudez will speak at PRPorts.com’s webinar ‘Female leadership in the Port-Maritime sector’ today, Friday 8, at 10:00 to 11:30 (Panama time - GMT-5 / 16:00 – 17:30 CET) with María Marisa Abarca - Director General of Ports of Mexico, Celeste Gaincerain - CFO de PTP Group Argentina and Flávia Takafashi - Director of the National Agency for Aquarium Transport, ANTAQ Brazil.  
 
You can watch the broadcast live on YouTube channel as part of the Women's Leadership Programme for the Maritime-Port Sector (LIFE). 
 
The event will be moderated by Carlos José González, Managing Partner of Multimodal Company. 
 
Find out more about working at APM Terminals here.