Inspiring inclusion: a conversation between female leaders in chemicals, featuring BASF’s Cara Madzy

For the second consecutive year, some of the biggest companies in the chemical industry came together to celebrate International Women’s Day. This year, PPG hosted a live panel of influential women to discuss and reflect on some of the most important challenges women face today in the workforce, from lack of representation in leadership roles to parenthood, career advancement and inclusion iniciatives.

The panel brought together key companies in the industry and included:

• Cara Madzy, Senior Director of Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS) and Security at BASF’s Geismar site.
• Jennifer McIntyre, Chief People and Culture Officer at Univar Solutions.
• Christine Bryant, Global Business Unit Head of Tailored Urethanes at Covestro.
• Kimberly Markiewicz, Vice President of Environmental, Health & Safety and Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer at Dupont.
• Irene Tasi, Senior Vice President of Global Industrial Coatings at PPG.
• Joanne Sekella, Vice President of Coatings and Performance Monomers at Dow.

Moderated by Marvin Mendoza, Global Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion for PPG, the panel addressed gender equality in the workplace and reflected on the panelists’ career paths to inspire the next generation of leaders.  BASF’s Cara Madzy led the conversation around the importance of authenticity in the workplace. 

The power of advocacy in building confidence

When it comes to advancing your career, the panel agrees that having a voice is key. And to find that voice and get a seat, having people in your corner, rooting and advocating for you is important. As Joanne Sekella reflects, “Having that person, that advocate who lifts you up and when you have doubts when you have challenges, you know that you can go to as a trusted confidant.”

At one point or another, every member of the panel had at least one advocate, and they all appreciated and remembered them fondly for giving them the courage and support they needed at the time. And it doesn’t necessarily need to be a leader; it can be a peer, as Jennifer McIntyre experienced. “When I was at that point in my career where you get that first big job, and I was offered a plant manager job and I didn't think I was ready. And it was actually a peer of mine, a male peer who said to me, ‘you're totally ready. I mean, who do you think is more ready than you are?’ And it gave me the courage. I just needed somebody to give me that push,” she remembers.

Advocates help build confidence, but there are many ways to develop confidence in a new role. It can be anything from a course in public speaking, as Jennifer McIntyre took, to doing extensive research on an initiative or approach before meetings, like Irene Tasi suggests, or even reaching out to a manager, leader, or even a coach to provide the support you need, which both Madzy and Bryant did at one point and highly recommend.

The intricacies of leadership

Having the right set of skills can make or break a leader. And when it comes to the most important skills every leader needs to have, authenticity and being your true self are essential, according to Kim Markiewicz.

Building a consensus within a team can often be challenging. Being open, listening and seeking an understanding are all important pieces of building trust and finding common ground in teams.

The panel agrees that feedback is another major aspect of every successful team and quite a difficult one to master. Both giving and receiving feedback can be tricky. They recommend not only building rapport with the person to learn about their situation but also making sure to give feedback at the right time. Giving feedback long after the action or behavior took place makes it hard to recall the moment it happened and the context.

Building a diverse and inclusive workplace

The panel agreed that people should be the main concern for any leader, and diversity is key to building strong teams. In Christine Bryant’s words, “A diverse opinion from various levels within the organization, various experience levels is critically important. But it's one thing to establish a diverse team; it's another thing to make sure that everybody on that team feels heard and that they can open their mouth. We have to create a culture where everybody on that team is heard and their opinion matters.”

In Irene Tasi’s view, hiring individuals who come from different industries and have different experiences and backgrounds also can help foster diversity.

Another part of building a diverse workforce and attracting and retaining talent is also about supporting their visibility and career progressions, especially minorities and LGBTQ+ individuals.

For Cara Madzy, her visibility journey took time: “At first, it was just very difficult to be me in the workplace, being at a manufacturing site. When I moved into a corporate role for a short time in our Florham Park office, I had a manager who was gay as well, she had pictures of her wife and her kids, and everybody was cool with it. I started talking to her about this and I kind of opened up. That was the pivotal moment for me to say, it’s okay. People were cool. No one’s disappointed in you. You’re not a bad person. Everything is fine. Just as my role model, my manager at the time, helped me through a difficult time, now it's my responsibility to pay it forward, to help others in the same situation, be open, be myself and have pictures of my family in my office – in a manufacturing site!”

The panel agrees that by addressing the need for increased visibility, representation, and support in the chemical industry, companies can help women and minorities succeed in leadership roles and create a more equitable space for all.

“Events like Inspire Inclusion are crucial in bringing attention to the need for gender equity and encouraging meaningful conversations about inclusion in general,” said Madzy. “At BASF, we firmly believe that diversity and inclusion are fundamental principles that create more open environments to drive innovation and success in our industry. We must continue being intentional with how we recruit, develop and retain diverse talent, and with the many different opportunities within manufacturing, there is a place for everyone to belong.” 

Published on July 10, 2024 by Mariana Licio.

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