Indonesia Team Member on Girl Power Talk: We Found Each Other

"We found each other. We are just meant to be."

I remember that Dee was laughing when she said this line.

I got to know them via Zoom. Dee, Shaheena, Celestine, Nadhia, and Luna. The five of them are members of the Indonesia team at Girl Power Talk. Throughout one and a half hour of online discussion, I felt impressed by how this organization has put its commitment to advocating for several issues related to gender and women empowerment.

The question is: "How did these five women find Girl Power Talk?"

The story began with Dee April, an Associate for Marketing & PR at Girl Power Talk. She was the first Indonesian to join the company. From the very first time she saw the job advertisement, Dee's intuition told her that Girl Power Talk was the right place for her. So she ignored the other three job invitations she received then. "This is where I belong ... where girls have fun and make movements towards social change."

"Movements" was also the term that attracted Titania Celestine & Nadhia Tiara Astari to join the organization. Both of them serve as Young Leaders for Content & Media Team at Girl Power Talk. Celestine believes that the workplace should be an avenue to channel a voice, in this case, toward issues of women empowerment, something she has been keen about since college.

Nadhia found that the name "Girl Power Talk" itself is very direct and powerful. She said, "They use keywords like 'elevate women', 'social impact', and 'empowerment'. I was really intrigued by that, because I never worked with a company that really values elevating girls."

But "movements" is not the only powerful word that intrigued these girls to join Girl Power Talk. The story from Shaheena Kishnani and Luna Kania are no less inspiring. They are the living proof of how Girl Power Talk continues to provide opportunities for girls to fully realize their potential.

Living in the capital city of Jakarta, Shaheena, an Associate for Marketing & PR, had to spend her college years studying online during the COVID-19 pandemic. The situation got worse when it came to her trying to secure a job as a fresh graduate at the time. She wondered, "How do I find a job in a circumstance like this?"

Meanwhile Luna, a Sr. Associate for Content & Media, was at her crossroads. Trying to switch her career from a dentist to a writer. There was no company that would accept her to work as a content writer, since she doesn't have enough experience in writing. But when she entered her eighth month of job-seeking, Luna found a vacancy at Girl Power Talk where the qualifications matched hers.

As you could guess, both Shaheena and Luna finally met each other as Girl Power Talk family members. The fact that Girl Power Talk doesn't sweat much about background experience makes them grateful. Moreover, there is a lot of training for team members to further develop their skills within the organization. Cross-disciplinary, regardless of their background.
Indonesia's Homework on The Issue of Women Empowerment
The results of the latest survey released in February 2023 by Badan Pusat Statistik (Central Bureau of Statistics) shows that Indonesia still has a lot of work to do in terms of women's involvement in employment.

The labor force participation rate of women in Indonesia is calculated lower (54.42%) compared to men (83.98%). From this smaller percentage, Indonesia remains to face inequality in terms of wages and social security; women's wages and their social security coverage are typically lower than men's.

Indonesia's Minister of Manpower herself --Ida Fauziah-- once mentioned that this number shows that discrimination against women exists. Apart from that, she also spoke on threats of violence and sexual harassment in the work environment. Not to mention the additional burden for women who often act as breadwinners, while having to do household work.

The issue of women in the workplace becomes a concern for the Indonesian team members at Girl Power Talk. To me personally, Dee dan Shaheena's stories highlighted the limited opportunities women have to express their opinions in the workplace. They often face the practice of 'mansplaining'. It is not surprising that women become less confident or even reluctant to reach a higher career level due to the institutionalized male domination in work culture.

Women also often experience discrimination and judgment in regards to their biological conditions. They are considered incompetent, unstable and emotional compared to men. Moreover, the way women dress is more regulated in the workplace: "Which one looks the most modest and professional? Which one is considered seductive?".

In response to this issue, the five members of the Indonesia team hope that their involvement in Girl Power Talk can contribute to creating an ideal work environment for women by taking concrete actions. They conduct education on social media with partners that help organize women empowerment campaigns, and publish articles to spread awareness of the issue.

But a movement can't make social progress alone, right?
I personally don't think these five girls need to worry. While carrying on with their mission, they find themselves surrounded by colleagues from various countries who are always ready to spread awareness abroad. Besides, Dee shared when she --and anyone in the organization-- needs any advice, she could always come to the CEO, Rachita Sharma. "Here, our mentor is our own CEO." Dee said.

Overall, the supportive and inclusive work environment within Girl Power Talk is --undoubtedly-- the main foundation that helps the organization consistently pursue its own path.

So, readers. Back to my first question. In this job-seeking game, who finds who?

Like Dee said, in the ideal world of women empowerment, "We found each other."