Local tyre manufacturer Bridgestone has succeeded in establishing a world-class leadership team in recent years and has appointed women in senior management positions, says Bridgestone Southern Africa quality assurance manager Abigail Ndileka Arosie.

To ensure that real, meaningful change happens, the company has improved diversity from a gender and race perspective, and has also transformed its ways of working, with integrated and multidisciplinary teams achieving higher levels of productivity and materials efficiency.

“Bridgestone places gender equality at the heart of its core corporate values, promoting the employment, retention and advancement of women. We now have a diverse team in terms of not only gender and race but also the thoughts, skills, experience and attributes that people bring to the table. Our teams are delivering phenomenal results and are turning the company around from a financial and cultural perspective,” she adds.

Arosie says supporting transformation and advancing opportunities for women is bearing results, and Bridgestone Southern Africa has become a certified Level 1 broad-based black economic-empowerment contributor within three years.

She notes that Bridgestone’s achieving Level 1 status can be attributed to its sustained focus on improving its performance in all scorecard areas, including management and control, where the evidence of great improvement in diversity is clear.

“One out of Bridgestone’s three executive directors is a black female (33%), while two of its five nonexecutive directors (40%) are black females. Holistically, even though the tyre industry is traditionally male dominated, Bridgestone Southern Africa has achieved 33% female leadership across all management positions.”

Further, she points out that Bridgestone is also aiming to create youth employment opportunities through participating in the Yes4Youth programme, particularly through engaging with female graduates in technical fields.

The company has also provided exposure for graduates in, for example, laboratories, production, quality and safety in the local automotive and manufacturing industries.

Further, Bridgestone also launched the Women’s Lean-In Circles in the first quarter of 2022, which fosters an environment where women can create a comfortable space to meet and discuss transferable skills. The meetings are usually held regularly in small groups.

“Bridgestone offers many opportunities to improve one’s skills, from the Women’s Circle and mentorship to formal learning at institutions, such the Gordon Institute for Business Science (GIBS), and on-the-job coaching,” Arosie adds.

She argues that ensuring diversity does not “end at the appointment phase”, but that inclusivity is nurtured over time through targeted activities.

In 2020, Bridgestone Southern Africa also established and “actively championed” the Bridgestone Women Diversity Programme, which provides a platform for women to share ideas and guide young women.

“We treat these sessions as mentorship sessions, focusing on empowering and building a way forward. We encourage this inclusiveness through teammate support, advocacy and education, and we expect accountability at all levels.”

Automotive industry

Arosie says employment opportunities for women in the local automotive and manufacturing industries have increased in the past 20 years.

While these industries have made progress in terms of employing women, she believes that organisations in these industries have not been agile in ensuring that retention strategies are aimed at women.

“The automotive industry, however, remains a male-dominated industry, whereas for example, the trade industry, has a high female representation. I believe that the automotive industry has made a significant shift from being male-dominated to be more inclusive. For example, at Bridgestone, we have women holding senior positions and leading teams mostly comprising men.”

Arosie adds that companies active in the automotive industry need to capacitate men and women to navigate the ever-changing landscape and encourage a culture of equality to enhance gender diversity.

“Companies should include all genders when discussing diversity to ensure gender inclusivity. Relaxing the barriers of entrance, rather than having a strict requirement, for someone who has relevant industry experience is also important. Companies should place a greater emphasis on skills and attributes, especially transferable skills,” she concludes.