We are thrilled to announce the launch of the first Women Empowerment Awards in China and the opening of the nominations for the very first time!
The Women Empowerment Awards in China were created by the Women’s Advisory Council, with support from AmCham China and SCHS Asia. The awards seek to recognize trailblazing individuals and innovative companies that have a demonstrated a robust commitment to promoting women in the workforce in order to encourage greater gender equality and drive stronger business outcomes in China.
The Women Empowerment Awards in China are divided into individual awards and company awards. The award categories are:
Individual Awards
- Outstanding Woman Leader of the Year: An award to recognize one senior executive female leader (VP/Director level or above) who has become a successful and influential leader in her chosen field and has also paved the way for others. She is committed to the advancement of women in business in China and engages other leaders to join in these efforts. This outstanding leader is a role model for the next generation and a pioneer for others looking to advance female talent.
- Male Ally of the Year: An award to recognize one senior executive male leader (VP/Director level or above) who actively champions, sponsors and advocates for women in leadership. He is a visible and engaged ally who has a clearly articulated commitment to gender equality. He brings others along on this journey and constantly seeks to drive action that delivers meaningful results and increases the representation of women in leadership and throughout the company.
- Innovative Young Woman Leader of the Year: An award to recognize one young woman leader (under 35) who is an innovative leader that advocates for gender equality. She aspires to, and has the potential, to be a future senior leader. She understands that this role must drive both business results and contribute to strengthening the pipeline of future female leaders. She boldly advocates for female talent and leads courageously.
Company Awards
- Best Company for the Advancement of Women (MNC): An award to recognize one multinational corporation that has demonstrated a commitment to real progress in gender equity and engaged people across all genders and all levels of the business to deliver that progress. They are a leading organization for the advancement of women in business in China with a holistic approach to gender equality, actively developing women within the organization to become senior leaders and promoting gender equality throughout the organization.
- Best Company for the Advancement of Women (SME): An award to recognize one SME that has demonstrated a commitment to real progress in gender equity and engaged people across all genders and all levels of the business to deliver that progress. They are a leading organization for the advancement of women in business in China with a holistic approach to gender equality, actively developing women within the organization to become senior leaders and promoting gender equality throughout the organization.
- Best Policies and Benefits to Promote Gender Equity: An award to recognize one company for their market leading employment policies, benefits, or programs that support women and men at all stages of their career lifecycle with strong emphasis on gender equality. This company enables women and men to succeed at home and at work throughout their career, from hiring to retirement. The policies, benefits, or program must have documented results and is actively leveraged in the China market.
How to Nominate
The nominations will be open from Monday, November 9, 2020 until Friday, January 1, 2021. The winners of the awards will be announced at the annual Women’s Economy Summit in April 2021.
The winners for the different awards will be considered based not only on the accomplishments of the individuals or companies but also their involvement in the community and as an advocate for gender equality. Both individuals and companies will be assessed on their ability to influence others to take action towards advancing women in business in China.
Both self-nominations and nominations of others will be accepted. To be eligible for the individual category awards, the nominee must be part of a business or organization that has a local office in China. To be eligible for the company category awards, the nominated company must be registered in the Greater China Region.
The winners for the awards will be evaluated by our judging panel.
Judges Panel
The Women Empowerment Award in China judges are invited based on their engagement in the topic of gender equality, establishment within their field of work, and advocacy for women empowerment. The judges may not apply for any of the awards that they evaluate, nor their affiliated companies for the company awards.
The following judges have confirmed their participation to evaluate the 2021 Women Empowerment Awards in China, more to be announced:
- Alan Beebe, President, American Chamber of Commerce in China
- Andre Belelieu, Head of Insurance & Asset Management Industry, World Economic Forum
- Elaine J Cheung, Independent Non-Executive Director, WWF
- Laura Deal Lacey, Executive Director for Asia, Milken Institute
- Kimberly Gire, Founder, Global Women Leaders
- Elizabeth Knup, Director for China, Ford Foundation
- Yvonne Sonsino, Partner & Innovation Leader Europac, Mercer Investment Consulting
- Amy Stursberg, Executive Director, Schwarzman Scholars Program
- Nien Su, CEO, Artemis ESG
- Caroline Zhou, Head, Institute of Executive Coaching Ltd
About the Women’s Advisory Council
The Women's Advisory Council was initiated by SCHS Asia with the support of AmCham China in 2019. This advisory council aims to support women in the workplace as well as women entrepreneurs to grow both personally and professionally. We bring together a dedicated group of powerful women and men to support and sponsor the growth and sustainability of women leaders and women entrepreneurs. Our current members are: BP, Chayora, Coca Cola, Dow, ExxonMobil, HPE, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Mars, Microsoft, and SCHS Asia.