For International Women’s Day, we decided to interview some women from BizAway, asking them to highlight certain aspects of their experience within the company.

Filling leadership positions within a company as a woman is not something you can take for granted. Often, when faced with the choice of assigning a managerial role, it is preferred to opt for a man to “play it safe” or because that is how it has always been done. Chiara Imbrogiano and Alice Brancaleoni are a valuable testimony of how leadership roles should not be reserved for males.

In BizAway, Chiara holds the position of Head of People from the Milan office and is responsible for human resources management and all activities supporting employees. Alice, on the other hand, is the Head of Service and from the Shkodër office coordinates the customer support team, with the primary goal of achieving specific objectives and customer satisfaction.

We wanted to learn about the experience of these women in achieving leadership roles:

Was it difficult for you to grow professionally and get the role you deserve in an environment where management roles are usually male? tell us the difference you noticed in your experience at BizAway.

Chiara – During my working experience I was fortunate enough to develop and grow as an HR professional in environments where I did not experience discrimination, either in terms of treatment or opportunities. 

I had the chance to experience different leadership models, represented by both women and men, and I always strived to soak in the best from each of them.  The models who inspired me the most, and who were true mentors to me, all had in common an open and meritocratic mindset. From them I learned that only professional skills, attention to people, and passion for one’s work make a difference; all other “disparities” have no place in a healthy work environment. In fact, they don’t really belong anywhere! 

The absence of prejudice is the foundation of my role as Head of People, and BizAway shares these same values. Right from the start I felt I had the opportunity to work with professionals of different cultural backgrounds, who relate to each other in a constructive way, valuing individual qualities, never relating to others through the filter of any kind of discrimination.

The girls from the Milan office

Alice – The data in Italy and Europe are quite clear. A low percentage of women, approximately 5%, have access to top positions in a Company.

Despite this, I have never allowed, and still do not allow, stereotypes and prejudices to tell me what to do and who to become. I try to transmit this concept to all the people in my Team, men or women.

Ever since I was a child, I have been lucky enough to feel free to be myself, and it’s this spirit that has always accompanied me throughout my career. I often was the only woman in the room, but I have never felt discriminated against. I was lucky enough to meet true professional woman and man who always supported and accompanied me to great results. In BizAway I have the opportunity to exercise my personal vision of leadership on a daily basis: a more empathetic approach that should not be mistaken for a lack of authority. It is more tiring to manage but it pays off over time, because I can see the results in people, who feel appreciated, valued and engaged in what they do. 

To my female colleagues, I want to say that it is important to be confident in one’s own abilities and to believe in a work method that relies on listening and on the ability to work as a team, bringing out the talents of each one.

At BizAway, we’re constantly looking for talented and driven individuals to become part of our team! If you’re eager to take on new challenges and would like to work for a travel company, apply here!