Expel culture · 3 MIN READ · SCOUT SCHOLES · MAR 31, 2025 · TAGS: Expletives / leadership & management
TL;DR
- To wrap up Women’s History Month, we’re sharing thoughts from a few Expletives on the gender parity gap
- According to the World Economic Forum, it’ll take until 2158 to reach full gender parity at the current rate of progress
- To see these posts online (and find more on women of Expel) checkout our LinkedIn
To round out Women’s History Month, we’ve gathered a few sentiments we’ve shared on LinkedIn throughout the month from Expletives on gender parity. According to the World Economic Forum, it will take until 2158—which is roughly five generations from now—to reach full gender parity at the current rate of progress (yikes). Here’s what folks had to say about that.
Abbey Smalley, Director, Product Design & Technical Documentation (she/her)
“Equitable pay is something I’m very passionate about. In particular, equitable pay for women is something I’ve helped coach many female mentees, peers, and friends on over the years since learning that women are often less likely (in some studies I’ve seen, 50% less likely) to negotiate their initial salaries then men.”
“What that looks like at work is ensuring my team is paid equitably based on their role, level, and performance. It also looks like making sure folks that are ready to grow to the next level get the right support and guidance in order to give them the proper space to grow.”
“Before my time leading at Expel, I can think of countless moments in my 10+ years of leading others where I’ve come into a new team and noticed pay discrepancies that haven’t always matched the level of contribution. Many times this is related to the fact that women don’t advocate for themselves when stepping into new roles. My job as a leader is to ask curiosity questions when it’s time to review salaries at yearly review time, and bring data that backs up my perspectives in order to rightsize any past disparities that may have existed.”
“Outside of work and mentoring, I often think about this in the way that I’m raising my daughter. It’s important to me that she knows how to thoughtfully advocate for herself in any situation and environment. She’s one of our next generation of leaders, and I look forward to seeing her shine as she continues to learn through what that means.”
Samantha Ridel, Partner Integrations Manager (she/her)
“Seeing the year 2158 crushes me, but also motivates me to not stay stagnant in fighting for women. Something small that I do regularly is talk to other women about money. That could be discussing salaries, talking about savings accounts (401k, Roth IRA, emergency funds, and brokerage accounts), being open about tackling debt, giving ideas on side hustles, and not shying away from conversations that are uncomfortable.”
“Talking about money with women doesn’t have to be taboo, and you don’t need to know everything to start the conversation. Learning and talking about money helps all of the women around you. It provides you and others with options. We can take control of our finances so nobody can take control of us—we are that girl. Some resources that I love are Tori Dunlap of herfirst100k, Chloe Elise of Deeper Than Money, and Vivian Tu of Your Rich BFF.”
Kim Mahoney, Director, Product Marketing (she/her)
“As a manager, I regularly encourage my direct reports to take pride and ownership of their ideas/feedback. I’ve seen too many (women especially) over the years apologize or belittle their own input in order to be heard, or to avoid offending others by saying things like “This might be crazy but…”, or “I know I’m not the expert here, but perhaps we could consider….” Basically, they’re apologizing upfront for having a perspective, which then devalues their ideas/thoughts from the start.”
“As women, we need to stop asking permission to be heard and start accepting that we have just as much experience/right to be heard, and our voices valued. I take great pride in reminding any woman in my life that they are very capable and have every right to raise their voice and have an opinion.”
