Five Reasons it Rocks to be a Woman at Gap Inc.

2017 was definitely a pivotal year in women’s history (herstory in this case). Athleta’s President and CEO, Nancy Green, said it best: “Celebrating women and women's accomplishments is nothing new at Gap Inc. This year, amid louder-than-ever calls for women’s rights and gender equality, I’m incredibly proud of the ways Gap Inc. invests in women at every level.”

From the the founding of our company in 1969, to our day to day activities in the present and looking ahead, we’re inspired and encouraged as women and constantly support and challenge to grow with the company. March marks Women’s History Month, but in the spirit of celebrating women every day at Gap Inc., some of the many superwomen here told us why it rocks to be a woman at Gap Inc.

1. Don and Doris Fisher started the company as equal partners.
Women have been on equal footing here since Day One. Literally! When Doris and Don Fisher started Gap, they each invested the same amount of money to launch their dream business, and eventually turned it into a $15 billion retail empire (no big deal). They set out to completely disrupt the retail industry and embarked on a journey that made them more than just partners in marriage. From that moment on, they set the precedent for a company that would value men and women equally in all it does. Not something to be taken lightly back then, or today.

2. Gap Inc. pays men and women equally.
It’s a little crazy that in a world of self-driving cars, women still make about 20% less than men for equal work... Shouldn’t equal work mean equal pay, especially in 2019? We think so. In fact, in 2014, Gap Inc. was the first Fortune 500 company to confirm that it pays men and women equally for equal work. Work is evaluated on the work, and not on gender. And that’s how it should be.

3. Be YOU is celebrated (and encouraged).
Gap Inc. values the uniqueness that each person has to offer to make up a greater collective – a family. Kisha Modica, Senior Director of Diversity and Talent Management said, “When you join a new organization, most people will tell you that the safe bet is to fit in before you stand out. I believe you exude confidence and gain credibility when you bring your authentic self to work and allow people to fall in love with who you really are.” And that’s truer here that anywhere I’ve seen in a long time. But it’s not just about “being you.” With business resource groups like our Women in Leadership group, regular “Ask Me Anything” chats with executives, panel discussions, and a whole host of other things, we’re constantly working to open doors for people to share their opinion, speak their mind, and be themselves.

4. Incredible female leaders
Kellie McElhaney, Director of the new Center for Gender, Equity & Leadership (CGEL) at The University of California, Berkeley’s Haas School of Business has a mantra around female leaders, “You can’t be what you can’t see.” And this [CG1] doesn’t really apply at Gap Inc. There are women in leadership roles going all the way up to the very top of the business. In fact, this month Gap Inc. and its brands were honored by the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE) for the 7th time as a Top Company for Executive Women. When you look at our family of brands, 3 out of our 6 brand presidents are women. There truly is no limit for how high your career can go here, and there are women at all levels of this organization who demonstrate that fact, each and every day. That kind of visibility can not be undervalued when it comes to inspiring the future generation of leaders.  

5. Our Women in Leadership business resource group is awesome.
Shameless plug aside, it really is! One of the most popular company organizations we have here at Gap Inc. is “GapWIL” or Women in Leadership. WIL was created by and for our employees to help drive diversity and inclusions strategies across the organization. But beyond that, it was created to offer women at Gap Inc. a place to connect, share ideas, learn from each other, and most importantly, build each other up to become incredible leaders here – wherever they take their careers – and in all aspects of their lives. The events are a blast, and always bring with them meaningful exchanges that you can’t find anywhere else.  

All of this to say, it really does rock to be a woman at Gap Inc. (and the list of reasons why goes on).

Want to join an awesome tribe of lady bosses? Check out our open positions here, and come be a part of the Gap Inc. family.

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