The Army Servicewomen’s Network is holding its annual conference at the Royal Military Sandhurst today with the theme ‘value’.
Launched in 2015, the Army Servicewomen’s Network (ASN) is a powerful employee support group. For its members, it provides a forum to share ideas, issues and promote causes. For the wider Army, the network aims to broaden its recruitment base and develop initiatives to progress and retain service personnel.
Closely linked to the Army 2020 #ArmyConfidence campaign, the event featured a keynote speech by the author and campaigner Caroline Criado Perez.
Caroline is a best-selling and award-winning writer, broadcaster and feminist campaigner. She is published across the major national media, and appears in both print and broadcast as a commentator on a wide range of topics.
Her notable campaigns include getting a female historical figure on Bank of England banknotes; getting Twitter to introduce a ‘report abuse’; button on tweets; getting the first statue of a woman (Millicent Fawcett) in Parliament Square.
“Feeling valued is not an abstract concept, it is something tangible." Network Chair Lt Col Hannah Stoy
Talking about the theme of the event, Network Chair Lt Col Hannah Stoy said: “When someone recognises our personal qualities or acknowledges that something we’ve done has impacted positively on our team or our workplace, we feel appreciated as individuals and valued as employees.
“The flipside to feeling valued and having our value recognised is feeling unappreciated and disconnected from our work, our colleagues and the organisation for which we work. Feeling valued both personally and professionally leads to better physical and mental health, positive work relationships, better motivation, improved satisfaction and a healthier working environment. At the heart of this is the vital exchange engendered between an organisation and the individual, based on mutual trust, understanding and respect.”
The theme of value ran throughout all of day’s activities, panels and presentations.