A Conversation with the Women of numa

At numa, we’re committed to equality. We thrive off of diversity and grow stronger from the unique experiences of all of our teammates. We’re proud to say that women make up over half of our total workforce! Not only that, the women of numa represent 42 different countries, creating a truly formidable spectrum of insights and capabilities. 

We sat down with three women from numa to gain a little insight into their experiences in their roles and in the hospitality industry at large. In these semi-structured interviews, we discussed a wide variety of questions, from sharing their successes & celebrations to their fears, doubts & vulnerabilities. Here are some of their thoughts. 

Finance

"With regard to my experience in the finance department, women are fairly included whereby everyone is embraced for who they are, their perspective and appreciated for their contribution to the organization. Tasks are allocated equally to everyone, regardless of gender or other aspects of their identity. Numa's diverse environment encourages employees to have complete trust, embrace authenticity as well as be able to learn a lot from each other.

Since my first day in Numa, I noticed women are respected in terms of just being hardworking people and allowed to truly be themselves. The positive and inclusive culture empowered women to openly express their views and be equal players in decision-making.

Numa has achieved gender equality across the company which is impressive but there are areas where greater balance is required when it comes to senior positions. I believe the team is striving to have more female leaders in the company."

Distribution

"I can proudly call Numa a safe space where everybody's opinion is acknowledged irrespective of their positions. In my 4 months of the journey at numa, I was given an adequate opportunity to learn about diverse cultures. When entering a new workspace, especially in a foreign country, one has their own apprehensions about understanding and adapting to the work ethics of the company. Numa has definitely helped me feel comfortable. The working culture in India and Berlin is quite different, however with the help of cooperation and collaborative effort on the part of the team, it was easy for me to adapt. In the distribution department,  all the women uplifting each other has been one of the motivating factors.

Numa has been one of the few companies where interns get enough exposure to learn new skills while helping interns to push their boundaries. When I am given responsibility,I acknowledge the trust and faith the company has put in me. Therefore, I feel more confident in my skills to deliver the work to the best of my abilities. 

In the current prevailing environment, I believe the inequality that still persists is towards women. somewhere deep down I believe that all the genders are equally capable of achieving the best. However, various discriminatory practices continue to exist towards women which can be addressed and steps to reduce it can be taken as a collective measure by society."

Launch

"I joined the company as part of what was at that time an all-women’s team, which quickly turned into a team of men in less than a month. So I didn't have the chance to work directly with women for long. At the very beginning, I thought I would have to change my thinking to fit in and that I would always be under the radar. Especially as a black woman, we are often thought of as disempowered. But to my surprise, I had really great mentors, always attentive to any issues. They made me feel really comfortable and showed me that my opinion matters.

I’ve seen that having a diverse team in my department brings a wider diversity of opinions: we analyze problems more thoroughly, which improves the overall decision-making process."

How do you think Numa's diverse environment empowers you to push boundaries and challenge the status quo in your respective industries?

"My ability to adapt has increased mainly because I am in an environment that is not my own. The many female leaders at numa are shining examples that push me to excel in my work. It is inspiring to see how they are leading the way for other women. They are vivid models that it is possible to hold a position of power and manage a team, regardless of colour or gender."

Can you call out one inequality that persists in today's world and what society/numa should do to change that?

"Numa certainly encourages diversity, but one must admit that it is not easy to adapt to a different world. By that, I mean cultural differences and also language barriers.
We recently launched a campaign to welcome refugees from Ukraine, which I thought was wonderful. But I felt we should also look at the situation of other refugees around the world, who are experiencing the same problem. This campaign is only the beginning but we should shine the light on other subjects and support other causes that aren’t 'mainstream.'"

We're still a long way from total equality in the workplace—it's a challenge that we struggle towards each and every day. But here at numa, we feel we're on the right path, and we'll keep working towards that until the goal is met.