Quest Apartment Hotels’ parent, Ascott Australia, which has reached 55 per cent female representation at the management level, is to submit data on the Workplace Gender Equality Agency website from April 2024.
Anthea Dimitrakopoulos GM Brand and ESG at The Ascott Limited, Australia, said “Our goal is to create a world where events like International Women’s Day may no longer be needed,” said Anthea. “That’s the future we’re working towards.
“By shining a light on the growth and development of women as business leaders both on the field and off, every day, we are championing our own Quest values in terms of teamwork, resilience, and determination.”
Award-winning policies
Dimitrakopoulos highlighted the ways women are supported at Quest.
“We continue to promote gender equality and break biases at every level through implementing commonsense policies on paid parental leave, including superannuation, IVF and menstrual leave at our corporate office, practical workplace training, and partnerships with inspirational female leaders,” she said.
Ascott took out the top prize at the Recalibrate Gender Equity Awards 2023 after launching a ground-breaking parental leave policy offering 24 weeks and paid superannuation. Paid Menopausal and Menstrual Leave policies were also put in place to acknowledge women experience symptoms that men do not experience, and that these symptoms can be impactful and debilitating towards career growth.
To further foster gender-balanced leadership, Ascott Australia initiated training and mentorship programs to develop and grow the leadership skills of women within the organisation.
“Quest supports the communities that support our franchisee businesses, and our goal is to provide even more opportunities for women to succeed in every arena,” said Dimitrakopoulos.
Dimitrakopoulos also emphasised the importance of its partnership with Housing All Australians.
“Quest are currently working with HAA, as well as with Uniting WA and our own partners – Dulux, Programmed and Interface – to redevelop a former women’s refuge so that it can house older women who are homeless or at risk of homelessness,” she said.
“This ‘invisible’ cohort of homeless women remains a shared focus for our organisations.”
