Organisation for the professional empowerment of Women | Women On Top

National Network
Greece
Address

Sokratous 29 street
10552 Athens
Greece

Telephone
+306945993798
Telephone (other)
+30 6946908116
E-Mail
stella@womenontop.gr
E-Mail (2)
info@womenontop.gr
E-Mail (3)
pinelopi@womenontop.gr
Mobile Phone
+306945993798
Mobile Phone (other)
+30 6946908116
Organisation Type
Non-Governmental Organization
Year of Establishment
2018
Fields of Activity
  1. Gender
General Information

Women On Top (WoT) is a Greek non-profit organization dedicated to the economic development and professional empowerment of women and gender equality in the public domain. Its vision is a world where all women have equal opportunities to become what they can and want to be. Its mission is to promote gender equality through individual empowerment and sustainable change in education, careers, and society, ensuring equal opportunities for all women. Its team consists of 5 full-time and 1 part-time employees, 5 Non Executive Board members, exceptional trainers and a 600+ network of volunteers. In 2012 its Co-Founders, as an informal group, created a mentoring network and started conducting educational seminars. In 2018 WoT was officially incorporated as an NGO and over the years, it has managed to become Greece's foremost expert in women's professional empowerment. WoT’s funds originate from corporate sponsorships, EU programs, grants from foundations, individual contributions, crowdfunding, etc.

Mission and Objectives

Women On Top's vision is a world where women and girls have the chance to become all that they can and want to be. Our mission: to help ensure equal opportunities for all women in their public lives, by empowering them and by creating positive change in their educational, professional, and social environments.
Driven by our vision, our team is constantly striving to evolve its actions, increase its impact and improve its services. Within the next three years, we aspire to expand the inclusion of women in rural Greece, addressing the needs, challenges, and solutions that they themselves bring to the table, and create physical spaces that will bring us together (again), beyond the proximity that online communications have granted us in recent years.
Through this dual perspective and our existing strategic pillars – the pillars of individual empowerment, organisational change and social awareness – and with the horizontal values of trust, community building, continuous learning and the promotion of positive impact, we will continue to work towards the professional and economic empowerment of women, as well as gender equality and inclusion in the workplace.

Main Projects / Activities

To date, WoT has:
● Created and monitored 1,600+ mentoring partnerships for the benefit of unemployed women, women who want to change their professional career, establish themselves in male-dominated professions, build their own businesses etc.
● Trained 4,200+ (un)employed and self-employed women in soft skills, digital skills, entrepreneurship, and employability in skills camps, providing childcare services for attending mothers, as well.
● Established valuable partnerships with 300+ businesses, organizations, institutions, and associations dedicated to investing in the diversity and inclusivity of their talent pools as well as to the work/life balance of their employees.
● Empowered 11,500+ employees/executives to integrate gender equality into company operations, strategy, and policies.
● Developed a wide communication and content creation platform, managing to reach out 15,000+ people.

WoT has been awarded as the NGO of the year for two consecutive years (Hellenic Responsible Business Awards) as well as for its training programmes focused on women's education and skills development (Women’s Empowerment and Diversity & Inclusion Awards).

WoT is a member of the European WEgate Community for the promotion of women's entrepreneurship, and the international MenEngage Network for promoting social change and gender equality, and also collaborates with the European Women On Boards fostering women’s equal representation in leadership positions. Furthermore, WoT has developed a wide communication and content creation platform (surveys, articles, podcasts, events etc), to establish robust networks focused on achieving gender equality, support the promotion of positive and influential female role models, and increase awareness among both the general public and decision-making bodies regarding the persistent obstacles women encounter in achieving equal participation in public life, even in contemporary society.

WoT’s team has a strong network in the women's business and entrepreneurship community, and the capacity and experience to engage women all over Greece in its initiatives. A living example is the WoT Thess Hub, the local community of 200 women living in Thessaloniki, as well as the WoT Larissa Hub recently launched engaging 85 local women, which organize monthly meetings for training and experience sharing, providing the local community with tools and resources to empower women to achieve their professional and entrepreneurial aspirations. Furthermore, it has established the Inclusivity Lounges (IL) as recurring knowledge and networking hubs for gender equality and inclusive leadership (Delphi Economic Forum, since 2020, Thessaloniki International Fair programming, since 2022).

WoT has partnered with other EU organizations within Erasmus+ projects, e.g. FoWoSE (Fostering Women Social Entrepreneurship in Europe), FEMIN-ICT (Feminising the ICT sector by supporting and encouraging more women to take up ICT-related careers), and BeMyHelp (Mentoring of women returning to the labour market), as well as the REC project SHARE (Promoting work-life balance in companies and a better sharing of care between men and women) - the latter implemented together with the General Secretariat for Family Policy and Gender Equality (Coordinator), and the Center for Research on Equality (KETHI).

How can you contribute to the Network in your country?

Women On Top can contribute significantly to the ALF Network in our country, Greece, by leveraging our extensive experience, methodologies, and established networks to promote gender equality and intercultural dialogue.
We bring a proven framework for creating and managing effective mentoring programs tailored to women of all ages and professional backgrounds. Our expertise in training women in areas like active listening, goal setting, and managing unconscious bias can be valuable assets to other network members seeking to enhance their gender-focused initiatives.
Futhermore, our experience in fostering networks of women through book clubs, empowerment circles, and local hubs can be shared with other organizations within the network. These initiatives have proven effective in building supportive communities that advocate for gender equality and can be adapted to suit the needs of different cultural contexts.
In addition, our capacity to conduct participatory qualitative assessments and propose policy solutions on gender-related issues can support the network's efforts in addressing pressing social problems.
Finally, Women On Top's extensive partnerships with businesses, organizations, and institutions, dedicated to diversity and inclusivity, can facilitate new collaborative projects within the network, whereas our newsletters, social media presence, and event programming can serve as channels to raise awareness and engage a broader audience in the network's mission.

Why do you want to join the ALF Network?

Women On Top is deeply committed to advancing gender equality and women's empowerment through innovative and practical methods such as mentoring, training, and community building.
Joining the Anna Lindh Foundation (ALF) Network offers us a unique opportunity to expand our impact on a regional and international scale by collaborating with a diverse array of civil society organizations dedicated to intercultural dialogue and social progress. The ALF Network's mission to promote dialogue between cultures aligns perfectly with our goal of fostering inclusive work and leadership models.
Moreover, the ALF Network provides a vast platform for our initiatives, enabling us to amplify our efforts in advocating for gender equality and inclusive leadership, reach a broader audience, and learn from the experiences and best practices of other members. By joining ALF, we can share our methodologies and success stories, thereby contributing to the network's objectives

Contact (1) Full Name
Stella Kasdagli
Job Title
Co-founder, Head of Research Programmes & Strategic Partnerships
Head of the organisation
Stella-Georgia Kasdagli
Contact (2) Full Name
Pinelopi Theodorakakou
Job Title (2)
Co-founder, Head of Empowerment Programmes and Training Interventions