On the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, ABB is urging employers to treat inclusion in STEM as a core focus – with clear pathways, real sponsorship and measurable progression – rather than a headline commitment.
For engineers working on the electrical distribution grid, futureproofing has become a key focus. Distribution networks sit underneath almost every part of modern life, and as electrification accelerates, the grid must be strengthened, modernised and made more resilient. ABB says the same mindset needs to be applied to the talent pipeline behind that work, particularly as women remain underrepresented in many technical tracks.
Andrea Estada-Hein, Business Line Manager, Medium Voltage Switchgear, ABB Electrification Distribution Solutions, said:
“When you grow up in a developing country like Bolivia, you don’t need a white paper to understand what infrastructure means. You feel it and can see early on what unreliable systems can do to communities, and how much changes when the basics work. That perspective has stayed with me, even as my career has taken me from environmental engineering to the rail industry, and now a medium voltage switchgear business that sits at the heart of modernizing the grid.
“My day-to-day is, put simply, strengthening and future-proofing electrical distribution – the backbone of economies and modern life. If we want to futureproof the STEM sectors that will deliver the next era of grid resilience, opportunities and support for women in STEM must be equally integral to how employers operate. Quotas and box-ticking don’t get you there. What matters is whether a young engineer can join a company, see a future for herself, and be supported through to shape her career.
“At ABB, we focus on practical programs that open doors and sustain momentum. That includes local initiatives that help female engineering students understand what an engineering career really looks like, to global mentoring and coaching that helps technical talent gain confidence and the right support at the right time. That’s how you engineer the difference between someone being included on paper and genuinely building a long-term technical career.”
