Month: March 2023

To celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8, we asked female leaders across Leidos to talk about what the day means to them, the obstacles they’ve overcome and more.

March is also Women’s History Month, a great occasion to learn from women who have excelled in male-dominated professions.

Here’s some of the wisdom and advice they shared:

On embracing equity…

“Embracing equity, this year’s theme for International Women’s Day, means understanding we all come from different backgrounds and have different experiences that led us to where we are today. And because we don’t all start in the same place, our needs may differ.” – Debbie De La O, Leidos Defense Group“It’s about being brave, challenging mindsets and inertia, and understanding and truly accepting diversity.” – Kate Parr, Leidos Intelligence Group“Equity comes before equality. It’s vital that we not only provide equal opportunities for women, but also recognize there are different conditions that will make an individual successful.” – Julia Monger, Leidos Defense Group“Embracing equity means actively working to remove barriers that prevent women from accessing opportunities and resources that are essential for their success.” – Sarit Menahem, Leidos Defense Group“Embracing equity means actively demonstrating fairness in all aspects of life, both personal and professional, and recognizing everyone comes from unique backgrounds that should be respected.” – Robyn Barbour, Leidos Health Group

On celebrating International Women’s Day…

“I plan to celebrate by asking other women in my life from various generations to reflect on how the Women’s movement has evolved and impacted their lives. By hearing others’ stories, I feel it can help younger generations overcome obstacles and achieve their goals.” – Jennifer Brewer, Leidos Health Group“I would recommend everyone find someone to encourage – daughters, granddaughters, nieces or friends. It only takes a minute.” – Kritina Holden, Leidos Civil Group“I’m a big believer in paying it forward. I’ve benefitted from many mentors in my career, and I make it a point to meet with and mentor women. I plan to celebrate by making sure I check in with women in both my personal and work life.” – Debbie De La O, Leidos Defense Group

On overcoming barriers in the workplace…

“Promote your ideas and successes and ensure your voice is heard. Prepare an elevator pitch supporting those successes and include proof points. Solicit advocates, mentors and colleagues to help champion you and your voice during meetings, talent reviews and performance assessments.” – Linda Chappell, Leidos Intelligence Group“It’s important to have a mentor, but as you advance in your career, be willing to pay it forward. I’ve had many female colleagues tell me how important it is for them to see me in a leadership role because they see it’s possible for them to grow into leadership as well.” – Nan Hardin, Leidos Dynetics Group“Be assertive, find an inner confidence, work hard and do a good job. A supportive network of colleagues including mentors, coaches and peers goes a long way to encourage growth and professional development.” – Louisa Pontonio, Leidos Australia

On creating change…

“We must see opportunity in a person’s knowledge and skills before their gender, race or age. I think the world has to drive inclusiveness in everything it does for it to have a lasting impact.” – Tanisha Velez, Leidos Intelligence Group“We need to embrace change. It’s never easy to reassess our beliefs and question our motives, but true change can only come when we’re willing to self-reflect and question what we consider is acceptable. Centuries of society being comfortable with stigma, apathy and injustice is not easy to break through.” – Kate Parr, Leidos Intelligence Group

On succeeding in male-dominated fields…

“Speak up! Be visible! Ask questions, propose ideas and get involved. Show them you have a place at the table and something to contribute. Even if you think your inputs aren’t the best or your ideas go nowhere the first few times, you will be seen as a core member of the team – that is important!” – Kritina Holden, Leidos Civil Group“Don’t view yourself as an outsider. Show up every day and you’ll be rewarded.” – Kasey Meily, Leidos Health Group“Stay true to yourself. You’ll bring a different perspective to the workplace that your other team members cannot. Diversity of opinion and style is what makes any team successful.” – Kate Parr, Leidos Intelligence Group“Do the hard work to develop your subject matter expertise, be a life-long learner and stay current in your field. Trust in yourself and the hard work you’ve accomplished. Don’t be afraid to raise your hand for that next difficult assignment. Nothing will just be handed to you, so you must be willing to continue stepping outside your comfort zone.” – Debbie De La O, Leidos Defense Group“Know your goals, pick your battles, argue with respect and know your strengths and weaknesses.” – Wenonah Petersen, Leidos Health Group“Always believe that you belong, you are in the place you are meant to be, and you deserve to be there.” – Tanisha Velez, Leidos Intelligence Group“Stay the course. Being the only woman in a classroom can be intimidating, but it is important to remember you aren’t alone. There are advocates for women in STEM all around. Some are mentors and advocates in more official roles, but they are also your peers.” – Elizabeth Robertson, Leidos Dynetics Group“Get the technical degree. In addition to keeping up with your technical certifications, make sure you take training and gain experience in management and business to gain a rounded perspective and understanding. Create a network of colleagues to reach out to for support and discuss road bumps or concerns along the way. Believe in yourself!” – Linda Chappell, Leidos Intelligence Group

On how Leidos is making a difference…

“Leidos Life has afforded me the flexibility to juggle my work and personal responsibilities and I am very thankful.” – Kasey Meily, Leidos Health Group“The Leidos Women’s Network sponsors numerous women’s events and has placed a strong focus on refining them to make them as effective as possible.” – Linda Chappell, Leidos Intelligence Group“I’ve seen Leidos provide women with a roadmap to leadership, and it makes me extremely excited the company has prioritized hiring female talent.” – Tanisha Velez, Leidos Intelligence Group

Leidos has set goals to increase representation of women and ethnically diverse employees by ten percent by 2030.

Earlier this year, the company was recognized as one of America’s Greatest Workplaces for Diversity by Newsweek, earning the top diversity score of five stars.

Please contact the Leidos media relations team for more information.

World Water Day serves as a catalyst to help change the way people use and manage water. With water scarcity a growing global threat, the world must come together to accelerate change to solve the water and sanitation crisis.  

“Water is an important and valued natural resource for everyone, and it’s important for making all and using most of P&G’s products,” said Shannon Quinn, global water stewardship leader, P&G. “We have a key role to play, which is why we’re working to build a water positive future.”  

P&G’s comprehensive strategy includes reducing water in its operations, restoring water in 18 water-stressed areas around the world and responding to water challenges through innovation and partnerships. The company continues to work to use less water when making its products and to recycle more than 3 billion liters of water in its facilities every year. Working with on-the-ground partners who have a deep knowledge of local water challenges and solutions, P&G supports long-term projects that improve, manage or protect freshwater resources in areas where the company operates. 

World Water Day is grounded in collaboration and unlocking new approaches to solve water challenges. Through longstanding partnerships, P&G brings its experience in innovation and consumer understanding to advance more sustainable and equitable everyday solutions.  

Transforming Lives through the Power of Clean Water 

More than 20 years ago, P&G’s Fabric Care scientists developed a powdered water purification technology that has the power of a water treatment plant in a small 4-gram packet. Using a packet, a cloth, spoon and a bucket, 10 liters of contaminated water turns into clean drinking water in 30 minutes.  

Through its Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program, P&G has collaborated with more than 150 global advocacy and implementing partners to distribute P&G’s Purifier of Water packets to people that lack access to safe drinking water in over 90 countries. The company has provided more than 20 billion liters of clean water to children and families since 2004 and continues toward its goal to deliver 25 billion liters by 2025. 

P&G also partners with organizations who are committed to delivering sustainable solutions, including the Pamoja project and Waterboys, an initiative run by the Chris Long Foundation, that builds solar-powered, deep borehole wells in East Africa. 

Making 50 Liters of Water Feel Like 500 

P&G is using its water chemistry expertise and water-efficient products to make everyday living more sustainable as founding members of the 50 Liter Home Coalition, a global collaborative of public, private and non-governmental organization leaders whose goal is to reinvent the future of urban water use.  

P&G and its brands are developing innovations that reduce, reuse or eliminate water to help create a resilient, low-carbon water future where 50 liters of daily water use per person feels like 500 – the average per capita daily household water use in some parts of the world.   

Enabling People to Reduce their Water Footprint at Home 

P&G continues to create products that deliver superior performance while also enabling its consumers to save water at home: 

Cascade Platinum: Cascade encourages people to skip pre-rinsing dishes and run the dishwasher. The dishwasher uses four gallons of water per cycle, while the sink can use that same amount in just two minutes. And with a formula containing enzymes that latch on to and break down food particles, Cascade Platinum delivers a superior clean without the pre-wash1.  By skipping the sink and choosing the dishwasher, households can save up to 100 gallons of water per week2. Dawn Powerwash Dish Spray: This product’s spray-activated suds eliminate the need for water when hand washing dishes until the final rinse – cutting the amount of water used compared to traditional dish soaps by up to 50%3.  Pantene and Rejoice: These No Rinse Conditioners condition hair without water. People apply the light and fast-absorbing formula outside of the shower on damp or dry hair, leaving hair more manageable and softer to the touch so it can be dried and styled as usual. 

P&G wants to help build a Water Positive Future that can sustain people and nature, now and for generations to come, while continuing to grow its understanding of the complex challenges facing the world’s water resources.  

150% more cleaning ingredients vs. Cascade Complete ActionPacsTM 
2 With Energy Star certified dishwasher vs. washing dishes at a running sink for 11 minutes per day 

3 When used as instructed, compared to the water used when running the tap continually to hand wash dishes 

Mira Sahney admits she always had a curious mind and love for science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).  But she discovered early in her career that engineering could foster a deeper calling: benefiting humanity.

That realization continues to drive Sahney’s work — including her commitment to expanding health care access, the drive to innovate, and elevating women and those with diverse backgrounds in their careers.

Inspired by a mentor

Sahney’s career experiences positioned her perfectly for her role at Medtronic: president of the company’s Pelvic Health business. Her varied roles include working as a design engineer on military airplanes, serving as CEO of a startup, and co-founding a neuro-robotics company during her graduate studies at MIT. That company is now publicly traded. 

But there’s one early career mentor who still sticks with Sahney.

“Air Gun Annie” was a well-respected female engineer leader in a male-dominated workplace who helped Sahney — a General Motors intern at the time — forge relationships with technicians and union workers who were all men. When she learned Sahney didn’t know how to drive stick shift, “Air Gun Annie” taught her how on the GM test track afterhours.

“She really included me in everything and that had a profound impact on me, my career, and my confidence,” Sahney said.

Moving to healthcare technology

Later in her career Sahney built a women’s health business by working with physicians to develop and commercialize innovative products that was sold to Medtronic in 2016.

Even before then, Medtronic was in the back of Sahney’s mind. She still has a red, heart-shaped Medtronic stress ball from a career fair — now about 25 years old. When the opportunity to join Medtronic surfaced, it was a challenge she welcomed.

“Medtronic already did the rocket science part of it, stimulating the sacral nerve to control the bladder and bowel function,” she said of our product, InterStimTM. “But to take that from something that’s not well known, yet tremendously successful, and bring to the mainstream population — and the challenge to make the therapy even more appealing for physicians and patients — that was really exciting for me.” 

Despite the widespread prevalence of bladder and bowel control problems (it’s more common than asthma, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, or breast cancer in the U.S.), it is largely absent from health conversations. People often go years before bringing it up to their doctor due to embarrassment and social stigma.

Everyone working in the pelvic health field feels an obligation to raise awareness about life-changing health care for what can be a serious medical condition, Sahney said.

Breaking down barriers

Putting patients at the center not only helps Medtronic understand barriers to access, but it’s also propelling the business forward, Sahney said.

In 2022, the Pelvic Health Operating Unit launched a pivotal study of a new implantable tibial neuromodulation therapy in people with overactive bladder. The tibial implant, which is still investigational, could be done in a doctor’s office rather than an operating room.

“That would not only reduce the total cost of care to the system and has the potential to provide greater access globally. It also reduces the adoption barrier for patients,” Sahney said.

More than 25 years after “Air Gun Annie” took Sahney under her wing, the medtech leader remains committed to paying it forward.

In 2022, Medtech Women honored Sahney with the Ferolyn Powell Leadership Award, which recognizes commitment to patients, mentoring others, and advancing diversity in the field.

And Sahney remains committed to breaking down barriers for women on the home front; she was recently named co-chair of Medtronic Women’s Network — a position she’s “thrilled” to serve in. And perhaps one she’s been working toward all along.

To find out if you or a loved one may benefit from bladder or bowel control therapy, visit ControlLeaks.com.