Vanessa Smith, Director in Supply Chain Operations talks about her career at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners

Vanessa Smith - Director in Supply Chain Operations

Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow. That’s what International Women’s Day stands for at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP). But one day just isn’t enough. All year round, we encourage each other to have honest conversations, which tackle the myths surrounding gender bias and equality. And from this point onwards, we’re upping our efforts to bring about positive change for all women at CCEP.

Our mission this year is to #BreaktheBias. Chief People and Culture Officer, Veronique Viullod, is a driving force behind this movement: “We’re choosing to raise awareness about gender stereotypes and bias, so that every one of us can consider how we accelerate equity in our thinking, interactions, and decisions. While we’re making sustained progress, we still have more to do, and we’ve set ourselves a target of ensuring that at least 40% of management positions are held by women by 2025.”

It’s real action such as this that’s led to us being included in the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index for the second year in 2022. The index measures gender equality across five pillars: female leadership and talent pipeline, equal pay and gender pay parity, inclusive culture, anti-sexual harassment policies, and pro-women brand. Clearly our stories are inspiring others and we couldn’t be prouder.

“I’ve been working at CCEP for almost two and a half years, working as Director in Supply Chain Operations.

I’ve worked in various supply chain roles in the FMCG industry over the years and have found manufacturing to be fairly male-dominated, particularly at more senior levels.

However, during my time with CCEP so far, I’ve worked with some truly inspiring young women, who have grown and developed into young leaders of the future. There are so many opportunities available in the food and drink industry, and I’d encourage anyone – regardless of gender or background – to explore what’s out there.

Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do as a business, and I’m proud to be getting behind this right here at our manufacturing site in Wakefield – Europe’s largest soft drinks factory.

From supporting the expansion of a local solar farm to introducing a material handling equipment (MHE) fleet powered solely by renewable electricity, we’ve seen a huge step change in the sustainability of our operations, helping us towards our 2040 Net Zero target. I’m proud to be a part of this positive change.”

You can read more about how we are fostering an inclusive, diverse and equitable culture across our business here.