Wesfarmers OneDigital Finance GM Virginia Leaf has won a scholarship to study at the Harvard Business School.
The Australian Retailers Association (ARA) and Chief Executive Women (CEW) partnered to create the program.
The ARA Women Leaders in Retail CEW Scholarship was open to aspiring female leaders in retail to accelerate their professional development.
Leaf, who accepted the award virtually due to the birth of her second child, said she’s looking forward to making the most of the amazing opportunity.
“A huge thank you to the ARA and CEW for putting this scholarship in place. It’s such an honour to have been selected and I’m absolutely thrilled at the opportunity to go and participate in a course like this which I know will really step change my career development, broaden my mindset and equally provide an amazing introduction to a network of female leaders globally,” Leaf said.
“I absolutely love working in retail – I love what I do, and I wake up enthused every morning about the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. So, I’m determined to make the most of this amazing opportunity and leverage the learnings in my role as a leader at OneDigital as well as the broader contribution I can make as a female leader in the retail industry,” she said.
CEO Paul Zahra said the ARA is committed to advancing the careers of women in retail.
“Diversity Equality and Inclusion is a key pillar for the ARA and with more than 700,000 women working in retail, women’s career progression is a powerful focus of that work. We were delighted to partner with CEW to provide this scholarship and I know Virginia will take full advantage of the opportunity to study at the Harvard Business School and take her leadership skills to the next level,” Zahra said.