Estée Lauder has launched the Estée Lauder Emerging Leaders (ELEL) Fund, which will support global organizations that provide opportunities for leadership development, cultivate supportive communities and advocate for emerging women leaders who have a daring vision for change.
Estée Lauder commissioned Glocalities, an international market research agency, for a global study of more than 5,700 men and women across 11 countries. The research revealed that while there are still prevalent gender biases and stereotypes when it comes to leadership, both men and women value the same qualities in a leader—reliability, integrity and dedication—which are not attached to gender. However, while leadership qualities such as strength and determination are equally valued by both men and women they are more strongly associated with men. The study reveals the roadblocks and solutions for advancing gender-inclusive leadership.
Estée Lauder has made an initial $1 million investment into the ELEL Fund.
Vital Voices, a global nonprofit that invests in women leaders, has been selected as the inaugural program partner of the ELEL Fund, with the program commencing in July 2022.
The ELEL Fund and Vital Voices have built a custom online and offline leadership development program for emerging leaders globally. Program participants will join the Vital Voices community of over 20,000 women across 184 countries, which includes Estée Lauder global changemaker, Amanda Gorman.
Applications are now open for the first and second cohort and can be accessed at www.vitalvoices.org/program/visionaries.
Additional grants by the ELEL Fund will be announced in the coming year.
Stéphane de La Faverie, group president, The Estée Lauder Companies and global brand president, Estée Lauder and AERIN Beauty, said, "The 75-year legacy of the Estée Lauder brand shows what one visionary woman can achieve. Through the work of the Estée Lauder Emerging Leaders Fund and its program partners, we will champion women to contribute and lead in their workplaces and communities. We want to redefine what it means to be a leader and what it takes to lead. We want to see more women like Mrs. Estée Lauder in the world.”
Alyse Nelson, Vital Voices president and CEO, said, "At Vital Voices we have seen that women lead differently, and that difference is precisely what our world needs. Our partnership with the Estée Lauder Emerging Leaders Fund will identify emerging leaders with a bold vision for positive change and provide them with the skills, network and resources they need to make that vision a reality.”
