The PAR Initiative (Pay Advancement & Resources) is the WICT Foundation's advocacy initiative to both measure and support the advancement of women in the cable and telecommunications industry against the following standards: 

• Pay Equity where women are paid equal to men at every level.
• Advancement opportunities where women are represented in equal numbers to men at every level.
• Resources for work/life where companies' work/life support practices enable the ongoing advancement of women at all levels.

The WICT Foundation collaborates with Working Mother Media on this groundbreaking initiative.
Discover what industry leaders are saying about the PAR Initiative.

Introducing the WICT Career Control Guides. Building upon both the WICT Touchstones of Leadership, "Know Yourself" and the essence of the WICT Foundation PAR Initiative, these tips are reminders to help you take your career by the horns and steer it in the exact direction you want it go. The set of four issues should be periodically reviewed and utilized as an aid to enhancing your career.

Learn more about the 2008 PAR Initiative

The principal goal of the PAR Initiative is to help companies in our industry achieve the equality of women in the workplace by:

• Measuring the progress of women in specific companies and throughout the industry toward achieving PAR standards,
• Providing programs and services to support companies in achieving PAR standards,
• Recognizing individuals and companies doing outstanding work to achieve PAR standards.

The Business Case

The best way for a company to meet the needs of its customers is to "look like" them - and as the advocacy facts show, women are very important cable and telecommunications customers. Yet, female representation at the corporate level is abysmally low.

Industry support of and participation in the PAR Initiative will help make companies stronger, expose them to best practices from across the industry, and help them attract and retain the best people. By creating stronger companies, each will be able to compete more effectively - while also contributing to the improvement and growth of the entire industry.