Do you recall the story problems in math class when you were in high school?
Remember the one about the train leaving Chicago and heading east at 60 miles per hour and the train leaving New York traveling west at 50 miles per hour? You had to figure when and where they’d meet, which is something nowadays you’d think the railroad companies would know how to do without asking a 10th grader.
We have our own story problem we want to challenge you with today.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says while women held nearly half of all jobs in 2019, they held only 23.6% of the jobs in the motor vehicles and motor vehicles equipment manufacturing industry.1 At the same time, an article published in CIO magazine this year said women in the U.S. hold only 25% of computing roles.2 Finally, a report by consulting firm Korn Ferry says, “Women now hold 25% of the five critical C-suite positions,”3 which includes the role of chief information officer (CIO).
Given all those overwhelming statistics, what are the odds that an award-winning CIO like Michele Rodgers would choose to work for Exeter Finance? Mathematically, it’s a really small number – a little over one-tenth of one percent. Regardless of how the arithmetic works out, though, we’re 100% happy that she chooses to work at Exeter.
Michele is a smart professional, dynamic leader and tremendous asset to our company, and there’s plenty of evidence to support that claim. As you saw here on our Dealer Information Hub earlier this year, she was named the Enterprise winner of the 2021 Dallas CIO of the Year ORBIE Awards.4 We also featured a blog post last year about Michele when she was named to the 2019 Women in Auto Finance list by Auto Fin Journal.5
Clearly, Michele is someone we’re very proud to have on our team. We’re also excited to tell you she has agreed to share her thoughts about her career journey when she gives the keynote address at the Women in Auto Finance luncheon at the Auto Finance Summit. Her presentation is on Oct. 27 in Las Vegas, and we hope if you’re attending the Summit that you’ll join her.
Without a doubt, women are underrepresented in the U.S. automotive workforce. We know Michele will offer tremendous insight into how she has defied the odds to become an integral member of the C-suite here at Exeter. She will also provide encouragement for those who seek to replicate her success, while also looking at the challenges that persist for women working in auto-related industries.
At Exeter, we’re fond of saying that we know that we’re stronger together. With leaders like Michele helping to steer our organization – and also serving as a driving force for improvement within our industry overall – we are proud to be driving toward a more diverse and inclusive workplace.
Sources:
1 White, Sarah K. (March 8, 2021). Women in tech statistics: The hard truths of an uphill battle. CIO. Retrieved from: https://www.cio.com/article/3516012/women-in-tech-statistics-the-hard-truths-of-an-uphill-battle.html.
2 Stevenson, Jane. (2020). Women C-Suite Ranks Nudge Up—a Tad. Korn Ferry. Retrieved from: https://www.kornferry.com/insights/this-week-in-leadership/women-in-leadership-2019-statistics.
3 Exeter Finance. (April 14, 2021). Why our award matters to your dealership. Dealer Information Hub. Retrieved from: https://www.exeterfinance.com/blog/why-our-award-matters-to-your-dealership
4 Exeter Finance. (January 15, 2020). Honoring the 2019 Women in Auto Finance. Dealer Information Hub. Retrieved from: https://www.exeterfinance.com/blog/honoring-the-2019-women-in-auto-finance
About Exeter
Exeter Finance LLC is a non-prime auto finance company headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company partners with franchised and independent auto dealers throughout the country to make car ownership a reality for consumers. For more information, call our Dealer Operations Group at 1-855-4EXETER (855-439-3837).
