International Women's Day-an interview with our very own Ally Dragozet

Photo by ANVR

In honor of International Women’s Day on March 8th, we are celebrating women’s empowerment in businesses, and especially within the tourism industry. Sea Going Green couldn’t have been possible without the hard work from our amazing team, which happens to be majority female (a rarity in the science and tech worlds)!

We dedicate this blog as a thank you for all of the support and love that we’ve received over the years from other female entrepreneurs. There are too many to count, but if you are reading this, we are grateful for each and every one of you. We feel very honored and empowered by being surrounded by this network of great talent and vow to keep working hard and fighting to bridge the gap for more diversity in our industry. 

For this occasion, we interviewed Ally Dragozet, our founder and CEO, on what it means to be a female entrepreneur in the tourism industry, 3 years after launching Sea Going Green.

Women, this one’s for you.

1. You started the company 3 years ago, how have you grown as a female entrepreneur? 

I think I have grown in many ways, but specifically in my confidence of navigating the business and entrepreneur landscape as a woman. Unfortunately, there is still a difference between being a male or female in the business world, but I have seen some improvement in the inclusivity of female entrepreneurs. I especially like the movement of panel speakers only doing panels that are diverse in terms of gender and race, I have also tried to adopt this in my own speaking engagements.

2. You are also part of many groups and networks of women entrepreneurs, especially in the Netherlands: how did having that support help you develop your company? 

Having other female founders and entrepreneurs around me does help because it is a great network to ask questions, and voice frustrations about what we are still facing and it’s comforting to hear if someone else has experienced similar issues and what advice they have for me. 

3. What are the main challenges as a women entrepreneur in the (sustainable) tourism industry?

I don’t know if I see any major challenges being a female entrepreneur in the (sustainable) tourism industry other than it being a male dominated industry so it could be intimidating. I see more of a challenge in being an entrepreneur in the industry because it is mostly run by larger corporate companies and bigger SME’s so it’s a challenge to find your place as a startup and entrepreneur in this more conventional and traditional industry. 

4. Last year, Forbes recognized your work in social entrepreneurship, how did it feel being one of the 13 female entrepreneurs who made the list in 2019? 

It felt really amazing, it’s definitely one of the greatest achievements in my career so far and an honour to be among great company on that list. I wish there was more diversity on the list, but it’s getting there!

5. Being a female CEO now, do you think that it is easier than before? How did the “support” system change over the last few years?

I can only speak from my own experience over the last 3 years, but I definitely think the media is pushing the discussion forward and making it more easy and inclusive for female entrepreneurs and CEOs, especially in the investment landscape. Not sure the support system has changed much over the last 3 years, we are still experiencing a lot of the same issues, but people are definitely more open to talk about it and share their own experiences and advice. 

6. In recent studies, it was shown that female entrepreneurship in tourism is higher than any other industries. However, 54% of the tourism workforce is made of women, yet they are still poorly represented in high level positions. What do you think about this and what can be done to increase that rate?

Yes, I think those statistics vary according to which position you are looking at, C-level positions are still male dominated and I believe it could be intimidating to go into a C-level position as the only female, but we need to get over this stigma. To increase the rate, I think companies need to hire more female employees in all positions if they are equally or more qualified than their male applicants, not just because they are female. I think some companies were only hiring female applicants because they were female and not based on their skills, which also does not work and is unfair to more qualified applicants who just happen to be male. As employers we need to have the best skilled people for the job, and encourage both genders to apply while remaining mindful to increase diversity within your teams.

7. You are working a lot alongside the innovation and technological industry, which is male-dominated. How do you react to some negative reactions/not being taken seriously? 

This is a constant challenge, but after 3 years I honestly don’t let it get to me anymore - I am confident about my work and let it speak for itself the fact that I’m a female does not need to enter the conversation.

8. What is the weirdest/uncomfortable thing someone asked you?

If I’m sure this is a good time to start a business as I “surely” want to and plan to have kids in the next 5 years…

9. What advice would you give to other female entrepreneurs?

Keep going! Grow a thick skin and a network of male and female entrepreneurs around you where you can ask for advice and hear their experiences as well, helps to know you are not alone in this journey.

10. What is your biggest achievement so far? 

This is a hard one.. I am so proud of the team I have built over the last 3 years and to see how supportive everyone is of each other while still remaining passionate for our mission.  I think building this network and team of amazing female and male entrepreneurs all passionate about sustainability in marine tourism is my greatest achievement, alongside being recognized by Forbes 30 under 30.  

To read more about the evolving role of women in the tourism industry, read this report by the UNWTO.