Title	GIRLS IN STEM
Brand	MICROSOFT EUROPE
Product/Service	NOT PRODUCT OR SERVICE SPECIFIC
Category	B04. Business Citizenship / Corporate Responsibility
Entrant	CREATION London, UNITED KINGDOM
Idea Creation	CREATION London, UNITED KINGDOM
Idea Creation 2	KRC Cologne, GERMANY
PR	CREATION London, UNITED KINGDOM
Production	CREATION London, UNITED KINGDOM
Production 2	KRC Cologne, GERMANY

Name	Company	Position
Kate Steele	Creation	EVP, EMEA
Julian Lambertin	KRC	Head of Strategy & Analytics
Stephanie Johnston	Creation	VP
Marta Saez	Creation	Associate Director
Brian Tjugum	Creation	MD Social Impact
Sophie Easterby-Smith	Creation	Senior Account Manager
Kathleen Noonan	Microsoft Europe	Director of Microsoft Philanthropies & Education Communications for Europe

The Campaign

Very simple: we would carry out the most in-depth research study on girls in STEM carried out in Europe to-date, getting to the very heart of the reasons behind when and why young women aged 11-30 lose interest and so fail to pursue STEM-based careers. And then we'd develop actionable strategies to address the issue going forward.

Execution

Working with the London School of Economics we conducted focus groups in nine European countries and produced a quantitative survey that was used in Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, UK. The output was a first-of-its-kind, scientifically rigorous benchmark study to statistically prove the key drivers influencing girls’ interest in studying STEM and pursuing a related career. To promote the insights and engage critical stakeholder communities, we developed a pan-regional integrated communications campaign, working with in-market Microsoft communications teams to customize content and story angles, delivering local launches in 12 countries that leveraged earned, owned, social and digital. Our detailed whitepaper included actionable recommendations for policymakers, educator and business leaders; supported by a series of engaging visual social assets, inspiring videos of European women who work at Microsoft sharing their experiences; and customizable, online data visualizations.

What really gave this campaign wings was the opportunity every market had to shape and localize the launch according to its education and competitiveness priorities. Through 23 in-market events, we directly engaged thousands of young girls, teachers, women leaders, government representatives, and journalists. By leveraging key calendar moments such as International Women’s Day and Girls in ICT Day we amplified engagement; and the study was heavily promoted across Microsoft’s regional and country-specific social feeds. We reached an audience of over one billion through earned print and broadcast media across Europe, including major international titles such as the Financial Times, CNN and BBC. The CNN article alone was shared more 13,000 times on Facebook. The campaign has had an immediate, positive impact, catalyzing discussions between Microsoft and European policymakers, government ministers, NGOs, academics, young women, parents and teachers on actions we can take to help more women pursue their passion for STEM. But the most humbling conversations have been those we’ve had with thousands of girls across Europe, who have told us that they feel encouraged to keep going, and are truly excited about the possibilities and opportunities that studying STEM could open for them. The findings will continue to inform our programs and investments and fuel our drive to connect more young women to inspirational role models from the technology industry. There is more hard work to be done, but we hope we are opening the door to a brighter, more innovative future for all.

The Situation

Microsoft Europe’s campaign seeks to define and identify the root issues behind the imbalance of women pursuing STEM-based careers. The research has driven debate with European industry and policy leaders on why young women aged 11-30 lose interest in STEM, what influences this, and what keeps them engaged. Supported by a pan-European communications campaign, the findings are being used to help evolve Microsoft’s educational and work programmes and investments that will lead to long term positive change.

The Strategy

We set out to understand two things: define the ages when girls and young women engage and disengage in STEM subjects. Second, uncover the root issues as to why gender inequality then arises. Despite a huge volume of published research, no-one could authoritatively say at what age young girls lose interest in STEM and why; and consequently, there was a critical deficit of actionable insight. So to help catalyse action, we undertook the most in-depth study on girls in STEM in Europe to-date. We surveyed 11,500 girls in 12 European countries to gather scientifically rigorous benchmark data on attitudes to and interest in STEM. The findings were then published in a white paper with actionable recommendations for the target audience of policymakers, educators and business leaders; supported by a pan-Europe integrated communications campaign to engage stakeholders.