Women of Ford Germany Win Prestigious Employee Resource Group Award

FLTR: Jill Huptas, Sandra Sündermann and Sophia Damm

COLOGNE, Germany – Women of Ford Germany took the top prize in the Employee Resource Group Category at a special award ceremony hosted by the Women Automotive Network Europe in Ludwigsburg last night.

The awards honour individuals and organisations making a meaningful impact across the automotive industry. This year’s winners represent leadership, progress, advocacy and action across the sector.

The Outstanding Employee Resource Group of the Year Award celebrates an employee-led group that drives engagement, supports personal and professional development, and contributes to a workplace where all employees feel valued and able to thrive.

Sandra Sündermann

Sandra Suendermann, accepted the award on behalf of Women of Ford Germany along with, co-chair Jill Huptas. The group was nominated for the award by sponsor Alex Ehrmann.

“Standing up here, to be completely honest... I am simply overwhelmed,” Sandra said. “Seeing our work, our conviction, and all those countless extra hours paying off tonight... it means the absolute world to us.”

She added: “This award crowns two major milestones for us this year. In March, we celebrated 30 years of Women of Ford in Germany, and earlier this year, Ford Germany was the driving force behind launching Women of Ford Europe. We are now working directly with our European President, Jim Baumbick. Because whether it’s the UK, Spain, Hungary, Morocco, or Romania – we are all Europe. And we can only shape the European automotive industry if we do it together.”

Earlier in the day, Julia Grab, Ford’s Chief Strategist & Planner, European Passenger Vehicles, was part of a four-person panel discussing how the automotive industry is changing its products, its technology and its competitors at the same time, and the human capabilities and technical expertise required to manage that change.

Julia spoke about self-knowledge as a leadership skill, understanding strengths and blind spots, and taking pride in the strengths and continuing to develop them.

With around 150 members, Women of Ford Germany is one of 13 local chapters of Women of Ford globally. The ERG was established to engage all employees to actively champion workplace inclusion and to remain a supportive resource for women throughout their career journey. Members strive to support community service initiatives focused on education and to be a resource that helps promote Ford as a great place to work.