Celebrating International Women’s Day with FIRST’s Women’s Empowerment Program and multiple Women in Security award wins

The theme for International Women’s Day 2025 is "For ALL Women and Girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment". At FIRST Security we work hard to empower women in the security industry, an industry which has traditionally been male dominated.

Whilst we are growing from a small base, year on year growth sees us now at almost 25% of our staff are female vs a goal of 50% – and as an organisation we are continuing to put plans in place to increase this even further.

It is our women that have been the real success stories when it comes to external awards – of all the awards awarded to FIRST Security over the past four years, 70% have been female, which demonstrates the market leading leadership FIRST’s women display and how they are making their mark on the industry.

A key pillar of our empowerment program is our Women in Leadership program, which we kicked off last week to celebrate International Women’s Day and build on the achievements of our wahine.

This program is designed to elevate the presence and capabilities of women within FIRST while fostering a more inclusive and equitable workplace.

The program aims to:

Strengthen Female Leadership – Enhance the visibility and leadership pipeline of women, ensuring strong representation at all levels.
Develop Critical Capabilities – Provide female leaders with the tools, skills, and confidence to maximise their impact, credibility, and leadership potential.
Build a Supportive Community – Establish a network for women to share experiences, grow together, and advocate for career development across the organisation.
Address Cultural Barriers – Identify and raise awareness of the biases that may hinder inclusion, gender equity, and career progression, and work towards meaningful solutions.

This program is a commitment to empowering women at FIRST, creating opportunities for growth and driving change to ensure a thriving workplace for everyone.

Additionally, yet more awards!

FIRST Security is proud to announce that more of our talented wahine have been recognised as the incredible women they are, this International Women’s Day!

The Security Industry Association (SIA) Women in Security Forum (WISF)

Jemima Briggs, General Manager Sales & Marketing, has been selected by a panel of judges as a 2025 Power 100 honouree! The SIA WISF Power 100 initiative celebrates outstanding women within the security industry who serve as inspirational figures, actively advancing diversity, inclusion, innovation and leadership.

Defsec Women in Security Awards Aotearoa

Jill Priest, Branch Manager BOP, is the winner of the “Responding to Natural Disaster Events” category.
Su Kaur, Contracts Manager – Rail & Events, secured highly commended in “Securing Organisations and Infrastructure”.
Jacinta Mooney and Angelina Riley, SafeCity Hosts in Palmerston North, both received highly commended in “Preventing crime and protecting communities”.

Congratulations to all our winners!