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Five women seated at a conference table engaged in a discussion about Human Resources, with papers and water bottles in front of them, in a room with large windows.
March 28, 2022

GKG Celebrates Women’s History Month

When GKG was founded in 2002, it began as a Woman-Owned Small Business and remained that way for many years, until growing out of the Small Business Set-Aside threshold. One of GKG’s original founders, Gretchen McCracken, continues to run the company, as CEO and Managing Partner. GKG has many other women in leadership and department head roles as well. 

Women in Business Panel  

In honor of March being Women’s History Month, GKG held its first-ever Women in Business Panel. The panel was both in-person for Headquarters employees and virtual for anyone else in the company who was able to join. 

Donielle DeMesme (VP of Leadership & Development and DEIA) moderated the event and the panel consisted of: Gretchen McCracken (CEO), Jessica Salmoiraghi (Acting EVP of Growth and VP of Shared and Managed Services), Meghan D’Andrea (Managing Director of Human Resources), and Hind Daanouni (Inclusion & Culture Deputy Program Manager).  

Polls and Participation 

Donnielle encouraged participation from employees, both male and female, by doing live polls on Mentimeter throughout the event. After getting responses from the room and virtual call, she would have panelists discuss the results of certain polls and share their own perspectives. 

In the responses below, any answer that was contributed multiple times appears larger in the word cloud, so it’s safe to say many GKG employees are inspired by their moms! 

From discussions about being a working mom, for those on the panel with children, to handling stereotypes about women in the workforce, and thoughts on how male colleagues can be better advocates for women, it was a great discussion with a diverse array of thoughts and opinions. 

To see a highlight video from the panel, please check out the video below: 

GKG Women in Business Panel 

Women’s History Month Video Series  

Alongside the panel, GKG also highlighted a few other women within our ranks in a video series.  

Kimberly Grisson-Dixon, GKG’s Assistant Professor of Aerospace Studies at Valdosta State University, is a 15-year Air Force veteran who shares some of the challenges she faced being a woman in the military.   

When she found the position at GKG, she was more than excited to learn the company was run by a female CEO, with a strong female presence in leadership. Kimberly continues to encourage young women to join the military and stresses the importance of being confident in your skills and expertise. 

Check out Kimberly’s video below: 

Women’s History Month: Kimberly Grisson-Dixon 

Terri Mosley, GKG’s Senior HR Business Partner, has been with GKG since October of 2020 and knows better than anyone how empowering GKG can be for women. Terri speaks about who inspires her, the importance of female leadership, and what makes GKG different than other companies.  

Terri also shares that being a working mother is possible if you have colleagues who support you.

Check out Terri’s video below: 

Women’s History Month: Terri Mosley