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"At Petsure Services, care is at the heart of everything we do — for our pets, our people, and our planet. We’re turning that care into action by empowering women to grow, lead, and inspire broader change," says Carlo Valencia, President.
For Petsure Services Inc. (PSI), the conversation around women’s empowerment starts beyond the numbers. Women account for 62% of its workforce and hold 64% of people leadership roles, which is a strong representation that reflects the organisation’s progress, but also raises a more important question: are women being intentionally equipped for the strategic leadership opportunities ahead?
That question became the catalyst for Pawprints to Leadership, PSI’s approach to strengthening women’s leadership readiness through development, mentorship, workplace support, succession planning and data-informed talent decisions. Rather than positioning gender inclusion as a standalone initiative, the company has embedded it into its broader leadership strategy, with the aim of creating equitable opportunities for women at every career stage.
The approach has already produced meaningful outcomes, with the overall commitment earning PSI the Gold award for 'Excellence in Women Empowerment Strategy' at the HR Excellence Awards 2026, Philippines.
Fresh off this win, Carlo Valencia, President, sits down with HRO to discuss why women’s empowerment must go beyond representation, how PSI is making leadership development more intentional, and what it takes to build an inclusive workplace where women can thrive.
Q What was the 'lightbulb moment' behind your HR initiative?
The turning point came when we realised that representation alone was not the true measure of women’s empowerment. While women already comprised the majority of our workforce and leadership population, we challenged ourselves to ask:
“Are we intentionally preparing women not only to lead today, but to thrive in the strategic leadership roles of tomorrow?”
That question prompted PSI to move beyond representation and take a more deliberate approach to advancing women’s leadership. Through internal diagnostics, leadership assessments, and succession planning reviews, we identified opportunities to strengthen leadership readiness, career progression, and pathways to senior leadership. These insights became the foundation of Pawprints to Leadership — a strategic initiative integrating leadership development, mentorship, workplace support, and data-driven talent decisions to accelerate women’s growth and advancement.
Today, its impact is reflected in our results:
Key outcomes:
- 62% of PSI’s workforce are women.
- 64% of leadership roles (Team Leader and above) are held by women.
- 100% retention among women leaders.
- 58% of employees promoted after completing apprenticeship programs are women.
Beyond these results, the initiative is helping build a sustainable leadership pipeline where women are equipped, supported, and empowered to shape PSI’s future.
Q Innovation rarely comes without obstacles. What was the biggest challenge your team faced along the way, and how did you overcome it?
While women already represented a significant portion of our workforce and leadership, PSI recognised a key challenge: strong representation could create the perception that gender equality had already been achieved. This risked overlooking whether women had equitable access to leadership development, career progression, and strategic opportunities.
Our participation in the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) Corporate Action Lab, together with internal diagnostics, challenged us to look beyond representation and identify gaps in leadership readiness and succession pathways. The greater challenge was securing organisational commitment to address less visible barriers.
We addressed this by aligning executives and business leaders around a shared belief that advancing women’s leadership is both a talent and business priority. Rather than creating a standalone initiative, we embedded these insights into Pawprints to Leadership, integrating development, workplace support, succession planning, and data-driven talent decisions into our leadership framework.
This transformed women’s empowerment from a diversity initiative into a sustainable leadership strategy, strengthening our pipeline of women leaders.
Q How has this initiative influenced your people and organisation — and what conversation do you hope it sparks across the HR community?
This initiative has shifted how PSI defines progress in gender inclusion. Rather than focusing solely on representation, we are now more intentional about ensuring women have equitable access to development, career progression, and leadership experiences that prepare them for long-term success.
The results are encouraging: women hold 64% of leadership roles, maintain a 100% retention rate, and represent 58% of employees who completed apprenticeship programmes and were subsequently promoted. These outcomes demonstrate the value of deliberate investment in leadership readiness and career growth.
More importantly, the initiative has reinforced that inclusion is not simply about opening doors but creating the conditions for people to thrive once they enter. We hope this encourages the HR community to look beyond representation metrics and examine the systems, opportunities, and experiences shaping career outcomes.
For PSI, true progress means not only having women in leadership today, but intentionally building the pathways that enable more women to lead tomorrow.
Q What’s next — how are you planning to build on your progress and keep the momentum going?
We view women’s empowerment as a long-term strategic commitment not a program with a defined endpoint. As we build on our progress, we will strengthen the leadership pipeline by creating intentional pathways for women at every career stage.
A key priority is expanding structured mentorship and sponsorship opportunities that connect high-potential women with senior leaders, providing the guidance, visibility, strategic exposure, and advocacy needed for career advancement.
We will also deepen our use of talent analytics, leadership assessments, and succession planning to ensure decisions are data-informed, aligned with business priorities, and responsive to emerging opportunities and potential barriers.
Beyond leadership development, we remain committed to creating a workplace where women can thrive through strong support, wellbeing initiatives, and continuous growth opportunities.
Ultimately, our goal is to build a sustainable leadership ecosystem where women are empowered not only to succeed, but to lead, influence, and shape the future direction of PSI.
Q As the HR landscape continues to evolve, what do you believe will be the next big opportunity for HR leaders, and how is your organisation preparing for it?
PSI believes one of the greatest opportunities for HR leaders is to embed inclusion into talent and leadership decisions, making it a core business practice rather than a standalone initiative. As organisations navigate an increasingly competitive talent landscape, intentionally identifying, developing, and advancing diverse talent will be a key differentiator.
For gender equality, the conversation must move beyond representation to understanding who is progressing, who is being prepared for leadership, and where unseen barriers may exist across the employee journey.
To prepare for this future, PSI is strengthening its use of talent analytics, leadership assessments, and succession planning to support equitable opportunities aligned with business needs. At the same time, we recognise that data alone cannot drive inclusion. Sustainable progress requires workplace support, flexibility, wellbeing, and continuous development.
"The future of women’s empowerment is about creating the conditions that enable women to seize opportunities, thrive in leadership, and shape the future of our organisations."
Read more interviews on why organisations have won trophies for their HR practices - head over to our Winning Secrets section!
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