As it sought to launch an effort to advance women in the company, American Express began by asking senior employees if they considered themselves ambitious and if they had ever publicly shared their desire to grow professionally. 

"Unsurprisingly, our women told us 'yes, we're ambitious,' but what really surprised us is only a third of that group of women said they had ever publicly declared that ambition," Sonia Cargan, chief inclusion and diversity officer at American Express told Cheddar on Friday. 

Internally, two years after asking those questions, more than 100 women have been promoted or entered the company at the executive level or above. Globally, women at the company are paid at parity to male counterparts, according to the company.  

Now, Amex and the New York Women's Foundation will launch a joint program called "The Ambition Project" on International Women's Day March 8. 

Part of the project’s goal is to create conversations both inside and outside the company to help women embrace and own their career goals. 

"We want women to be ambitious for themselves and ambitious for others, whether that be for their professional life, personal life, or their communities," Cargan said. 

Over the next year, the Ambition Project will share and spread blog posts and videos highlighting examples of success at all levels, host leaders and influencers to discuss professional growth, expand shadowing programs within the company, and publish research on the topic.

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