For many women in male-dominated industries, advancing into executive leadership can feel like navigating a narrow path. For Abbey Flury, a U.S. native working in Switzerland, the journey has been both swift and intentional. At just 31 years old, the interim chief marketing officer - global marketing & communications manager of Ecorobotix, a Swiss-based ag-tech company, is carving out space for herself—and others—at the decision-making table.
“We specialize in artificial intelligence and agriculture,” Flury said. “The company’s flagship product is a precision spot sprayer that reduces chemical use in the field, cutting both costs and environmental impact.”
Flury joined the company as a public relations and content manager, writing press releases and working as a media liaison. Just two years later, she was promoted to head of global marketing and communications, and more recently stepped into an interim CMO role.
“I was promoted last year in November to the position that I am now,” she said. “It’s quite quick to be in such a management role, and I think as a woman in general, it’s empowering to be able to work in this role as a 31-year-old.”
Flury studied journalism and mass communications at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, graduating in 2016. Soon after, she moved to Switzerland and built her career in marketing, initially within the medical device industry before transitioning to ag-tech.
Being a young woman in a C-level position in Switzerland is rare, she said, particularly because of the country’s workplace culture.
“In Switzerland, once women have children or start family lives, they reduce their percentages at work. It’s very common to go down to like 60 or 80 percent,” she explained. “It’s almost expected that you’re going to have children and step back in your job. I’m very thankful to have been able to pass this point before having children.”
Soon, she will be welcoming her first child, and her company has been supportive. She plans to take the standard 16-week maternity leave starting in May and return as head of global marketing and communications. She hopes her experience encourages other young women who may feel discouraged in male-dominated industries.
“There are really not that many women in C-level positions,” she said. But the younger generation of women needs to understand that they can do everything. They don’t have to choose between being a professional and being a mom.”
The key, she said, is choosing a company that supports women and families.
“There are a lot of businesses out there, like Ecorobotix, that believe in family life and making things work for women. You just have to find them,” she said.
