It’s utter madness to be publishing a post with this title. But apparently even in 2018 we need to encourage some leaders to recognise and celebrate the influence of women throughout all industries, sectors and walks of life.
Off the back of International Women’s Day Janice Haddon, MD and founder of Morgan Redwood, has written this for us. Janice has over 25 years experience in strategic and operational HR and management consultancy. During her career, Janice has worked with a number of well-known organisations, including F1 teams and brands such as BMW and Mercedes. Part of her work with clients involves gender equality in the workplace and ensuring all employees have the same rights.
While it’s often the case that we applaud those in positions of power and of certain notoriety, are you appreciating the impact of the women who work at every level of your business?
Female employees bring to the table a range of skills and varying behaviours to a business or organisation. Across all tiers, including managerial and decision-making roles, as is true of all individuals, men and women employ a range of working styles.
Far from being a negative, bringing in a balance of styles is fundamental for any team to function effectively – like personalities, diversity is key to success.
Unfortunately, while gender discrimination continues to be an issue across many industries, it means women often feel the need to work harder to prove themselves in the business world, thereby putting in top performances. For employers who value all their staff, this is an additional bonus.
To be taken seriously, women are usually also up to date with latest developments and put time and effort in to their personal development to ensure they stay ahead of the curve. This means they can make exceptionally good leaders, both inspiring and mentoring others to also be the best they can be.
However, when it comes to employing female leaders, it’s no secret that a larger proportion of women work part time than men, due to factors such as maternity leave, which means their careers can often take longer to progress than those of their male counterparts.
Yet research has shown that by increasing the number of female leaders within an organisation from zero to a 30 per cent representation can result in a 15 per cent increase in profit.
It’s no surprise then that more women are needed in senior roles and also in industries ’typically’ dominated by men, such as construction, engineering and technology. The possibilities and opportunities are there.
However, if women, or indeed anyone, feels they are being discriminated against then it is time to rebalance the scales.
If you are being excluded from activities or overlooked when it comes to important projects, then ask yourself ‘why?’ Is the task something that you genuinely don’t have the skill set for or are you better than your counterparts?
If you do have the skills and experience then ask your manager or even their manager why you have not been included or considered for the job. Ask to be put forward for things, and make a note of the reasons ‘why’ or ‘why not’. Seek feedback and learn from it.
Often, it’s worth undertaking more training, getting more experience and volunteering yourself for more things. Act upon filling the gaps highlighted to you and continue to keep a record of the things you get involved with and the things you are excluded from – look for a pattern in these and find ways to fill in the needed gaps. If you feel you are genuinely being excluded then it may be time to take your evidence and escalate it.
If you are being discriminated against, then file a written grievance in line with your company’s procedures. If you don’t get satisfactory answers then, ultimately, you have the right to take matters further and even to take out a legal claim.
If discrimination is rife within the organisation you work in, it may be time for a change. Everyone deserves to work for an organisation with a good culture and true values, which appreciates what each of its employees, regardless of their gender, brings to the table.
