WORLD NEEDS MORE WOMEN AS LEADERS

BY Sapna

Women are known to be compassionate, open to diverse ideas, good at multi-tasking, teamwork and communication. They bring different physical, mental and emotional experiences to work discussions and a fresh perspective to the table. One would think, all these ingredients make for a superior leader.

Unfortunately, compassion or empathy is also often perceived as being more emotional and less decisive in the man’s world. These prejudices apart, balancing work & family and trying to prove wrong the low expectations set at the workplace from them, the challenges abound. Yet, from seasoned women leaders to the upcoming young talent, they are all making a significant impact.

WOMEN @WORKPLACE

We have often heard of a women executive recounting being the only one in the room full of men. They feel being more heavily scrutinized and their successes and failures being judged minutely. Such instances are still common in many sectors, industries and workplaces. Another anxiety women professionals, mostly mothers of young children feel, is that of being judged for asking for work from home or working flexible hours. They fear how it will affect their career. These are just some of the reasons of women workers getting stressed & exhausted at work, for leaving jobs or staying at a lower rung, and as many reports suggest, the cause of taking more time to climb the corporate ladder. We have also come across instances of investors or clients being reluctant in engaging women led firms. There are still far and a few start-ups launched by women or IPOs for women-led companies.

No doubt, till the time women professionals move up to the management level at the same rate as men professionals, the representation at the top will remain uneven. The Covid -19 further bared the stark truth of women professionals getting burned out, given the dual pressures of home and work and opting to leave the workforce. On the other end, the companies that supported employee’s well-being and prioritized DEI were able to retain their experienced female staff and their positive financial results during the time, showed the results of their favourable HR policies.

As per industry survey, women continue to face a broken rung at the first step-up to manager i.e. men outnumber women significantly at the managerial level, resulting in far fewer women to promote to higher levels.

This phenomenon of broken rung explains the lesser representation of women at the CXO positions.

TOWARDS INCLUSIVE GROWTH & PROGRESS

In the current scenario of uncertainties, different perspectives are particularly important for risk management. As per a study by MSCI, boards with higher levels of gender diversity tend to experience fewer instances of governance-related controversies.

But, again having a lone women director on the board to fulfil compliances does not achieve the intended purpose. A broader diversity among the top leadership, middle management and overall workforce will bring different ways of thinking, talent retention and improved performance and governance. The reality on ground is that diversity still doesn’t seem to be considered a business necessity.

In addition, a typical CXO roles are in the 45+ age category, a time when women are going through age related physical and physiological changes that need strong coping methods at professional and personal level. The organizations need to factor these aspects, unique to women and not hold it against them as a disadvantage. Workplace sensitivity and career progression on the basis of only merit should be the key fundamental to any organization.

Clearly, more needs to be done at the corporate and industry level. Simply hiring more women is not the answer. Build unbiased promotional procedures & pay parity exercise and most importantly, ensure a level playing field by using transparent criteria and analytics tools for everyone to move up the corporate ladder. Mentorship from more privileged colleagues too can make a big difference in the career growth of women towards being leaders.

For women to reach the leadership position, they would need to develop skills that can ensure their place in the long run. From taking risks, to promoting themselves proactively, they need to leave the garb of modestly and harp their own tune to earn that seat in the boardroom.

TO BE A STRONG LEADER

There is no denying, women have made enormous strides and are excelling in leadership roles. The corporate world too is waking up to the benefits of women in leadership and gradually we are witnessing more women in top management positions. McKinsey latest report shows, that the relationship between diversity on executive teams and the likelihood of financial outperformance has strengthened over time.

Despite progress, barriers to women in leadership range from stereotypes associated with leadership role as being macho and discriminatory workplace environment to lack of networking and mentorship opportunities to help women move into leadership positions and no work-life balance. Given these familiar challenges, some of the time tested steps that the women leaders across segments have adopted and shared with others to follow include:

Leave your comfort zones: Move away from self-doubt and be ready to take over responsibilities, even if you are not 100% qualified. Leave your comfort levels and take advantage of opportunities that come your way. Aim high, learn along the way, prove your merit and earn your place as a leader.

Work to Gain that equality: To be viewed as equal in the workplace, demand the respect you deserve. Stand your ground, encourage yourself and others, and don’t let perceptions define you. Work as if there is no inequality.

Embrace your natural leadership style: In contrast to men, being career-centric and financial goal focussed, women leaders approach to career is holistic as part of their overall life plan. Instead of being apologetic, embrace this approach of self-reflection as it encourages a sense of purpose and connection with co-workers. Women leadership style driven more by intrinsic motivations about work, helping others set goals and attain them and emphasizing teamwork is what will bring value to the boardroom table and set you.

GLOBALLY, WOMEN’S REPRESENTATION HAS INCREASED AT WORKPLACE, HOWEVER, THEY STILL REMAIN SIGNIFICANTLY UNDERREPRESENTED IN LEADERSHIP.

AS PER INDUSTRY SURVEY, WOMEN CONTINUE TO FACE A BROKEN RUNG AT THE FIRST STEP-UP TO MANAGER I.E. MEN OUTNUMBER WOMEN SIGNIFICANTLY AT THE MANAGERIAL LEVEL, RESULTING IN FAR FEWER WOMEN TO PROMOTE TO HIGHER LEVELS. THIS PHENOMENON OF BROKEN RUNG EXPLAINS THE LESSER REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN AT THE CXO POSITIONS.

FOR WOMEN TO REACH THE LEADERSHIP POSITION, THEY WOULD NEED TO DEVELOP SKILLS THAT CAN ENSURE THEIR PLACE IN THE LONG RUN. FROM TAKING RISKS, TO PROMOTING THEMSELVES PROACTIVELY, THEY NEED TO LEAVE THE GARB OF MODESTLY AND HARP THEIR OWN TUNE TO EARN THAT SEAT IN THE BOARDROOM .

“IF THEY DON'T GIVE YOU A SEAT AT THE TABLE, BRING A FOLDING CHAIR.”

Tags : World Women Leaders Inspire multi-tasking teamwork communication compassion workplace management growth progress