The Intermediary – March 2025 - Flipbook - Page 75
B RO K E R B U S I N E S S
Opinion
for business, yet real results are slow
to change.
I co-wrote the book ‘Coaching
Women to Lead’, following research
with the London School of Economics
(LSE) in 2011, then the second edition
in 2020. In the intervening time,
some things had changed. This was
mainly the number of people with
‘diversity’ in their job titles, the
number of policies wrien, and yes,
the number of women on boards –
albeit non-execs, or the same women
on a range of boards. But had things
really changed in the real world? And
if not, why not?
Call me a psychologist, but I see
some of the answers to the puzzle
in the deep-seated erroneous beliefs
people hold, handed down by
ancestors and never fact-checked.
Political correctness means that
the bulk of those who hold these
beliefs have the sense not to say
them out loud, but this concern for
appearance backfires, as their silence
means that the beliefs are never
aired – and therefore challenged – in
the light of day. Here are some of the
common ones:
Myth #1: Women do not
‘need’ their jobs in the
same way that men do
As evidenced by the chap who
foolishly said to a very senior woman
who decided to leave the organisation
– for more money and less stress –
“But your husband is well paid. You
must just work for the pin money.”
Should she have stayed at home doing
her embroidery?
Women are breadwinners,
contributing equally or more to the
household in many situations. They
are also single parents and divorcées,
just like men. But they are oen the
first to be let go in downturns, or held
back from advancement, because deep
down, it is assumed they don’t need
the money as much as the men
Myth #2: Women don’t
bring in as much money
as men
One law firm was keen to “do the right
thing,” as they put it, and have more
women as equity partners. “We know
they don’t bring in as much money,
but it is still the right thing to do,” they
said. Our response was to crunch the
actual numbers.
In fact, as it turned out, the few
women who had made it to that level
were star contributors. They had to be,
to prove themselves and get to where
they were. There was a long tail of
low-performing male equity partners,
but the belief was perpetuated, despite
all the evidence to the contrary
Myth #3: Women won’t
AVERIL LEIMON
is co-founder of White
Water Group
stick around
The truth is that, despite the narrative
that babies will lure women away
from the workplace, this is not the
whole picture. In fact, men don’t stick
around because they change jobs more
frequently, expecting more from their
employers and demanding what they
believe they are worth.
Women, meanwhile, tend to be
more foolishly loyal, hoping that
their employer will treat them right
if they continue to prove themselves –
give them raises commensurate with
their results, and opportunities for
advancement based on how well they
do the job – and not because they shout
louder than their peers.
If a woman does eventually leave,
she will go where she believes she
can make a bigger impact and
get the opportunities she craves.
Interestingly, while men say they
work to support their families, women
say they work to make a difference.
She may take some time out for family
reasons, but the likelihood is that she
will come back even beer placed and
more commied than before.
Accelerate action
There are many more examples of
faulty and inaccurate thinking. By
all means, let me know your own
favourites. For now, we come back
to International Women’s Day. The
slogan for 2025 is ‘Accelerate Action’,
but how do we make that real? First,
what action for change have you
planned for the next year? How can
you make it more impactful?
As we have barely gone from nought
to 60 in 50 years, it would be good to
think about how acceleration could
now finally be achieved. Perhaps it
needs women to do it for themselves,
stop trying to be nice about it, and go
big – or should we just wait another 50
years for things to change?
As we have barely
gone from nought to 60 in
50 years [...] think about
how acceleration could
now finally be achieved”
If you haven’t read about Iceland’s
‘kvennafrí’ – or ‘women’s day off ’ –
of 1975, repeated at intervals since
and achieving greater equality each
time, check it out. In 2023, Prime
Minister Katrin Jakobsdóir joined
the women walking out of work to
protest the gender pay gap and genderbased violence.
So, celebrate the women in your
firm – don’t worry men, you get
19th November for International
Men’s Day, but it is up to you to make
something of it. Make examples of
stars and role models. Ask them what
they really want, listen carefully and
enlist their help in making it happen
this year. Give them their seat at the
next table, the stretch assignments,
the development they crave, the
feedback they cherish.
Make sure you define how you
will ‘Accelerate Action’. Report
your pledges openly and ask your
employees to keep you accountable.
Treat it like any other business
challenge and lead from the top.
Otherwise, IWD is just a ‘corporate
Valentine’s Day’ with lots of show and
sentiment.
I’d love to hear that you are doing
something profoundly different this
year. Me? I’ll be shopping. ●
March 2025 | The Intermediary
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