{"id":20708,"date":"2018-11-13T08:41:11","date_gmt":"2018-11-13T08:41:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/?p=20708"},"modified":"2023-08-08T11:12:56","modified_gmt":"2023-08-08T09:12:56","slug":"empowerment-in-action","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/empowerment-in-action\/","title":{"rendered":"Empowerment in action"},"content":{"rendered":"
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When you consider women in leadership, what is it that drives your focus?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a plethora of information available on what women should or shouldn\u2019t do, and how empowerment can be possible in their careers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The progress of women empowerment in South Africa<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

All too often, you don\u2019t read enough of the local success stories; of the women who have achieved palpable success in your country, your city, or your neighbourhood. Empowerment only becomes a true reality when you see it in action around you.<\/strong> This is when you see the females you interact with achieve success; in spite of economic hardships and career obstacles, by advancing in traditionally male-dominated professions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The agenda for the World Economic Forum on gender parity echoes that focusing on the gender gap is the wrong approach. Gender parity should be posited as a \u201cmust-have\u201d goal to achieve \u201cbetter engagement and performance\u201d in the workplace through gender inclusiveness, rather than from a viewpoint of exclusivity.1<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recently, there was furore in South Africa, when Manglin Pillay, CEO of a highly-respected institution – South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE) – wrote an editorial in the July 2018 issue of the industry publication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the piece, he downplayed women’s roles in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), by stating that women, \u201cprefer not to occupy high-profile executive posts because they would rather have the flexibility to dedicate themselves to more important enterprises like family and raising children than to be at the beck and call of shareholders”.2<\/sup> This was premised on the question of whether investing in South African female careers in STEM should be a central focus as, \u201cwomen are \u2018predisposed\u2019 to caring and people-oriented careers\u201d.3<\/sup> Not only was this deeply offensive to the organisation Women in Engineering (WomENG), it seems that this article hasn\u2019t endangered his position as CEO.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a petition was submitted by WomENG to remove him from his position, his position as CEO hasn\u2019t been threatened and the editorial, which was published in the public domain, is still accessible. At first only a board apology was issued by Pillay; a public apology followed later on, although arguably by this point, the damage was done.5<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When males in esteemed positions in society use their authority to degrade the valuable contributions that women have made to STEM or other disciplines; it raises the question – why is this still happening in this day and age of gender equality \u2018enlightenment\u2019, and what can you do about it?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Raising awareness of women in leadership in Africa<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

The age old narrative that women need to choose between their career or having a family is being increasingly challenged. That is the reason why we emulate strong women in leadership. Thuli Madonsela, who was previously the Public Protector of South Africa, is a strong case in point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a well-educated advocate and decisive leader, she stood up to Parliament and the previous President when she had to submit her findings on the improvements made to the then President\u2019s homestead, Nkandla.6<\/sup> This report held the then President accountable for some of the questionable improvements. Her legacy of effectiveness in South Africa shows that there is a business case for greater gender diversity, even though women are unfortunately still not well represented in top-tier positions in organisations and government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gender empowerment has been gaining traction internationally, with an increase of 75% of women representation in 2017 with at least \u201cone woman in senior management\u201d as compared to 66% in 2016.7<\/sup> \u201cSouth Africa hit a new high of 80% of businesses with at least one woman in senior management and the highest proportion of senior roles held by women in a decade at 29%.\u201d 8<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although this sounds positive, there has also been a decline in the proportion of senior roles occupied by women. The Women in Business 2018 report by Grant Thornton suggests that this may be due to the focus on including more women in senior roles to meet quotas as opposed to creating a genuinely inclusive culture in businesses.9<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2017, The World Bank released statistical data of the percentage of females that comprise the total labour force globally; this stands at 39%.10<\/sup> The results of these reports, while promising, still reflect the great disparity that women in leadership experience in their daily careers.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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It might shock you to realise that comparatively, Africa is the most gender diverse region as found by Grant Thornton\u2019s report.12<\/sup> The benefits of a more inclusive workplace are obvious: different perspectives and strengths in both men and women in senior leadership roles, will enable an organisation to grow and achieve long-lasting success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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South Africa hit a new high of 80% of businesses with at least one woman in senior management and the highest proportion of senior roles held by women in a decade at 29%.8<\/sup><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Curating leadership by opening opportunities for networking<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Our guest speakers for this course have led by example, in creating spaces where women can succeed in business. Tackling the lack of opportunities for career success, limited growth opportunities and gender bias are a few of the obstacles that they help women overcome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are a few impressive short, biographies from:<\/p>\n\n\n\n