Engaging men in gender diversity is one of the primary hurdles facing women rising into leadership. While women remain the key commentators and advocates for gender diversity, we all know that this is an issue that requires full-participation from both genders.
Since the inception of the Male Champions of Change initiative – which involves a number of very senior male leaders speaking up about workplace gender diversity – the discussion around gender equality has moved beyond women to including men in high-level discussions.
I am fast becoming of the opinion that those men “get it”. They hear so much about why gender diversity is an important issue for their organisation and they take reasonable action where they can. Richard Goyder, Managing Director of Australia’s largest employer Wesfarmers, was quizzed on Lateline recently about gender diversity as part of a wider discussion on his company. It is becoming normal for leading actors to have to justify their organisational gender makeup.
The next challenge is to engage young men starting their careers in the issue. These men are often blind to gender inequality. Gen Y men grew up seeing their mothers work and use part-time work to their advantage. When they entered university the majority of their peers were ambitious women often competing directly against them.
Gen Y men can fail to see any future limitations on women because many are yet to see women have to choose between career and kids or the systematic discrimination that halts a woman’s professional life – particularly at the ten-year experience mark.
They don’t see how seemingly minor differences between the styles and responsibilities of the two genders can have dramatic consequences later on. Indeed, if a meticulous and driven woman continues to take smaller projects while her equally capable male counterpart strives for bigger opportunities, managers will often be more inclined to back the person who worked on larger clients and transactions. She misses out. This is a common story.
If we look at this as the eyes reads it, it can seem as if it makes sense that she misses out. That is indeed how many men see that situation.
When I raised this idea with some young women recently I felt as if, despite their short careers, they had already encountered similar issues. They said that they often favoured taking on smaller projects. Even where their office was in relation to their direct manager was having a major impact on their progression, “My boss gives my male colleague all the interesting work because his office is one door closer to hers,” one commented to me.
What can be considered minor actions and decisions are having a direct correlation on the rise of women. Young men are not seeing this.
Young men ought to be active and conscious about gender biases. Largely as the beneficiary of the discrimination they need to consider how they can support women.
For young men, the duty to progress gender equality is well beyond the gambit of senior men. Achieving breadth in this discussion is within our reach.
And yet, we do not participate in the discussion enough. Young men do not realise that the rise of women is good for both genders and the wider economy. It will give men more opportunities for flexibility and progress on their terms.
We can only get so far by engaging leadership. A ‘whole of organisation’ approach is due.