I recently told a friend of mine that I was about to attend a women in leadership workshop and her response took me by surprise. “What for?” It was a good question: Is ‘women in leadership’ special to other leadership programs? Or is it window dressing an important issue?
There is no question that most companies and organisations have thrown their weight behind gender equality and gender balance in their workforce. One of the indicators of the support for gender equality is the steady proliferation of women and leadership programs. These programs, run both in-house by learning and development specialists and also run by specific organisations that focus on women and leadership. The current thinking is that if more leadership training is available for women then the company is being proactive in getting more women to not only be part of the workforce but also the opportunity to become present in the ranks of company leadership.
The rush to train up women in leadership is a positive sign that gender is a key corporate and social target. However, what is missing is some quality control of women and leadership programs.
I have been to a fair share of these and they vary in philosophy, focus and skills. For the most part, they mean well. My most recent experience brought together a group of twenty women from a range of industries to participate in an extensive program of leadership. What was most admirable about the program was the caliber of women doing exceptional work. What was also telling about these women is how grateful most were that their company had chosen and in most cases, paid for them to complete the program. In most cases, it is the men who are often singled out for leadership development and promotion, so it was a real achievement for many women to be recognised by their companies.
With more talented and exceptional women stepping up for leadership development the onus is now on the programs to deliver exceptional leadership education and training.
This is where a number of problems emerge about what women and leadership programs offer. Unfortunately, as women and leadership is a relative new field of research and education, at a time when the need is great, the attitude of employers is that any program is better than none. In the rush to implement gender quotas and gender equity policies, there has been little evaluation of what makes a quality program.
So for those making decisions about undertaking a program or developing a program, here are the four must haves in a quality women in leadership program.
1. Focus on gender
I have sat through numerous women and leadership staff development workshops where gender is never mentioned. Even as you look around the room and see a range of women with different understandings of gender, the concept is not defined nor explained. Any program that does not call out gender is making a serious omission in not understanding that gender is constructed differently by each women and their workplace. Women in the military, for example, experience gender within a traditionally masculine role in an organisation that is both hierarchical and often sexist. Military women shape their gender in accordance with commonly understood masculinity removed from traditional femininity. The leadership education and training of these women needs to take into account how gender is constructed and practiced within such a context.
Research shows that military women internalize military culture so to draw attention to how this is done is critical in shaping gendered leadership practices. Compare these demands of leadership to a more feminized industry such as healthcare. Gender in health draws on the more communal practices associated with more feminised notions of work that is about caring and service. Gendered leadership needs to adapt to more feminized workplaces that are more inclusive and defined by more feminised context. These two examples may be extremes, but without understanding the different constructs of gender with different workplaces and how these impact on leadership, the program is missing the point. Gender shapes leadership so it must be foundational knowledge in any women and leadership program.
2. Focus on power
There are hundreds of definitions of leadership but what they all have in common is that the leader has more power to make decisions than others. So any program that does not put power front and centre of leadership is missing the point.
To lead means you understand what power is and how it works. You also need to understand how you, as a potential leader have power and how you use it. There are many theories of power that help to explain what it is. For example, according to social psychologists French and Raven, seminal understandings of social power as the potential of an agent to influence a target. The theory gives a powerful inventory of power that can help any women understand her power to influence and where this comes from.
Knowing where your power comes from will help shape the success of your leadership. If you have legitimate power that comes from a title such as CEO, your influence is immediate. Whether you like it or not, you are the boss. If, however, your power comes from being an expert in your field, you still have lots of influencing to do in leadership. Experts are not always the most influential as other political factors may influence results.
Many women and leadership program ignore power, but quality programs will speak to power early and often.
3. Value diversity
Women and leadership programs that don’t practice diversity are reproducing the idea that that leadership is only for the select few.
An easy way to check the diversity value of the program is to review the presenters. Do they represent a cross section of industries, ethnicities, sexual orientation and ages? If all your leadership practitioners look alike, present alike and think alike – then they don’t value the practice of diversity in leadership.
Women in leadership is education that is asking women to break out of think male think manager idea of leadership. In order to break the stereotyping of leadership as a male shaped practice, programs must break stereotypes in modelling and putting front and centre female leaders who break the mold. See the progressive understanding of Ethnic women leadership program put forward by the New Zealand government. It seeks ways that ethnic women can make significant contribution to future prosperity. Popular media promotes bank CEO s and corporate women as beacons of women in leadership, but leaders come from all walks of life. Women and leadership needs to lead the way in doing diversity in leadership.
4. Social responsibility and pay it forward objectives
Most women may feel an obligation to their organisation to apply their leadership to meet the organisational goals and targets. This is fine but women need to do more.
Women and leadership programs need to stress the bigger picture of women’s rights, gender equity and gender inclusion in the program goals and objectives. Every woman who has undergone leadership training has her understanding piqued and the onus of her leadership is to influence those in her organisation and more broadly pass on her understandings to other women.
Women in leadership is a movement that has a responsibility to socialise women’s capacity to lead to other men and women. Programs that don’t have commitment to broader social goals are reproducing the notion that only the privileged few with access to leadership education qualify to lead. As a woman leader you are also a teacher of leadership to other women.
Be prepared to challenge any women and leadership program that does not have as a central focus that women leaders are exceptional — they understand gender, diversity and power. Women leaders also understand that they are representing all women and have a social responsibility to share their understandings. As Madeline Albright said, “there is a special place in hell for women who don’t help other women”, and this is especially true for women in leadership programs that skirt around issues of gender, power and diversity.