I have made no secret of the fact that I support quotas as a means of achieving gender equity for leadership. Women currently make up 17.6% of the non-executive directors of the ASX200 companies and although this is the highest percentage to date there are still 42 companies in the ASX200 without a female director.
The most common anti-argument is one of pro-meritocracy. But let’s examine that for a minute. What does it actually mean when white, male, 50-something men are primarily the main group considered capable of leadership roles due to apparent merit-based hiring? Because that’s what ‘meritocracy’ has largely produced to date.
The very argument means that the enforcement of equal numbers of men and women in leadership roles would reduce the quality of the team. Think about that for a minute. The insinuation is that female leaders would compromise the standard expected. It is insulting and baseless. Research has found the opposite to be true.
It also demonstrates exactly why there is a need for quotas. I was asked recently if Private Media has quotas. My response was that there are five women in my leadership team of eight, and half of Private Media’s editors are women too. Every department has a pipeline of talented women coming through. So no, there doesn’t appear to be a need for quotas at Private Media. Just as there hasn’t been a need for quotas in any team that I have managed at any media organisation during my career.
I have actually hired my entire leadership team based on merit. They were all the best people for their jobs. The fact that my most senior member of staff is a man and that there are many extremely talented men contributing to Private Media’s growth and success is evidence that I am also not biased towards women. I appointed the three men to my leadership team and all were short-listed against some strong female candidates.
So why do I feel so strongly about the need for quotas when it isn’t a strategy that I have personally used? The reason is simple: it’s to do with unconscious bias. I don’t have an unconscious bias towards men and the reality is that many men, and some institutionalised corporate women, do. I don’t believe for a minute that there aren’t enough talented women in most industries who would do as good a job at the top as the men who are instead chosen. It’s just never been part of my thought process. But I am not in the majority so quotas are necessary.
Quotas are necessary to enforce a behaviour change. It isn’t possible to change attitudes as easily but it’s the outcome that matters in the short term. And the only way to achieve gender equality in the short term is with quotas. I have no doubt of that.
PS. My sons were watching the new season of Survivor last night. “It’s brawn vs beauty vs brains this season,” my youngest shared, “but don’t worry mum there are equal numbers of men and women on all teams”.
They know that’s what they should be looking out for.