The Australian: Firms serious on gender diversity, but there’s more to be done
Report on the gender balance of corporate boards in Australia. I’m not sure that 30% is the target we should be aiming for (why not 50%?) but it does demonstrate some progress, which is good.
Ninety-six companies in the S&P/ASX 200 index need only one more female director to meet the minimum 30 per cent target. If the chairpersons of those companies pursue diversity principles as part of the cyclical board renewal process then up to two-thirds of the index should easily meet the 2018 target.
Harvard Business Review: When the Media Covers Gender Inequality, the C-Suite Listens
And to put the Australian article in global context, women are 12.5% of top management teams in Global Fortune 100 companies. This article claims media is one of the pressures driving change.
Notwithstanding the current situation, there is cause for optimism. Our report, conducted with the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), suggests that companies are starting to make progress when it comes to corporate gender equality, or at least, thinking about it. And we found that this is due in large part to the media. Although no single factor can ensure gender equality at senior executive levels, the media — by which we mean both traditional and social — stands out as having the potential to help push the door open for women.
Psychology Today: Does Religious Freedom Trump Gender Equality?
Interesting debate on the conflict between respecting religious beliefs and condoning overt and damaging sexism
I have had several recent encounters with orthodox Jewish men who refused to shake my hand, sometimes with a reflex recoil of obvious disgust. Far from feeling empathic to the ‘religious values’ expressed in such behavior, being at the receiving end made me identify with members of other discriminated against groups. Just substitute ‘African American’ or ‘gay’ or ‘Jew’ or ‘Muslim’ for ‘woman’ in this scenario and the discriminatory element becomes crystal clear.
The Guardian: Julia Gillard: from Australia’s first female prime minister to international superstar
Kristina Keneally writes about Julia Gillard’s transition from controversial Prime Minister to international superstar
Gillard is something of an international superstar these days, and not just because of the misogyny speech. Emerging as one of the top education leaders in the world, Gillard commands global respect to such an extent that the putative next president of the United States, Hillary Clinton, included our former prime minister in campaign video released this week.