Executive Summary

During 2013, the Reibey Institute interviewed 100 of Australia’s leading corporate women. Following our ASX500 board and company performance series in previous years, the Institute decided it was time to hear from women leaders who are poised in the coming years to take Chief Executive, Director and Chairperson roles, in an effort to identify the pathways and key success factors for women leaders in corporate Australia.

Throughout 2014, we are sharing the 8 major themes that emerged across those 100 interviews and powerful insights and quotes from those women to support our findings.

The Power of Sponsors and Networks

Networks and relationships: make them work for you

Get going early in creating networks and cultivating relationships within your workplace, as widely as possible, and within your industry and your profession. This lets you tap into the experience of senior people whom you can ask for insightful, reliable and relevant advice. And it makes you known for your enthusiasm and interest in advancement, helping differentiate you from others (creating your personal brand). A sponsor or mentor needs to know you and have faith in you to feel it is worthwhile advocating for you. And while there is a need to put yourself forward for opportunities, a sponsor can point these out to you and support you.

Formal mentor – 15

Self chosen or organic mentors – 36

Organic Sponsors – 65

Formal sponsors – 18

60% saying the impact of sponsors and mentors on their career has been high.

The other point that emerged from the women’s experiences was that engaging with organizational politics was unavoidable and essential – but had to be done for maintaining personal integrity.

Some stories

One woman confided in her sponsor that she had doubts about pursuing a promotion. He told her she was the top of the list of rankings and encouraged her to go for it: exactly what she needed to hear.

Don’t cast your net too narrowly when building relationships in an organization. One interviewee commented “I knew I had a strong sponsor in the CEO but when we merged and he took redundancy, I was left out on a limb and got pushed aside.” The word network implies more that one and so it is important to make connections throughout the organization.

Make sure you cultivate those relationships and take an interest in others as well. “I make a point now of catching up with my initial sponsor twice a year. He has become a friend too.”

• It is important to understand company politics early. I shied away from it and judged it as being bad and thought “I am so much better than that.” The reality is they exist and you need to be consciously aware of that and be political to serve your outcomes but of course, do so with integrity
• It’s not just about working hard. Invest in relationships and networks with old colleagues
• It’s not just about merit, its about how well you connect, there is a need to be proactive and plan
• Network network network – it drives a career and gives more options
• Networking – it’s all about networking! Doing it and being good at it, creating relationships and helping people
• Align in organization with a sponsor and advocate and mentor: you don’t know how important that isBut [it] must be [with] more than one person because if that person leaves then you have a problem
• Even if you have a report due – go to that event! Even if you hate football, go.

One woman said – “I always thought I was above networking, that it was a dirty word but I know it’s not, as long as you do it with integrity and it’s not a one way street.   It is actually critical.” 

The only caution was to build wide networks.  Another woman felt comfortable that her sponsor was the CEO but when the company was bought and the CEO was let go she was left with no sponsor.Only a few roles after junior management were sought by the individual.

One woman said she was constantly overlooked for promotion to partnership level until by chance she was asked by a senior colleague who was a partner, why she had not applied, possibly she was not interested? When she confirmed she was, heasked if she had discussed with her internal sponsors putting her forward and supporting her application. She commented, “Then the penny dropped. That’s why everyone was making all these connections and even in my mid 30s I thought it was all based on client work. I just did not know and no one ever tells you that either”

Another of how it can really work – another commented how a senior colleague was leaving and this women was talking to her about the new role and then said ‘ Wow that sounds like my dream job.  I would love that role some day.  It exactly what I want to do.”  Then 6 years later she got a call from that woman colleague who was leavingwas about to announce their resignation, and asked if she was still interested in the position as sheand if so,  would put her name forward as a candidate.  She was recommended by the incumbent and is now in that role. 

Head down and work hard yes, but also head up and look around and tell people.  It is not about big noting, it is about letting people know what you are interested in.  It is about building relationships with people so they know who you are, and you know who they are. and helping other people

Advice I would give myself

Self belief, self promotion, risk taking and adaptability

The women we spoke viewed the baseline for success as working hard and being highly competent. Confidence in yourself and your abilities, speaking up for yourself, putting yourself forward and not waiting for others to do so is critical – and so is personal integrity. Being adaptable and flexible in identifying and pursuing career opportunities as well as the ability to identify opportunities and take risks are also critical ingredients to successful careers.

The women often talked about being surprised that they were put forward for a role: one even related that she explained so many of her weaknesses in her interview for her current CEO role that the interview panel told her to start talking about what she could do!

The women in our study urged younger women not to wait to be offered their chances. Take control, believe in yourself and seek out opportunities. Don’t leave it to chance and the hope hard work will speak for itself. One woman mentioned that one of her supporters saw in her things that she couldn’t see in herself, but his/her belief in her enabled her to develop her own.

To plan or not to plan, how to do so and whether it is valuable emerged as another discussion point. The consensus seems to be, on looking back at their careers:

• Progression does not occur in a linear way but changes and evolves alongside the industry and the general environment
• Plans can be useful but don’t let them box you in! Adaptability and seizing the moment matter.

Confidence

• Have a voice. Do things you want to do and not try and please everyone else. …….Be a bit selfish. Stop judging. Stop feeling guilty
• Courage in yourself, know what you are good and are not good at and put your hand up for what you want to do and are good at and for what you need

Flexibility/adaptability

• Flexibility was good for me – ie not having a 5 year or 10 year plan that puts you in a box and more important to know what you don’t want to do and look at everything else.
• I wish ….in the first 10 years that I had broader horizons. About what I could do. Or what I could get involved in. I had a very narrow view of my discipline. I wish that I had much earlier had found more about the industry I was in and the company I was with and not just focused on my own discipline. …..I did not have a wide enough vision and view.
• Look for opportunities outside your comfort zone best challenge and experiences and confidence (and self awareness)
• Don’t be caught by the parameters of your degree

Identifying opportunities/taking risks

• You don’t need to know everything before you try for something
• Make your own opportunities when you see that something needs to be done – get in and make an opportunity and own it
• Look outside the normal realms of opportunities, put your head up and look everywhere, stretch yourself and back yourself
• I knew I was technically good but I never thought I would be a GM. But then I went for it and I am glad now. 
• Get comfortable with the worst case scenario

Planning

• Don’t plan too far out, can mean you are not flexible
• Be flexible and don’t beat yourself up. Don’t need a plan by 30 doing this and 40 doing this
• There are many pathways to a destination

One of the top pieces of advice was to be flexible and look outside the realms of a traditional role for what you can do. 

Be open to new suggestions and take a risk or two. 

It is not about being {rash} and doing everything that comes along  but to consider everything……… and not rule things out too quickly. 

37% are doing something quite different to what they started out doing. 

·      Starting in the public service then moving into industry running a business,

·      starting as a marketing analyst and ending up in M&A,

·      training in fine arts and now a CIO.

A great insight was – “You can always change back.”

·      Flexibility was good for me – i.e. not having a 5 year or 10 year plan that puts you in a box.  I think it’s more important to know what you don’t want to do and look at everything else.

·      I wish …. in the first 10 years that I had broader horizons. About what I could do. Or what I could get involved in. I had a very narrow view of my discipline.

·     I had a plan and I was so busy ticking all my boxes in my 20s and 30s that I feel like I missed out on life.

·    Taking a few risks early in my career has really paid of for me in the long run.  

Targets and Quotas

There is strong support for targets with increasing support for quotas, with many women not liking quotas but supporting their introduction in view of the slow progress on women in leadership.  The more practical issue facing women is not whether they support targets or quotas but how to respond to an offer of a position in pursuit of a company’s gender targets.

100 Women Leaders is a national study by the Reibey Institute, aiming to identify the pathways and key success factors for women leaders in corporate Australia. Advice to self is one of eight themes identified in the series.

We spoke to 100 female leaders about their views on measurable objectives to achieve more women in leadership.  Specifically

• the use of targets (voluntary objectives which companies set themselves)

• the introduction of quotas (obligatory outcomes established through national legislation)

And we asked how they have responded, or would think they would respond, to the offer of a position which helped a company meet gender targets. Their reflections cover three issues:

1. The practical dilemmas faced by a woman offered a position to meet a target

2. Targets: a consensus emerged with very strong support for these

3. Quotas: strong views for and against by a minority, undecided but generally favourable views by many with a number explaining how they had changed their opinions in favour of quotas in recent years. Conventional ideas of merit are often no longer convincing. Overwhelmingly there is a sense of ‘it’s time!’.

Practical Dilemmas

How to react if faced with being the “woman who got the job because they wanted a woman”.

The experience of being offered a position or chance to be interviewed, because of being a woman, was reported by several of the women we interviewed. Many had either been in this position or had thought seriously about how they would react if they were. The interviews raised some critical questions and difficult dilemmas.

Views varied with those who would refuse, others who would seize the opportunity and a number who would accept with reservations.

What would these women do?

Refuse: Some were adamant they would not take a role that was allocated to a woman and had already turned down interviews when a headhunter has said – they want a woman.

• I would not want to be the women [appointed] because of a quota.

• Quotas & targets allow people to say she is only there because she is a woman.

• [Quotas let] people say – she only got it because they needed the numbers.

Maybe: some said they would be hesitant but would take it because they felt there needs to be a critical mass in senior positions to pull others through to leadership.

• I think quotas could be really helpful but the individuals will wear some damage even though the collective outcome is better. No-one is perfect and if a man is not perfect its OK – if it’s a women then they will say she shouldn’t have been there anyway.

Accept: others were very sure. Take it and don’t look back. Lead from the front. Does it matter how a door opens, through a contact, sponsor or a target? How likely is it that a business will appoint someone they think is not up to the job?

• I have been one of the women in a target environment and I felt like it was a political play – but then my mindset changed …….. they are not going to put the business at risk [by appointing me if I wasn’t up to the job]. 

• I was appointed when I was pregnant under an internal positive action programme: I accepted and haven’t looked back

Targets

A consensus emerged amongst the women we interviewed that, as a bare minimum for a gender strategy, companies should be setting targets to ensure women’s progression through the organisation.

• For professional services there is an unconscious bias at every firm I have worked in.  What works is if leaders have a time frame to get number of women through.  They have to get close to it to learn what needs to change.  To find individuals they believe in. 

Quotas

Those against quotas were adamant in their views. They were particularly preoccupied with arguments around merit and tokenism, fearing that women appointed under a quota might damage women’s interests more generally. Many of those who were supportive felt equally strongly, and had thought long and hard about these issues too. And they felt women had waited long enough, that’s it time for change. Others were reluctant supporters, feeling circumstances had made them make this choice. Several who had recently changed their views towards supporting quotas were in this group. The third group were undecided about whether quotas should be used but were tending towards their imposition. Views were many and varied but centred around a few core themes: merit, tokenism, impatience and indecision.

• I think its sad that we have to do it but if its going to work then lets get on with it and do it and move on.

Merit: that advancement should be merit-based is a strongly held value in Australian society. So it is not surprising that many of the women we interviewed had thought deeply about this issue. Very few view the current system as rewarding merit; many don’t see that it does and consider quotas will help redefine the concept and overcome bias against women in particular roles. At the heart of the merit argument is a debate about whether quotas will cause merit to be overlooked or will uncover new talent, previously unrecognized.

Against quotas

• I do not believe in quotas because I believe in merit.

• Creates an adverse flow for people who are there on merit. 

• I understand quotas might be needed at some stage but I think better to be based on merit.

Supporting quotas

Merit-based appointments are not happening now

• I know merit doesn’t happen now and that men get paid more than women. Maybe measurable objectives will force people to find merit and get the right mix

• I see so many disappointing executives that get paid really well. Its so frustrating.

• We have a lot of very average men on boards so the worst outcome is that we have average women as well. When I was working with board placements I was astounded at how men tout for positions. Like it’s a right.

• Merit is an aspirational model. Merit based systems attract unmerited merit. If quotas are not the solution and the merit based system is not working then what’s next?

• If that’s what is takes to remove unconscious bias then do it until it becomes normal

• I would rather it wasn’t needed but if that’s what it takes then yes.

• I believe this is an enabler to a more even playing field 

• I used to not agree but now I completely agree. Used to think it will create a divide, but experience has shown me that people hire like themselves.

• Five years ago I would have said no, but something has to change and break through

There is no lack of female talent

• Quotas are not the best way but the best way we have available and that has not been tried. I do not believe there is a lack of pool of talent.

• It’s regrettable [that there is a need for quotas] and I would not normally condone it. In my work more women go to uni than men but that is not represented at senior levels

• The argument that you compromise on quality – well I don’t get that when you look at the number coming out of uni

• From a quality point of view it just gets more people on the slate.

• But if we don’t [have quotas] then we never get people into the frame of mind that women can have, and achieve in those roles. People need to wrap their head around the fact that women can do these roles

Tokenism: several interviewees discussed the fear that quotas would lead to the appearance of assisting women to progress but not result in effective change in a company. Appointment as a ‘token’ would be damaging for a woman – making her less authoritative in her role however good she is – and if she failed, this, in their view, may undermine women generally.

Against quotas

• Leads to tokenism. I saw it in the USA. A black woman was promoted to tick a box and everyone talked about it.

• Tokenism – undermines the value of women getting there

• Danger is you might get a woman who is not capable and that does more harm. Invariably it will promote the wrong people just to meet a number.

Supporting quotas

Impatience/It’s time: many of the women we interviewed found the slow pace of change hard to take, with many ‘coming round’ to quotas in view of this. They supported targets but felt their experiences showed that to get progress on track quotas were needed to ‘force’ change..

• There should be quotas or it will take a few lifetimes

• I would have hoped that targets would have worked but they haven’t. So quotas are important

• Unless it is imposed nothing will happen. We need a driver and this is the last option.

• I have realised over time that nothing is going to change without them.

• I don’t like the idea of quotas but I am over that. There is no progress. [We need them]

• I used to think quotas were appalling, but we need them to force a mindset change. As unsavoury as it is I think we need quotas at a NED level. But not sure how it would work at.. exec level.

Undecided: nearly a third of women could not be sure of their stance on quotas. Their indecision is evident in their comments. Emerging from their interviews, however, it is apparent many have moved to supporting quotas or will do so, if significant change does not occur soon.

• Mixed view but feel we do need quotas to break the cycle.

• Emotionally I am torn – it feels wrong – but logically I know men need to work with women more and it will benefit the company and society

• My view has changed over the years, I don’t like quotas because you will get the token label. But in reality it is not improving so I am softening my view.

• Coming to the conclusion that there is a place for quotas. Do not feel diversity is yet embedded in the consciousness of decisions makers

• Not sure the answer is either [targets or quotas] but I am not ruling them out. 

• I am not sure. It’s difficult to answer because I have been able to achieve by working hard and doing well. But I know that is not everyone’s experience. If there are true barriers because of bias then you need them. 

• Very difficult to answer. I can see both sides. Maybe a persistent threat of quotas will be enough.

• I have seen the stats and know the gap is still too wide. Am erring on the side of quotas but am still uncomfortable with it.

• I haven’t got a black and white view on quotas but without a material shift it is inevitable.

Sexism, Discrimination and Harassment

The good news is that most women thought that the level of sexism in the workplace is changing and is certainly less overt than is was due to training and awareness and for many that has allowed them to get on with work. 

They felt that the next issue to address was unconscious bias and hiring like themselves and addressing it in culture by action and …

Some women felt that the level of over sexism had improved hugely since 2000 but had experienced a rise since the GFC.  They felt that in their environment where people were fighting for jobs that the “knives were out” and people were using anything they could to put people down.  Get comment from someone?

Unfortunately there were a couple stories from 2013 that are very real examples of overt and illegal sexism and discrimination. 

The following quotes are genuine, verbatim and less than a few years old and where aimed directly at the women

·      I will endorse your proposal, if you sleep with me

·      I really need to give that to a man to manage.

·      You can’t continue to work while you are pregnant, you should go on maternity leave early.

·      Be a sweetie and get me us coffee love.

The other type of blockers is tactical workplace undermining,

Three quarters have experienced this in their career which

Colleagues, going out of their way to discredit them or leave them out of the loop to put them at a disadvantage  or take work or ideas and pass them off as their own.

As much as we think and hope we don’t have to deal with these circumstances we do need to accept the fact that it still does occasionally happen.

The overwhelming consensus advice,

whether it be sexist or tactical undermining  was where possible,

·      take action immediately or as soon as possible

·      Be direct and professional,

·      and then moving on  - got the best response.

·       

Ignoring it did not work.

Sometimes with a bit of humour too. 

Perhaps my favourite story in this category was a woman having walked into an office to discuss a report, was greeted with – “Oh every time I look at you I just want to sleep with you”

Her reply – “Your only human.  Have you read the report?  I think it is looking really good, but wanted to discuss areas so and so”. This was followed by an embarrassed silence, then fumbled response.  He never said anything like that again.  She moved on to become COO.

When that didn’t work they also used networks and sponsors as support and advocacy.