Business Digest April 2021
Women in Business – Gender Equality: A Personal View by Rebeka Goodale, Head of
Product at The ai Corporation Let’s face it, the business world is hard, no matter your gender. However, when the rules of the game were built by men in an age where women were not welcome in the business world, it’s no wonder that breaking the glass ceiling can seem like an impossible dream. The events of 2020 have only added more pressure for women in the workplace, and in some sectors, has them questioning their desire to continue working at all. However, there is some good news and signs of slow and steady progress; women have been moving into more senior positions. According to McKinsey’s Women in the Workplace Study: “At the beginning of 2020, the representation of women (in business) was trending in the right direction. This was most pronounced in senior management. Between January 2015 and January 2020, representation of women in seniorvice-president positions grew from 23 to 28 percent, and representation in the C-suite grew from 17 to 21 percent. Women remained dramatically underrepresented—particularly women of colour—but the numbers were slowly improving.” This article represents my experiences over the last 20 years in the corporate world. Some of these you can probably relate to, while others may be the type of experiences you hope you never experience. The goal is to provide some useful tips on how to navigate this ever-changing game and learn from the mistakes that I made along the way. What has this got to do with gender equality? Well, it’s easy to blame
some of my missteps, or even blatant rejections, on my gender, but I believe the only person responsible for my success is me. Trust me, I have experienced gender bias and it is not fun and can be very painful. More to come on that a bit later. I’ve taken the stance that I use my gender as an asset, but not my only asset. Women bring a unique perspective to the table and when we leverage the many talents of the others at the table, this can generate a powerful and productive force. Unfortunately, it feels like it’s become him vs. her now, and we all must fight for our right to participate. So, I’d like to share two experiences that shaped my professional career and some key lessons that I hope will help you along your journey. Finding the Perfect Balance I’ve worked for small and large employers, each carrying its good and bad experiences. Don’t be fooled in thinking there is ever a perfect place to work, as I believe that may be the impossible dream. However, I started my professional career as an administrative assistant. Not the most glamorous position in a large company, but what I learned over the first 5 years was that everyone needs to start somewhere. Work ethic, determination and people skills are what enabled me to take the next step into a more visible role in the same company. By this time, I had become known as someone that could be relied upon to get things done. Now, I will warn you that with ability comes responsibility. You become the ‘go to’ person. That may seem great, for a minute, but can easily burn you out. Another risk that you run, and I certainly fell into this trap, is believing
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your own hype. I will never forget the day that my line manager pulled me in to her office and said, “I think you’re great BUT, you behave like a bull in a china shop most of the time. The result is good for the customer, but the collateral damage you collect along the way is not good. There is a time and place for when you need to be the bull, but you’ve got it all wrong. If you don’t change your ways, you’ll never go higher in this company.” I was probably 28 at the time and this was a huge blow to my ego. I wasn’t ready to hear that information and certainly did not know what to do with it. It took some time to digest, but the reality is that my gender did me no favours and my behaviour was seen as being aggressive and pushy, versus assertive and ambitious. This was the first, but not the last time that I was told to tune down my personality. I had a choice to make in this moment, I could take the advice and change the way I behaved, or I could carry on in the same manner. My advice is to accept and act on any feedback you receive, especially from senior female leaders. These women have been around the company and have learned to play the game. Learn from their mistakes. It is not always easy to hear negative feedback and most of the time you just want to forget it ever happened. Don’t let your own ego get in the way of your success. Solicit feedback from women that are older and younger than you. Accept their advice and use it to improve yourself. This next sentence is especially important. You will never be accepted by everyone, all the time. THAT IS OKAY!
