This morning I attended a really interesting talk by Dr Melrona Kirrane on the invitation of Hannah Carney (Carney & Associates) and Mount Anville Past Pupil’s Association (MAPPA)
MAPPA’s 2016 Network breakfast was on the very interesting topic of “Leadership & Gender – Navigating the Labyrinth”.
What is abundantly clear is that in Ireland we still have such a long way to go to ensure that women are more fairly represented at senior management levels and above within organisations.
While Dr Kirrane provided some very interesting research into the why, she also gave us some great insights into what we, as women, can do in the short term to help the situation and take more control of our careers at both an organisational and personal level.
At an organisational level:
• Get rid of long hours’ culture
• Use hard data for managing performance
• Have less reliance on informal networks and referrals to fill roles
• Ensure that your organisation has a critical mass of women in executive positions
Remember “You can’t be what you can’t see”
At a personal level:
• Acquire 3 sponsors with influence and clout: have a genuine relationship based on trust and communication
• Get networking across three types of networks: operational, personal and strategic
• Be politically astute and take credit for the work you are doing
• Have presence, Be confident. Believe in yourself
• Make your partner a real partner – share the load properly
• Don’t leave before you leave
• Proceed to be BOLD
Thanks so much for providing me with some great food for thought this morning. Thanks MAPPA, Dr Kirrane and one of my key Sponsor’s Hannah Carney.
