By: Christina Ioannidis, originally posted at Christinaioannidis.com
One of the biggest challenges for women in business in breaking the “glass ceiling” is the lack of female role models in their organisations. Women who can lend a helping hand and extend their supportive reach in guiding women up the talent pipeline.
Another attitudinal issue we have often come across is the “my work should stand for itself” attitude that a lot of women hold firm to. We believe we have to work twice, if not three, times as hard as our male colleagues in order to be recognised. Whilst we have great intuitive skills, this particular attitude is exemplary of a sense of our strict code of ethics and morals in that we will stand out for our professional contribution rather than our networking skills. What this does, however, is accentuate further the distance from the cultural backdrop of business, where, particularly in male-dominated environments, successful talent pools and identified from senior managers’ radar lists.
I have always worked in more male-dominated organisations, often being the only woman in the team. In fact, in my first professional role, I was the first saleswoman in a 250-strong sales force in Spain. The testosterone flowing in the sales rooms was definitely palpable. However, I did learn at a very young age that “putting yourself out there” was just as critical as working hard. I could have said to myself, “I was Head Girl of my school, I got my Masters with a Distinction, I was selected out of 2,500 applicants to join this international organisation, well, my achievements speak for me”. However, I decided, albeit rather impromptu, that I would ask the European President of the organisation I was in to be my mentor. He accepted, much to my surprise, with amazing glee. Lo and behold, I received a call from him proposing an opportunity as a Brand Management in a different territory – which I took on with no second thought. Had I waited, such an opportunity would have taken at least 2-3 years to come by, as in Fast Moving Consumer Goods businesses, you have to move “up the ranks”, first doing at least 1 year as a Junior Brand Manager, then move to Brand Manager and then up to Senior Brand Manager. My mentor had shortened this process by at least 2 years.
There are many stories like that out there. Mine is not unique. However, those of us in the Talent Management and Diversity Spheres need to be aware that women have to fight against their natural instincts in talking about their success and putting themselves, or their work for that matter, forward and recognising their achievements to those who matter.
Recently, I was with a client who was faced with about just that issue: women in the business were not moving up the ranks and those who are capable, at times are managed inappropriately when it comes to promotion time. This is where I suggested to our client our PowerMinds concept.
The PowerMinds concept has its roots in Masterminding – sometimes referred to as peer-exchange groups; the objective of which is to create an environment of trust and support with a diverse group of individuals who meet at regular intervals. We have designed a format where we leverage diversity of responsibilities, expertise, age, race to offer support, advise and, ultimately, Breakthrough Thinking for specific challenges faced by participants.
The power of the group (and the pun is intentional) is that it does take the discussion beyond traditional frameworks. Purely because participants are not under pressure of trying to solve their own problems or face issues entirely on their own, they are open to advice and even on-the-spot brainstorming. The outputs have been amazing. So much so, we have designed our Share:Select Club, whereby membership includes access to your own PowerMinds Group.
Here are some of the key learnings:
1. Choose the individuals on their level of contribution
Making the selection personal to an individual and highlighting what they will bring to the group, as well as what they will take out is just as important. This is because making a contribution and a difference to others is a real guiding principle for women, as is hearing the war stories and sharing personal experiences. We have found that, as women are very auditory, they do need to hear others’ stories to realise that the challenges they are facing are not unique to them. That reassurance is critical.
2. Confidentiality and Trust are Core
The Key Tenet in the PowerMinds set-up is the creation of a safe environment, one where confidentiality is critical. There are groups that, as they are like-minded, the group automatically abides to that guiding principle and share their experiences instantly. For some other groups, it is necessary to make the message of a trust-based environment explicit so as to build the dynamic. However, putting this Confidentiality clause on the table up-front acts as a catalyst to opening the discussion.
3. Participants have to make a commitment
Having your own peer-support group is in itself powerful. We find that the excitement of the first session automatically breeds a sense of commitment. However, when back in the day-to-day reality, it is hard to avoid the temptation of sticking to the day-job and missing out on the PowerMinds meeting. This is where we have to fight our instincts and consider investing the time in ourselves – our experience has been from discussions with participants that whilst they were very close to pulling out in particular instances due to work-pressures, the fact that we made a point of discussing that and then worked within the group to help resolve the challenges that were taking up their time actually helped them move forward faster.
4. Do not be afraid of conflict
There are times when, especially under high pressure situations, the team dynamic may lead to conflict. It is important to have prepared yourself, or those in the team, for these instances and have strategies to diffuse conflict. We are advocates that conflict is good – as it indicates the group is moving out of their comfort zone.
Breaking the proverbial glass-ceiling or un-sticking ourselves from the sticky floor requires investment, time and a positive attitude. An attitude that as women, we can control our own destiny and can leverage the support from other women in the organisation or outside our personal circle of influence. Having a new set of eyes to understand and advise us on our issues is extremely powerful; being able to re-pay the favour instantly is even more constructive for our self-confidence. Take the bull by the horns – tap into the Secret of Success and join your own PowerMinds group. For more information, contact us here
