What should you #ChooseToChallenge on International Women's Day?
#ChooseToChallenge gender biased feedback and you’ll change the future for women.
The conversation about workplace equity for women is accelerating. But is it moving fast enough? Are a disproportionate number of the senior heads still male? Is the path to placing women into leadership positions strewn with so many post COVID obstacles that gaining real momentum is impossible?
To coincide with International Women’s Day, Fiona McKay, leadership influencer and global strategist at Lightbulb Leadership Solutions is issuing a timely rallying call for workplace equality. The world is now a different place post pandemic especially for women and along with its devastating economic impact, also known as the ‘She-Cession’, there’s huge amounts of ground to regain. So how and where can we reclaim our ground and where should we #ChooseToChallenge gender bias? Start with feedback.
The future is bright for women and it lies in their development dialogue.
The kind of feedback women have traditionally received has held them back. It’s a thin line between constructive criticism and destructive criticism and the future lies in development dialogue. So on international Women’s Day it seems timely to check on how Lightbulb’s #FeedbackFirst method is transforming the world of work for thousands of women across the globe. Fiona was one of the first high level leadership strategists in the world to identify the direct link between how women fared in the workplace and how they were communicated with in the workplace:
“My #FeedbackFirst research and supporting development method is working. It’s been instrumental in helping a significant number of companies globally to create an inclusive and equal feedback culture. Back in 2018, the starting point for the whole #FeedbackFirst initiative was to help both organisations and individuals to affect real actionable change by talking to their talent differently. Equally seeing the evidence as to how the method is accelerating more female talent into leadership positions, transforming how feedback is being delivered between men and women and enabling women to access equal compensation has been phenomenal. It’s been overwhelming to see so many companies around the world adopt my #FeedbackFirst method as their 2021 #ChooseToChallenge theme too. We can’t let that all the pre-pandemic progress be obliterated for women. We’ve got to keep this front and central for women’s futures.”
Where do men have still have platform advantage?
Fiona’s findings show that men receive more development focused feedback, with tangible business goals to aim for, whilst women’s feedback is often vague, unfocused and judgemental. It’s not helpful, it hinders progress and it means that men have a distinctive advantage, when climbing the career ladder.
“I’m proud to say that introducing measured development dialogue into performance feedback, understanding the gender bias that surrounds feedback and building those solutions into role progression will continue to be a key factor in transforming female career outcomes.”
— Fiona McKay, Author of Why Feedback Holds Women Back
At its inception, #FeedbackFirst research was not intended to be female focused, it just happened that the results of research showed overwhelmingly that women were being adversely affected by feedback in the workplace.
Leaders are made. And increasingly, not male.
Our supporting Winning Women TM Development Programme has been instrumental in changing the way female talent develops, see’s themselves and in turn, are seen by others. Many women are born with an innate talent to be natural leaders, and are brilliant at building their own brand, knowing their brief and using their relationship building and networking skills. They have empathy and are inspiring which creates above all, impact leadership. Fiona says “When you get to where you want to be, when you’re in the room, addressing your contemporaries, enjoy it. You’re relevant. You’re driven. You deserve it and the world needs you. Because the chances are, as a woman, you’ll have done more than most to get there.” To find out more click the links about our #FeedbackFirst method and supporting Winning Women Programme TM.
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