EM Superhero

Many of you will have heard my views on “Positive Discrimination” – particularly at the end of last year when I was invited onto the James Max Show on LBC and I was involved in a very lively debate with Julie Hall of Women Unlimited.     I don’t find it difficult to accept that Julie and I have opposing views – but imagine how surprised I was to find myself in a full on discussion over lunch at The BIG Event 2010 with Bill Morrow (the founder of Angels Den).

I hadn’t realised before I embarked on my positioning that Bill was completely and utterly in favour of positive discrimination for Women.   To find myself arguing against a man on this subject was really quite unique!   It was very interesting to listen to a man’s views on this topic – and I have to say that overall he is actually quite right.   YES, of course Women should be on Boards of Directors, with Executive positions in the FTSE top 100 companies and beyond.  YES, of course, Women will add an extra dimension to the way companies are run and YES of course, Women are valuable members of society and should be represented in large numbers across business.    How could I possibly disagree with such obvious statements.   Because they are, after all, obvious!

Where we disagreed however was in the way this should be achieved.

Bill Morrow was extremely keen for directives to be given as to the % of board directors which should be women (and within a certain time frame) – as they have done in Norway and more recently France.    Does this mean that the right person will get the job?     Does this mean that a woman will be given the role even though a man may be better suited and more experienced?      This is definitely not the way forward – this is a very dangerous journey for us to embark on.

During the conversation, it was highlighted by Bill, that in a very large management consultancy firm only 6 of the partners were women – and that this was completely wrong.    My question now, and at the time is this:    We should not be focusing on the actual number of 6 but more on the reasons why?   Is it because Women are not being offered the position of partner – which clearly leads to the question of Why?   Or is it simply because Women are not applying to be partner within this particular firm – which again leads to the values of this particular company and what they are actually doing to encourage and enable women to become partners…….

It goes without saying that we (WOMEN) can add value, make a difference and be extremely competent in whatever roles we undertake but we need to be put in those roles because a) we want them and b) we are the best person for the job.

One listener to the conversation (a woman!) said that she would be insulted to be given a position within a company simply because she was a woman – she wanted to be given the position based on merit.

Change is required

Change is required – without a doubt – but it is not going to happen by being DICTATED to.    Let us start to educate and change the mindset of women to want to have these roles, to know they can have these roles and to encourage them to achieve them.

We will continue to increase our presence in senior positions – already HUGE change has taken place over the last 10 years.  There are many inspirational women role models who continue to shatter the glass ceiling time and time again …

What we need to do is KNOW and BELIEVE in ourselves and focus on being the absolute best.   Which is of course, is not that difficult!

As I entered the LBC Studios in Leicester Square yesterday, I was fully prepared to stand my ground and declare myself totally against positive discrimination – particularly in relation to our topic of Women in Business. A headline in the Sunday Telegraph – “Women Directors earn 50% less than men” was somewhat misleading, but it was James Max’s opening statement in his show – and it was one which set the tone. I immediately responded with my views that only the RIGHT person for the position should be employed – regardless of gender.  Julie Hall, founder of www.women-unlimited.co.uk put forward her point of view – that positive discrimination is a good thing and cited Norway, where companies were given 2 years to increase the number of Women in Board positions to 40%. The percentage in Norway is currently 43% and they have, as a country, actually fared better than any other country in the world with the current economic climate. OKAY, so should I be listening to this strong evidence? Or am I wrong to support James Max’s point of view that “Positive Discrimination equals Mediocrity”. Julie does have a fair point. Women should be actively encouraged to apply for Executive Board positions if they want to – they should not be discriminated against because they are women, nor should they be taken on because they are.

As a mother to 3 children, 1 daughter and 2 sons, I believe my role is to encourage them ALL to have no limiting beliefs about their future achievements and their gender. Be who you want to be. Become what you want to become. There may be compromises and decisions to make along the way – but ensure that you take the “right decisions” for you.

Julie continued to put forward her point of view and suggested that “Promoting Confidence” workshops for Women, and “Leadership” courses for children, should be mandatory. I wholeheartedly agree – providing that boys/men are not discriminated against. At one point, a caller rang in to express his absolute shock at my comment regarding women’s confidence. Let me explain. I made a sweeping comment in relation to Women Executives at Board Level – “if you don’t have the confidence to apply for the role in the first place, then perhaps you don’t have the confidence to be at board level”. This was described as toxic. I must stress, I was not referring to women in general – I agree that women as a whole do lack confidence and this needs to be addressed and indeed, I spend a lot of time working in this field – but quite frankly, do I want the FTSE 100 companies run by women who are perhaps lacking in confidence?   No I don’t.

In summary, a great debate.   Julie Hall is founder of perhaps the best website for supporting Women in Business in the UK.  She runs exceptional events and is a fabulous role model for women – with 2 small children under the age of 6.   I, too, work with women in business, supporting, developing and encouraging them to reach their potential – both at home and at work.  There are always two sides to every story – and it was fabulous to have the opportunity to express them on air at LBC – we both remain committed to supporting women, and have proven, it’s better to have an opinion than to sit on top of the fence (that’s if I could find one big enough!).