COVER FEATURE
“Coming in [to the exhibition industry] as
a CEO, a huge number of my peer group are
men and being on the AEO board, most of the
council are also men. The first people to call
me were my male peer group I have had the
most amazing support, which hasn’t been the
same in every other industry I’ve been in.”
No men allowed
A perhaps surprising general consensus
from the group was that ‘women only’ groups
are rarely the way forward (which made EN
suddenly conscious that we hadn't invited any
men to join the discussion).
Jones mentioned that CloserStill regularly
holds ‘women in CloserStill’ lunches.
“I think people may have thought it
stemmed from the #MeToo movement’ which
of course it didn’t,” she reflected. “It was
simply about having a group of smart women
who happen to like and want to support each
other and wanted to think about the future of
the business and everyone in it, now and for
anyone that joins us as we go through the next
exciting period of growth.”
Carter commented: “I’m not sure how I
feel about having a group like ‘women in
CloserStill’, ‘women at Telegraph’ etc., can you
imagine if there was a similar group of men? I
think we have to be really careful.”
Debra Ward, MD of Camm & Hooper,
mentioned that she had chaired three, ‘women
in x’-style groups but had tried to have around
20 per cent of the group by male, adding: “The
reason to do it is to give women confidence
and to make them feel safe about airing their
concerns. Over 20 per cent would change the
dynamic, but without it then we’re not as rich.”
Lori Hoinkes, MD of Fresh Montgomery,
agreed: “I struggle with the idea of the woman
only groups too, it feels like a double standard.
There really is no issue at Montgomery;
when you look at our pay gap the women are
making slightly more than the men because the
majority of senior roles are held by woman.
We’re in a good position.
“I do, however, still find some of the more
junior women who are coming up through
the organisation lack the confidence of their
male counterparts, despite their strengths and
abilities. There’s an issue of self-confidence that
needs to be supported.”
“Women seek reassurance much more than
men,” added Corina Hedley, group event
operations director at ITE Group. “I’ve talked
a lot about imposter syndrome. Certainly for
younger team members it’s about reassuring
them to be strong and be themselves.
Operations is predominantly women and I
actually do have to be mindful to try and
have a mix, and make sure that men are given
opportunities and are coming through. I love
the idea of including 20 per cent men in a
women’s network because a lot of companies
do have these women only groups, and they are
great, but we do need to be mindful of the male
perspective
“For younger team
director on a very large UK trade event when
I had a six year-old and two year-old twins. I
had been in the Middle East for seven years.
“I witnessed people coming back from
maternity leave and just looking completely
overwhelmed.”
She added that it was fantastic that having a
young family didn’t stop her from being hired
and thriving in the role.
Carter revealed that The Telegraph,
including Telegraph Events, has just introduced
six month paternity leave with the aim of
supporting women in the workplace as well as
giving men time with their young families.
“For men who take that it will help them
understand about the return” she added.
“When I had my son, I reckon I was promoted
six months later than I would have been. But,
you know what, I don’t have a problem with
that because I wasn’t there.
“I wasn’t there and, also, they don’t know
what my head’s going to do. Whether it’s a man
or a woman you have no idea how your head
is going to play out once you have a family. I
don’t mind it being delayed. I think this will
help men get that understanding.
While our discussion sadly had to come to
an end, EN hopes this is just a small part of the
ongoing industry-wide reflection on diversity
and gender equality. EN
What do you think event profs? How should
the conversation around women in the industry
continue? Email editor Nicola Macdonald at
[email protected].
members it’s about
reassuring them to
be strong and be
themselves”
– Corina Hedley
Family first
Naturally, the topic of family and maternity
leave was part of the conversation.
“Coming into Upper Street, what really
struck me was the challenges for women,
particularly those who are coming back from
maternity leave and who have got kids,”
commented Harris. “Being offsite, being away
from home, needing flexible working and
support and mentoring - this is a particularly
heavily operational business, where you are
away from home, you work late nights and in
the run up to a show it’s 24-7. It’s important to
make sure that we support women practically,
as well as emotionally.
Barton added: “I took the role of portfolio
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