Modern Business Magazine June 2016 | Page 35

MODERN BUSINESS around innovation, new product development, marketing and consumer engagement strategies become gender-silo’d. The reality is this. The infamous glass ceiling is still firmly in place, and unless we all collectively engage and take action it is never going to develop more than a few cracks. So what action is needed? 1 Step out of status quo It’s easy to get trapped in the comfort zone and the place of status quo. The place of no change, of stagnation. But what it also means is a lack of forward thinking, a lack of opportunity to evolve, to do things differently. It is those leaders and organisations that are willing to challenge themselves, who make themselves accountable for their own success, which recognise the need to reach that little bit further or higher, who know that change has to happen. It is those who take the leap, who are able to collaborate with others to mutual commercial benefit with confidence. The Australian Defence Force has in many ways been a groundbreaker when it comes to challenging the status quo and forcing change to happen. There is no position now within the Australian Army that is not open to females. There is no distinction between men and women when it comes to criteria for promotion and there has been acknowledgement that women are actually more suited for leadership within some roles as their skillsets are essential to the work being done – for example, with displaced women and children within warzones. 2 Change the attitude of the C-suite The attitude of those at a C-suite level is of prime importance in encouraging others within the company to see the need for more women in leadership roles. This applies equally to men and women, but perhaps in different ways. In terms of males in senior positions, the way they think, act and behave is giving direct influence to younger males in the organisation. If they openly support equality within senior management, and understand the value of women in those roles, then they are setting an example for the next generation to follow. 3 Don’t sit back – speak up The only way we are going to accelerate the rate of change is to raise our voices and our actions at the same time. It’s time women (and men) started speaking out about their own terms of employment and asking the hard questions. The whole ‘it’s not nice to talk about money’ politeness needs to be June 2016 ModernBusiness 35