[Not a valid template]Great Dames tackled the topics of gender equity and men and women helping one another at one the group’s Powerful Conversations on Monday night.
Founder Sharon Hake kicked off the discussion with the sobering finding from the World Economic Forum that gender equality is 108 years away.
Gender equity 108 years away
Hake noted that the gap exists, even though companies with a higher percentage of women in management are more profitable than male-dominated enterprises.
Panelists and attendees offered a variety of advice and viewpoints on ways to reduce that 108-year timeframe with women and men serving as allies in the workplace.
In attendance were business professionals, community members as well as members of youth organizations and Girl Scouts. Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long also stopped by to offer opening remarks.
“It is easier to keep things as they are,” panelist Sarah Kenney-Cruz, said of the struggle of women to get their ideas heard in a business setting. Kenny-Cruz is communications manager for the Delaware Prosperity Partnership, an economic development agency.
Men also need work on being more aware of what is going around them.
Building an inclusive culture from scratch
Mac Nagaswami Macleod, a co-founder of Carvertise, Wilmington, said his company was fortunate in being able to build an inclusive culture from scratch.
Carvertise, a company that sells advertising messages on vehicles is aided by the fact that the ad industry has a high percentage of female executives.
By contrast, older companies are often wedded to the past with any change resulting in pushback.
Kenny-Cruz went on to say that women have to be specific in what they want in their business relationships.
Pedro Moore, a longtime member of the Delaware start-up and venture capital community, agreed, noting that men often need to have things spelled out both in business and personal relationships.
Have friends and co-workers list your strengths
Panelist Fred Dawson, a Wilmington-area financial advisor, said one way for men and women to move forward is to discover their strengths. This can be done by asking friends and co-workers to lists those qualities.
There was broad agreement among panelists and the audience that women don’t put themselves first at the office and defer to others, often to their own detriment. It was also pointed out that women are nurturers, a quality that can sometimes be seen as a weakness in the workplace.
Other points from attendees and panelists centered on family factors. Men and women raised by single mothers often realize the challenges. Mothers and fathers also play a role in making sure their children are equipped to stand up for themselves and do not automatically defer to bullies or others.
Never apologize unless you mean it
“Never apologize unless you mean it,” one attendee said, referring to the tendency of women to reflexively say “I’m sorry in attempting to smooth over a situation.
The oft-discussed topic of assertive men being viewed as strong, while women are often are called a term that begins with a “b.”
Also mentioned was the topic of toxic workplaces, with one attendee noting that she quit a job when a male manager told her to never mention an idea to a top executive without having it cleared first.
The attendee also mentioned situations where women do not work together and instead work to undercut one another.
Panelist Allison Garrett, a life coach and entrepreneur, said women need to “know who they are” and not back away from their true selves. She also said that women and men of color face additional challenges in the workplace.
Great Dames, which is winding up its 10th anniversary year, has engaged more than 8,500 women and girls at salons, conversations, workshops and peer mentoring groups.
