Friday, February 25, 2011

Women in Management

The amazing group in our Women in Management Diploma program had a treat today with our incredible guest speaker, Edyta Torpy, Oceana Diversity and Inclusiveness Leader from Ernst and Young.
Some key pointers from what she said to the group:
Women need a proper road map of how they are going to get to where they are going - not some vague sense of what they want to be.
We also need to be able to ask for help if we need it. That is critical for success.
Women often have a lack of confidence - what on earth is that inner dialogue in our heads saying?? That we are not good enough??
We also often sabotage ourselves. Don't be afraid to join networks. They are simply groups of people talking about things that matter to them.
A big challenge facing women moving up is the unconscious bias of men who do not seem to see things from different perspectives. Find the right sponsors in the organisation and get them to influence others.
Know what the office politics are and what the rules of the game are - even if you decide not to play by them, that is fine - but you must know them.
And a final word - "there is a special place reserved in hell for women who won't help other women!"

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