Confidence is key

A longstanding female colleague recently returned from a week-long premium leadership program in Asia. Paid for by her company, it was an obvious investment in her as “high value talent” given her track record of consistent over-achievement.

But what she said next is a distress signal for all ASX-listed chief executives. “Now I have to stand in front of the board and tell them what I learnt. Andrea — I’m petrified. How can I get out of it?’’ She was serious. Despite her MA degree, high-end network and standout resume, she panicked at the suggestion of a minor public appearance.

This statement highlights a primary problem for women and an often overlooked part of an organisational strategy to reach gender targets. In addition to leadership courses and mentoring programs, there must also be an equal investment in the ability for women to communicate with authority and true confidence.

In my experience as a corporate communication adviser, I constantly see that women are crippled by a lack of confidence driven by a lack of awareness about how to develop it in the first place.

In most cases, women unconsciously undermine their own authority by the way they speak, present and interact with colleagues, clients and the chief executive. They have no formal training to help them understand how their voice, body language and use of language can sell themselves well short of a positive impression. They also have no techniques to frame conversations with difficult colleagues, few basic presentation skills or tools to turn around situations which leave them feeling as though they have been dismissed or been a victim of unconscious gender bias.

For women to not just survive but thrive at work, these are mandatory requirements.

Often women have no idea that even a minor tilt of the head when speaking to the CEO indicates self-doubt. This is one of 15 common habits that affect our ability to influence stakeholders and once they are identified, they are easily corrected.

There is no doubt that a diverse leadership team drives greater results. A 2012 Credit Suisse study that examined the performance of 2360 companies globally over six years found that, on average, it would have been better to invest with corporates that have women on their management boards. It also found that companies with one or more women on the board delivered higher average returns on equity, lower gearing and better average growth.

The corporate analysis group, McKinsey, has also done extensive work on the relationship between an organisational structure and profit margin and the number of women who are managers at the same top tier companies.

It found that companies around the world with the highest scores on leadership, direction, accountability and motivation are likely to have more women in leadership positions than their lower ranking counterparts. As Ernst and Young reported in June, there are other studies (Catalyst, Genderworx) that indicate when more than three women are on boards, improvements are reported in accountability, transparency and ethical practice.

These are compelling cases for boards to invest in women in leadership.

And whether imposed or self-determined, corporate Australia’s strategy to hit targets for female leadership needs to take account of what women need too. Any path to leadership must address the core confidence that women have about themselves, so those like my longstanding colleague can stand in front of the board and talk with authority — and have the confidence to “lean in”.

This article was originally published on  The Australian 2nd July Read the original article