On International Women's Day, how can we break the bias in our workplaces, communities and/or society more broadly?
Rebecca Ho, Head of Investment - Sydney, Starcom: "When was the last time you reviewed an ad and thought about how women are being portrayed? Is the female in the ad being stereotyped, or sexualised? Have you ever challenged the media strategy on how to target female consumers?
"I must admit, I rarely associate with any of the female characters I see in advertising. Often tall and slim, heels and dress, yoga and pilates, kids running around – none of this reflects me.
"From my browsing behaviours and interests, I definitely don’t fall within a typical female targeting strategy. In fact, many marketers probably think I’m male.
"Advertising is everywhere and we know it’s powerful, which is why it’s so important to have genuine representations of women in advertising. As an industry, we need to be responsible, hold ourselves accountable, and change the way women are being portrayed. It’s important that we have these conversations with our clients, and creative and media partners, and call out gender bias and stereotyping.
"The media industry has continued to shine a spotlight on diversity and inclusion, and it’s great to see more influential and emerging female leaders around us. I for one am proud to be part of Publicis Groupe and its continued focus on addressing gender equality and inclusion.
There are also brands and categories that have embraced gender equality and genuine representations of women more progressively than others. But collectively as an industry, more action is needed and there is a still bigger job to be done to break the bias against women.
Ashleigh Bruton, Head of Social, Digitas: "Unless you’ve experienced gender bias, it’s hard to describe the frustration that comes with a woman being labelled as ‘aggressive’ or ‘emotional’ for delivering something the same way a man would, only for him to be praised as ‘confident’ and ‘passionate’. Or what it feels like when a woman finds out that the leadership team is actively avoiding ‘giving you too much responsibility’, just in case you decide to have a baby in a few years (thankfully not at Digitas!).
"While it seems like every organisation does some form of unconscious bias training which is incredibly important, and something that should be happening on a regular basis, it’s not enough.
"We are all conditioned to have bias. We’re told to judge people based on perceived danger to our own safety, and the societal demands of being male, female or whichever gender you identify with, meaning there are inherent differences in the way we are raised and treated. That’s why it’s so important for anyone in a leadership position to be questioning everything that their team is doing when it comes to these everyday experiences.
"If you’ve ever thought that a pitch or a team was too male focused and brought in a female to balance it out, the positive take out is that you are shifting from unconscious to conscious. But that is just the beginning.
"Ask yourself, why weren't women already in that position? Why aren't there enough senior women within your business to prevent the need to have this conversation in the first place? And then ask yourself what you’re doing as a leader to stop this from occurring in the next pitch or meeting.
"I feel very fortunate that the last two years of my career have been spent at an organisation where there are active processes in place, both within our agency and our wider group, that are driving these cultural shifts. From arranging regular opportunities for women to come together to share and learn from their experiences, to having mentors and external experts involved in driving these systematic changes. I do believe that as a company we are ahead of the curve. Although I look forward to the day that there isn’t a curve to be ahead of because that will mean that we’ve done the work to make sure gender bias only exists in our past.
Katie McElroy, Group Business Director, Zenith: "While it is critical that we have female role models in leadership positions, what is also key is holding them accountable; ensuring they’re having honest conversations with females of all ages – from the classroom to the workplace – about their path to leadership.
"This includes not being afraid to be vulnerable while speaking about the barriers they have faced regarding their own confidence, because self-doubt can creep in at every level.
"From both personal and professional point of view, I’ve been fortunate enough to have strong females leads around me from the onset. Yet, despite seeing these women breakdown barriers, ultimately inspiring me to do the same, self-doubt still found a way in.
"We see self-doubt manifest in a multitude of ways, but perhaps two of the most mentioned are imposter syndrome and tall poppy syndrome.
"Between feeling guilty about celebrating or even discussing our successes, and tricking ourselves into thinking we’re not good enough, we risk falling into a perpetual cycle of keeping ourselves small. We’re less likely to go after what we deserve, stand up for ourselves, or even see our own potential – ultimately, making it harder to break the bias from within.
"As numerous studies show, girls’ confidence falls dramatically between the ages of 8 and 14. Something that does not necessarily happen to boys.
"Each of us have a different journey to recapturing our confidence. Even so, it is not uncommon for this feeling of self-doubt to come back to haunt us throughout our life. It could be walking into a presentation, interviewing, or even sitting around a table with our peers discussing what the future looks like. Sometimes the smallest thing can cause us to simply lose our voice. And that’s if you’re even lucky enough to get a seat at the table.
"Changing this, and breaking the bias, starts with nurturing and encouraging confidence. I want every girl to know that nothing is out of reach.
"If you can dream it, you can do it. Because we as women in business have a responsibility to build a support system of women who build other women up. Celebrate each other at every step of the way, and hold each other accountable should you face a bias that threatens to block your way."
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