Do you have a Network Perspective? The Importance of Connection.

There are never a shortage of opportunities to meet people, establish new contacts or nurture and maintain existing networks. Certainly on The Bickley Blog, we frequently share a large number of great events being organised by and held for women in leadership each month.

Most of us know that developing relationships is important professionally. We often hear the phrase "it's not what you know, it's who you know"... that gets things done, opens the door to that job you were looking for...

But do you have a Network Perspective?

A recently released paper from The Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) - Developing Network Perspective - might reveal the answer. 

According to CCL, someone with a network perspective is able to look beyond a formal organisational chart or formal titles. They can see and understand the significance of the informal and invisible structures that support the formal organisation.

They understand the importance of relationships and are aware that often the real influencers are those without the senior title.

They understand that the key to success is that "everything is, or will be, connected" (CCL 2013).

Why is having a Network Perspective important? There are seven key reasons:

1. Connections matter - connections provide opportunities and create constraints.
2. Work often happens through informal channels - particularly in flat, team-based and agile work environments
3. Leadership occurs through relationships
4. Successful leaders develop networks of strong, diverse relationships - purposeful (strategic) and authentic networking is the key
5. Network knowledge is an asset in change efforts - this is critical in cultural transformation
6. Innovation networks can be identified and supported
7. The most important challenges leaders face today are interdependent - complex challenges are best address by groups, working collaboratively, not by indiviudals in isolation.

As a leader, how can you develop a this perspective? How do you get it if you don't have it?

1. To begin with, improve your understanding of how your organisation really works. How does  information flow? Who are the influential people?
2. Understand and strengthen your personal network. Is yours a network of convenience or have you built it with purpose?
3. Finally, build connections with those who offer "support, energy, information, feedback and diverse and challenging viewpoints?" (CCL 2013)

Of course, this perspective extends beyond your individual workplace, and into your broader industry, into the social and political realm. 

We challenge you to think about this before your next function! What shape is your network in?  Which relationships do you need to establish and nurture to achieve your plans and goals? Who are the key influencers in your space?

Drop us a line by email or facebook, or leave a comment below to let us know how you went.

To read the full paper on Developing a Network Perspective, visit the CCL webpage: http://www.ccl.org/leadership/pdf/research/developingNetworkPerspective.pdf

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2012 Women's Report Card released - Government of Western Australia

The 2012 Women's Report Card was recently released by the Hon Robyn McSweeney, Minister for Women's Interests. Developed by the Department for Communities, the report card details the statistical status of Western Australian women in a range of areas including leadership, safety and justice, economic independence and health and wellbeing. It is the fourth in the series which has measured women's progress since 2004.

The advancement of women into leadership positions continues to show very slow progress for the highest level positions across ASX 200 companies, universities public sector and local government. the report also highlights the increasing difference between the Western Australian and the total Australian gender pay gap with Western Australia currently standing at a 27.8% gap in 2011, compared with a national figure of 17.5%.

The report is available online and in hard copy. It aims to provide both general information and enable individuals and organisations to take advantage of the information and statistics to assist in policy and service delivery work. The full series of Women'e Report Cards are available to download from the Women's Interest section of the Department for Communities website. If you would like further information on the 2012 Women's Report Card, or to order hard copies, please contact the Department for Communities on (08)6551 8700 or by email: info@communities.wa.gov.au

Leadership in the Community Sector - Looking beyond the numbers

A recent report released by ACOSS (Australian Council of Social Service) - Reflecting gender diversity: an analysis of gender diversity in the leadership of the community sector - showed that the sector leads the way in workplace gender equity, with women in the sector make up 60 per cent of senior management and hold over 50 per cent of board director roles.

Looking beyond these numbers, the report details some interesting findings:

• The comparatively higher representation of women in senior roles is occurring mainly in smaller organisations
• Gender equity on boards does occur, but not until women make up 95% of the staff of the organisation
• High representation of women in the workforce does not automatically lead to equality of opportunity for women

Bickley Blog reader Anne, a member of the not for profit community, sent us in her views on the report:

"It was pleasing to note a recent report that found that the not for profit community welfare sector is a leader in promoting women to boards and senior management positions.  This is in contrast to other sectors where leadership positions for most women remain a distant reality.

As a long time worker in the not for profit community welfare sector I would have to comment that my experience is that organisations would run for years with women at the helm, often as volunteers.  As the organisation grew and became more significant senior roles would receive funding and would become attractive as a permanent position.  It was not unusual then, after the position was advertised, that a man would be appointed.  

I am aware that today many not for profit community welfare organsiations are still run on a voluntary basis by women.  These women manage budgets, co-ordinate services, roster volunteers and report to a Board of Management.  They often also act as the receptionist! They are unsung heroes.

It is to be hoped that there is a serious trend for women to be able to aspire to paid leadership roles in the not for profit sector.  This would, at one level pay tribute to all those women who over the years have undertaken those roles as volunteers.

It would also be interesting to know how many women on boards in the not for profit sector are receiving realistic sitting fees."

Thanks Anne, for your thoughts! We would love to hear from other readers on this - have you worked in the not for profit community? What are your experiences?  Are you one of the "unsung heroes" leading in a voluntary capacity?  Post on our facebook, tweet us on twitter or leave a comment below.

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In the News - Women and Leadership

Top stories in the news this week...

Women in Defence

From the DCA - Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick, released the AHRC's report of the Review into the TReatment of Women in the Australian Defence Force. Amongst the 21 recommendations were those related to diversity of leadership and the responsibility of Defence leadership to deliver and ensure effective reform. Find the full report here

Women on Boards


Women on Boards announced this week that they will be launching in the UK. Successful established in Australia, WoB will be holding launch events in London, Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham and Edinburgh in September and October of this year. If you are in the UK and would like to get involved, find more information here.

Women in Leadership

The Sydney Morning Herald reports on the visit of the UN Women Director - Michelle Bachelet - to Canberra, Australia this week.  Ms Bachelet commended and thanked the Australian government's leadership and commitment to improving the lives of women throughout the world.  The government has donated A$6.7 to UN Women for work with victims of domestic violence and revenge attacks in developing countries. For more, go here.

Women on Boards - Positive Findings, an International Perspective

Reports recently released from the Women on Boards space have a positive message...

From Australia: The Reibey Institute have delivered their second research note on Women Leaders in ASX 500 companies.  The report examines women’s representation on ASX 500 boards as of 30 June 2011, and the story is a positive one.

Key findings of the report are:

• Women hold 9.5% of board position on ASX 500 boards, up from 7.2% in 2010.
• 233 of 500 (47%) of companies have a woman on the board.
• There are 235 unique women holding 307 board positions.
• 20% of female directors serve on more than one board, as compared to 12% of male directors.
• There has been a marked increase in women on ASX 400-500 boards over the 2010/11 financial year.

The report clearly indicates the benefit of having women on company boards – companies with women on their boards deliver a significantly higher return on investment (ROE) than those without women (9.2%  vs 0.5% 5 year ROE).

To read the full report – go to The Reibey Institute: http://www.reibeyinstitute.org.au/research/australian-resources/

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From the World Bank Global Corporate Governance Forum: The GCGF have released “Women on Boards: A Conversation with Male Directors” presenting a fresh perspective to the gender diversity on boards debate.  The publication offers series of conversations with a 15 male directors from around the world on how they perceive the presence and absence of women on boards.

Some of the suggestions made by these directors on increasing the number of women on boards include:

• Increasing transparency from companies on how they appoint board members.
• Greater awareness from boards and head hunters about the available talent pool.
• Education to create a better understanding of the importance and value of diversity.
• Disclosure standards by companies regarding diversity practices and representation of women through companies.
• Incentives and recognition for companies, rather than quotas, and “naming and shaming” of companies with poor diversity performance.
• Supporting corporate women in balancing family lives while pursuing corporate careers.
• Encouraging women to apply for board positions.

The conversations are overwhelmingly positive, with strong support from the CEOs, Chairpersons and Directors interviewed for board diversity. 

For the full report - visit the Global Corporate Governance Forum

“It’s who you know” - Networks and Sponsors: Savvy ways to get ahead

Networks and sponsors are hot topics in our inbox at the moment and are really reminding us of the importance of other people to our career satisfaction and progress.

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In a recent article "Managing Yourself: A recent article “Managing Yourself: A Smarter Way to Network”, authors Rob Cross and Robert Thomas speak of the importance of networks in helping with career success. Importantly, their research suggests that these networks should have certain features to be effective.  They should be balanced  - with connections that “promote career advancement and those that promote engagement and satisfaction”.  Effective networks are about quality of connection rather than quantity of connection, and should contain relationships that assist in gaining and broadening experience and learning new skills, but also help with finding purpose and balance.  The structure of the network is also key - with diverse relationships that cross hierarchy, organisations, functions and geographical location. 

According to Cross and Thomas, the most satisfied and successful leaders have the following people in their networks:

1. People who provide personal support, such as colleagues who help them get back on track when they’re having a bad day or friends with whom they can just be themselves.
2. People who add a sense of purpose, such as bosses and customers who validate their work, and family members and other stakeholders who show them work has a broader meaning.
3. People who promote their work/life balance, holding them accountable for activities that improve their physical health, mental engagement or spiritual well-being.

Some food for thought - do you have these people in your network? If not, where can you find them?

Earlier this year, a new report “The Sponsor Effect: Breaking Though the Last Glass Ceiling” was released by Sylvia Hewlett and her team at Centre for Work-Life Policy.  The “sponsor” relationship is important to the advancement to upper levels of an organisation and the study found that women do not maximise this relationship - either they underestimate the importance of it, or they fail to cultivate it. Many women in the study felt that getting ahead on who you know is a “dirty tactic” and the way to the top is through hard work.Extending beyond the mentor relationship, sponsors can have a big impact on your career and work satisfaction.

So what do sponsors do? Hewlett’s research found that sponsors:

• Advocate for your next promotion
• Call in favours for you
• Expand your perception of what you can do
• Make connections to senior leaders

And how do you find one?

Connecting with a sponsor can happen through being identified as a “protege” or a high potential, by catching the eye of an executive. However, Hewlett recommends that those aspiring to senior roles should take a proactive approach and identify and actively cultivate a sponsor relationship and routinely “ask for career guidance, feedback and stretch assignments”.

Do you have a sponsor?  If not, is there someone in your organisation that you could cultivate a sponsor relationship with?

Source: "The Relationship You Need to Get Right" - HBR Magazine October 2011
Source: “The Sponsor Effect: Breaking Though the Last Glass Ceiling” - Center for Work-Life Policy

At a Stand Still - 2010 EOWA Australian Census of Women in Leadership

The 2010 Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA) Australian Census of Women in Leadership was released yesterday. The census measures the number of women holding Board Directorships and occupying CEO and Executive Management roles in the top 200 ASX listed companies. First conducted in 2002, the census is repeated every two years.

The fifth iteration of the census showed minimal change in measures since the previous release in 2008, and since its inception in 2002. Australian businesses have failed to increase the representation of women in corporate positions of authority and influence during the past decade.

Highlight findings of this census include:

Board Directors

• Women chair five ASX 200 boards and hold 8.4% of ASX 200 board directorships in 2010, compared with 8.3% in 2008.
• There are four additional women holding board seats in 2010 (93 individual women, up from 89 in 2008).
• 54% of ASX 200 companies do not have a single woman on their board. This has increased from 51% in 2008.
• The industry groups with the highest percentage of women Board Directors are:
  o Insurance
  o Consumer Services
  o Banks
  o Software & Services

Executive Management

• Women hold six CEO positions in 2010, compared with four positions in 2008. That’s 194 men in CEO positions.
• Women hold 8% of key Executive Management Personnel positions in 2010, compared to 7% in 2008.
• 61.9% of ASX200 companies do not have a single woman in a key Executive Management Personnel position. This has improved from 65.1% in 2008.
• Women’s representation in line positions is 4.1%, with no change since 2008. Line experience is widely considered to be essential for rising to the top corporate positions.

Australia trails the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and South Africa in these measures.

In the introduction to the report, Acting Director of EOWA Mairi Steele comments that “the census clearly shows that nothing significant has occurred in Australian business culture in the past eight years to address the systemic inequality” that exists within corporate Australia.

And nor is it likely until more ‘persuasive’ measures are implemented and enforced.

As previously highlighted on the Bickley Blog, the ASX have made some welcome changes to their corporate governance principles that will require companies to report the number of women in these senior roles, to set targets and report on annual progress. In a media release, Sex Discrimination Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick indicated that that she was hopeful that such initiatives would deliver an improved outcome for women by the time of the next census in 2012. The Commissioner went on to state that “if the 2012 Census does not reveal a dramatic increase in the number of women in Board Director and Chair positions and in executive management positions, I would suggest we need to consider putting stronger initiatives in place.”

The Bickley Bloggers look forward to a positive impact of the ASX guidelines and to the taking of action should they not deliver the desired outcomes!

No Surprises! The Gender Pay Gap

No surprises!
A recent OECD report showed not unsurprisingly that women in OECD countries earn 18% less than men and only around one-third of managerial positions are held by women. This data won’t surprise too many but it does make you wonder what data is needed before we actually start to see concerted efforts to close the gender pay gap and to increase the number of women in senior decision making roles. It is clear that the data on its own doesn’t create a compelling case for change. The report is available at this link.

Closing the gender pay gap
Another case of sex discrimination – maybe we need more cases like this one to address the gender pay gap!!!

Around 50 female workers at Birmingham City Council in the UK (the UK’s largest local authority) have been told by the Employment Tribunal that their claims of discrimination are valid – but over 4000 more women could be affected by the ruling. The cases relate to bonuses or rather the lack of bonuses paid to the women. Men who were on the same pay grade had earned bonuses up to 160% of their basic pay - the women didn’t get bonuses! It could cost the Council 600 million pounds in back pay. Now that would be money well spent!!!

Some interesting reports this week
Goldman Sachs and JB Were have recently released a report titled Australia’s Hidden Resource: the Economic Case for Increasing Female Participation. The report highlights (again!) that women are an underutilised and undervalued resource in the Australian labour market and are overrepresented in the caring professions and underrepresented in science and technology. The report also comments on the persistence of the gender pay gap across a range of industry sectors. To download the full report, click here.

Our colleague Therese alerted us to the Productivity Commission (2005), “Economic Implications of an Ageing Australia, Research Report”, Canberra which reached similar conclusions. The full report can be downloaded from the Productivity Commission site. Again it’s a case of the data is there (and has been for some time) but change isn’t happening!!! So if the business case doesn’t appear to be winning the hearts and minds of those in senior decision making roles – what will? We are interested in your thoughts of what is needed now to make change happen. Please feel free to leave a comment or drop us a line: mbc@gsb.curtin.edu.au

Women on Boards: What should Boards and Governments do?

The Maureen Bickley Centre for Women in Leadership is hosting a roundtable with senior managers and board members on this issue in the first week of May. What advice should be given to Boards and to the Government if we are serious about increasing the number of women on corporate, not for profit and government boards?

There has been considerable press in Australia over the past few months regarding the lack of women on the country’s top listed boards. The 2008 Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA) Census (the full report is available at the EOWA website) showed that the very modest gains that had been made were disappearing. Perhaps even more disturbing is the data from Western Australia where women comprise 2% of board positions!!!

Maybe it’s not surprising given the action by other countries such as Norway, Spain, France, the UK and the US that we are starting to focus on women’s underrepresentation at senior and board level. The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) announced in a media release last December that it intended to expand its corporate governance principles so that organisations listed on the ASX would be required to report on the diversity composition of their board in their annual reports and any action they are taken to improve women’s representation.

A further media release (available here) on 18 April this year detailed the establishment of a leadership group of male CEOs and Chairmen who have committed to using their collective influence and personal commitment to progress gender equality in the Australian corporate sector. The CEOs and Chairmen are drawn from a wide range of Australian companies and are working with the Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick. The group was formed in response to the ASX Corporate Governance Council recommendations on diversity and comprises:

* Glen Boreham, Managing Director, IBM Australia and New Zealand

* Gordon Cairns, Non-Executive Director, Westpac and Origin Energy Ltd

* Robert Elstone, Managing Director and CEO, Australian Securities Exchange

* Stephen Fitzgerald, Co-CEO and Managing Director, Goldman Sachs JBWere

* Michael Luscombe, Managing Director and CEO, Woolworths Ltd

* Kevin McCann, Chair, non-Executive Director of various Boards including Origin Energy Ltd, Macquarie Bank Ltd and Australian Institute of Company Directors

* Stephen Roberts, CEO of the Citi Institutional Clients Group, Australia and New Zealand

* Giam Swiegers, CEO, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, Australia

* David Thodey, Managing Director and CEO, Telstra Ltd.

Coinciding with the ASX focus on women on boards is the newly launched Australian Institute of Company Directors mentoring program for women aspiring to board appointments. The initial twelve month program will involve 56 chairmen and senior directors who have agreed to mentor 63 women with an aim of helping the women connect with key business leaders and to learn more about how boards operate and how new board members are selected. More information including the list of mentors is available at the AICD website.

These initiatives are great to see but we do wonder whether is it is a case of women needing further support to ensure that they are board ready or is it that we have plenty of women who would relish the opportunity to become a board member and they are in fact ‘bored – and ready’ for this next challenge? What do you think?

For reports and thought-provoking research on women on boards see:

* Cranfield University’s Centre for International Leaders for reports on the UK, including 100 Women to Watch. Available on-line at the Cranfield University website.

* Catalyst for reports on the US and Canada.

* European Professional Women’s Network

Some interesting books on women on boards:

Doug Branson who is a Visiting Professor at the University of Washington and also teaches Corporate Governance at the University of Melbourne has written two books on this issue:

No Seat at the Table – How Governance and Law Keep Women Off Boards of Directors (NYU Press)

The Last Male Bastion - Gender and the CEO Suite at America's Public Companies (Routledge).


Another book is Women On Corporate Boards Of Directors: International Research and Practice
edited by Susan Vinicome and Val Singh at the International Centre for Women Leaders, Cranfield School of Management, Cranfield University, UK; Ronald J. Burke at the Schulich School of Business, York University, Canada; Diana Bilimoria at Case Western Reserve University, US and Morten Huse at the Norwegian School of Management, Norway.

(Image sources: playtable.jp and e-elgar.co.uk)

New Books and Recent Reports

Some newly published books and recently released reports have caught our eyes at the Maureen Bickley Centre...

New Books
I was delighted to see that Fremantle Arts Centre Press has just published Lekkie Hopkins (a colleague from my previous university) and Lynn Roarty’s book about Pat Giles.


Pat Giles is known to many in Australia for her commitment to improving the lives of the disadvantaged. Among her many contributions and achievements she was elected as an Australian Labour Party Senator a role she held for twelve years. She was also an organiser with the Hospital Employees Union of Western Australia, a founding member and inaugural convener of the Women's Electoral Lobby (WEL) in Western Australia, the first woman on the executive of the West Australian Trades and Labour Council, Chairperson of the first Australian Council of Trade Unions Women's Committee and completed three terms as President of the International Alliance of Women.

Recently Released Reports
Three recently released reports caught our attention. The first is Changing Cultures Changing Attitudes - A National Survey on Community Attitudes to Violence Against Women released on April 7, 2010 by the Hon Tanya Plibersek, MP, Federal Minister for the Status of Women. Although the report noted some gains in that attitudes about violence against women are changing for the better significant challenges remain and violence against women remains a major issue. The full report is available here. I also think we need more research to show the impact of violence on women’s work and their careers. Let us know if you are aware of research being undertaken in this area or any relevant reports that have been released.

A second major report is Women in Science in Australia: Maximising Productivity, Diversity and Innovation by Professor Sharon Bell which was released by the Federation of Australian Scientific and Technological Societies in October 2009. The report shows that women’s progress in science over the past 15 years has stalled despite improvements in their participation rates at undergraduate and post graduate levels. The report highlighted persistent structural barriers to women in senior positions in science and technology, female professional scientists earning less than their male counterparts and harassment and discrimination continue to be major issues. The full report is available through the FAST website. This report is particularly timely given Australia’s focus on skill and labour shortages. However, one wonders how many research organisations and funding agencies will rise to the author’s challenge to change their practices including the need for improved flexibility and a range of career paths that have as a central focus the attraction and retention of women. It will be an interesting space to monitor for change!!

The third report that captured our attention (perhaps no surprise we are located in a graduate school that has an MBA as one of its major programs) was Catalyst’s report Pipeline’s Broken Promises - a second report from their longitudinal project, The Promise of Future Leadership: A Research Program on Highly Talented Employees in the Pipeline.

The project surveys graduates of leading business schools in the US, Canada, Europe, and Asia and highlights the differences in women's and men's career experiences and satisfaction. It challenges the myth that women just haven’t been in the pipeline long enough and that this is what explains their absence in senior roles and the persistence of the gender pay gap. Of concern for women is that despite women’s increased participation in education and employment inequality remains entrenched and that women from elite MBA programs lagged men in terms of career advancement and salary from their first appointment following graduation. Perhaps not surprisingly women were also less satisfied with their careers. The full report is available from the Catalyst website. What are your thoughts on how organisations and for that matter universities teaching MBA programs might address this issue of gender inequality?