Women in Leadership
By Autumn Pierce, Health Promotion Manager
2/06/2019
Given the recent federal election, it seems timely to talk about government. The 2019 federal election saw only an incremental rise in women’s representation in Parliament while Tanya Plibersek passed on the opportunity to succeed Bill Shorten as Labor leader. In her words, she could not ‘reconcile the important responsibilities I have to my family with the additional responsibilities (of) leadership.’ There’s a lot to unpack in that statement, one disproportionately echoed by women around the world on a trajectory to professional success. However, given the glacial progress in securing a gender balance at a federal government level, let’s go back to the basics, and focus on why women in leadership is not only important but also beneficial for all.
Women’s leadership is a key pillar of gender equality. The equal participation of women and men in politics is an important condition of effective democracy and good governance, but the tangible benefits of equality extend beyond concepts of balance and inclusivity. In Canada for instance, researchers have found that as the percentage of women in government has risen, total mortality rates have declined. Interestingly, no relationship has been found between the political leanings of Canadian women in government and Canadian mortality rates. Women in government, whether they belong to left-wing, centrist or right-wing parties, do in fact advance population health and improve the lives of both women and men.
So why is this? Turns out that compared to their male counterparts, female politicians are more likely to hold progressive attitudes (with regard to issues such as civil rights, social equality and egalitarianism) and substantively advance women’s rights in areas such as pay equity, violence against women, health care and family policy. This builds on evidence that has previously suggested women initiate the four types of provincial government spending that we know are key to lowering mortality rates: medical care, preventative care, other social services and post-secondary education.
The recent findings support the idea that women in government tend to work in more collaborative and bipartisan ways than men in leadership, which is positioned as a recipe for success within the context of this research. But is it? When you think about how to most efficiently scale the leadership ladder, are collaboration and bipartisanship the first words that come to mind?
It’s no secret the traits and characteristics we typically associate with effective leadership validate stereotypical masculine attributes such as assertiveness and ambition, while simultaneously discounting stereotypical feminine traits like collaboration and cooperation as ‘soft.’ Masculine stereotypes are synonymous with leadership and this bias means a man is more likely to be regarded as a potential and competent leader, while a woman is less likely to receive encouragement to pursue a leadership role. The handful who do put themselves forward often find themselves having to emphasise traits usually associated with men to convince the gatekeepers that they have what it takes.
But we know that in itself to be a double-edged sword – asking a woman to choose between meeting the expectations placed on her as a leader, or the expectations that are assigned to her gender. Nice and polite equates to weakness while assertiveness equates to the b word (bossiness), neither of which are desired professional nor personal qualities. Women are twice as likely to be told they need more confidence when applying for a promotion or leadership role, compared to their male colleagues, but also twice as likely to be called bossy. This is what gender inequality looks like in 2019. It’s a rigged game.
But the game is changing. Look no further than across the ditch. Leaders like Jacinda Ardern are breaking down narrow ideas of what defines a true leader. By employing all things feminine – compassion, empathy, teamwork, collaboration, kindness – she is challenging the idea that men, because of their ‘inherent’ leadership qualities, are more equipped to run countries. Or to be CEOs. Or to stand for local government.
Let’s remember – the end game isn’t to eliminate differences between genders. It’s to hold authenticity in the highest regard. It’s to afford all genders an equal voice, and to equally value all expression of gender and all expressions of leadership. But to achieve this we must throw our weight behind initiatives that create pathways, such as the Victorian Local Governance Association’s campaign Local Women Leading Change. The campaign officially launched on 7 March 2019, with the vision for the October 2020 local government elections – 50% women by 2020. The federal election may be decided, but we’re not done fighting.