On Thursday we received a couple of plain looking boxes without any content indication. A few minutes later screams all-round: our latest book had finally been published! So on Friday we trotted to London’s National Portrait Gallery for a Champagne Tea celebration. This is our fourth book in four years but somehow it feels more important: it addresses key issues that will make a difference to the way we work for years to come.
Coaching Women to Lead was born from one striking observation: 90% of our senior clients were men – where had all the women gone? At the same time our leadership research showed that all major economies were facing a shortfall of potential leaders. Never shy to (at least try) to put the world to right, we embarked on a two-year project, and the result is now for all to see. It should be on Amazon by the time you read this. We are planning numerous activities around the book but I want to give you snippets relevant to a leadership blog; so here is the first one: the business case for more women in the boardroom is rock solid but few understand it. Here is a summary:
- Western European economies are becoming critically short of leadership talent and emerging economies can’t help them. The numbers are scary.
- Women are the most under-represented group at senior level even though there is good evidence that they perform well in leadership roles.
- Companies need to take the long view: a balanced gender senior workforce must be built over many years by managing the pipeline. It is not about maternity.
- With a bit of help, it is relatively easy to model women’s attrition and define company-specific solutions; but the implementation is complex and requires serious senior management commitment.
- Those companies that develop robust business cases and support them with career-stage specific policies (including coaching and leadership development) will be well placed to win the next stage in the ongoing war for talent.
So we’ll bask in the glory for a little while and then turn to the next leadership challenge. If you have an opinion, please comment here or on our Facebook page
