Gender Equality Initiatives

Women's equality matters on the other 364 days of the year too. I have a love/hate relationship with awareness days. They serve to bring well needed attention to issues and bring us together to celebrate progress. But they are often co-opted and used as a PR campaign by organisations who aren't really doing the work. But the most disappointing thing for me is often the aftermath. The feeling that when the day/month is done, the issues are done. And we move on to the next. IWD is over but 1 in 5 women will still experience sexual abuse in their lifetime. 80% of the gender pay gap is still attributed to the motherhood penalty. 137 women around the world will still be killed by a partner or family member every day. And, still, only 9 of the FTSE100 CEOs are women. For the men in my network, here are 5 things we can do to advance women's equality, beyond International Women's Day: 💡Join your organisations gender balance and parenting networks exec teams and get involved in arranging initiatives 💡 Commit to listening and learning by reading books, listening to podcasts and attending events about feminism, gender equality and the motherhood penalty 💡Assess who you are sponsoring at work and do more to amplify women's voices in your organisation 💡Donate to, and support, organisations who are doing the work, such as Pregnant Then Screwed and UN Women UK. 💡 If you are a dad, Parent Out Loud at work and be an equal parent at home. Request flexibility, take all the paternity leave available and be unapologetic about your childcare responsibilities at work. A more equal world is good for ALL of us. Let's take continue to do the work all year round. #InternationalWomensDay #GenderEquality #MotherhoodPenalty #ParentingOutLoud

“Until men can bear children and breastfeed, you can give them all the time off in the world - it’ll still be mum left holding the baby.” OK Celia, I want to take this moment to say (respectfully but firmly) that is nonsense. Yes, there are biological differences. No one’s denying that. But that’s not the point. The more important point is this: if we never give men time, space, or the expectation to step up as equal parents, then of course mum ends up holding the baby; both literally and figuratively. What enhanced paternity leave actually supports dads to do is: • Bond with their child, which is an essential foundation for long-term involvement and better outcomes for everyone. • Support their partner’s physical and emotional recovery after childbirth. • Learn how to parent independently, rather than being the backup to mum’s default. • Rewire their brain through hands-on caregiving, building empathy, confidence, and connection. This isn’t about erasing the role of mothers. It’s about sharing the load. Because here’s the real issue: 80% of the gender pay gap is driven by the motherhood penalty, and as long as fathers aren’t supported to take an equal role in caregiving, women will continue to pay the price at home and at work. That statement isn’t just outdated, it’s damaging. It limits dads, exhausts mums, and reinforces the inequities we are trying to solve. So no, it’s not enough to say “men can’t breastfeed.” They can feed. They can comfort. They can co-parent. And they can absolutely hold the baby...if we give them the time and expect them to use it. Let’s stop debating the bare minimum and start imagining what shared care really looks like. #EqualParenting #PaternityLeave #ParentingOutLoud #CareWorkIsWork #GenderEquity #CloseTheGap #ModernFatherhood #ParentalLeave

More Women on the Hiring Committee = FEWER Women Hired? A recent Management Science article reveals that gender quotas in hiring committees, introduced by the French government to close the gender gap, may be backfiring. While well-intentioned, committees with a mandated higher proportion of women actually ended up hiring fewer female candidates. The research points to a counterintuitive mechanism: men on these committees felt freer to express biases when the gender balance was "mandated," and this top-down shift made members question the organization’s true commitment to equality. Takeaway: A “Less is More” Approach to Gender Equity Quotas without a foundation of cultural change may do more harm than good. Instead of enforcing specific ratios, a more effective approach could be to let diversity develop from within. By nurturing women’s and minorities’ natural progression into decision-making roles, we can encourage an environment of organic growth and genuine inclusivity. This “less is more” strategy may mean less immediate visibility in numbers, but it can cultivate a more lasting cultural shift, reducing tokenism and minimizing bias. A truly inclusive culture develops over time, not through quotas, but through trust and authentic representation. https://lnkd.in/ekX8_vpY

International Women’s Day – where are all the women? 🤔 Gender diversity isn’t just a “nice to have” – it’s an economic game-changer. Companies with more women in leadership are 25% more likely to have above-average profitability . That’s a competitive edge 📈💡, not just good karma. And yet, women hold only ~23% of board seats globally – less than a quarter. 🤯 The gap at the top is real, and it’s not for lack of talent or ambition. So why aren’t there more women in those boardrooms and corner offices? Because no amount of celebratory social media posts will fix systemic issues overnight. Real change means tackling the root causes head-on. For example: => 🚧 Bias – conscious and unconscious biases still stall women’s advancement (from hiring to performance evaluations). => 👩👧 Unpaid care – women disproportionately juggle child care and household responsibilities, leaving less time and flexibility to climb the corporate ladder. => 🤝 Mentorship gap – fewer mentors/sponsors to pull women up to leadership roles, plus smaller professional networks due to historically male-dominated leadership. => 🏢 Broken rung – women often get stuck below executive level due to fewer promotions (the “broken rung” phenomenon), making it harder to reach the C-suite. Posting an #IWD headline or a one-day hashtag isn’t enough. Real progress requires concrete action: fair hiring and promotions, flexible work policies for work-life balance, equal parental leave, mentorship programs, and leaders actively calling out bias in the workplace. This International Women’s Day, let’s move beyond the lip service. Everyone has a role to play – as managers, colleagues, and allies – in changing the system. Mentor a woman. Advocate for diverse slates in your team. Challenge stereotypes when you hear them. Let’s make sure that in the near future, we won’t have to keep asking “Where are all the women?” – because they’ll be right there leading at the top. 💪🚀 #IWD2025 #GenderDiversity #EqualOpportunity

Snapshot of gender equality across the SDGs. 🔎 The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are intrinsically linked to gender equality beyond the explicit targets set by Goal 5. It is critical for governments and companies to adopt a gender lens in addressing the SDGs, recognizing that gender disparities intersect with broader developmental challenges. This approach is not only a matter of social justice but also an economic imperative, with clear evidence that gender equality can drive sustainable growth and benefit society as a whole. A data-centric review of the current status of gender equality within the framework of the SDGs reveals the following: ▪ Poverty: Predictions show that over 340 million women and girls will be in extreme poverty by 2030 if trends persist. To achieve the SDG's 'No Poverty' target, the pace of progress must be accelerated 26 times faster than the current rate. ▪ Hunger: Food insecurity threatens to affect one in four women and girls by 2030. Closing gender gaps in agrifood systems could potentially boost global GDP by $1 trillion. ▪ Health: Maternal mortality rates declined by a third globally between 2000 and 2020 but have not improved since 2015, indicating a need for focused health interventions. ▪ Economic Empowerment: An investment of an additional $360 billion per year is estimated to be necessary for achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment, which are vital for ending poverty and hunger. ▪ Education: Disparities persist in educational attainment, with 60% of girls versus 57% of boys completing upper secondary education, suggesting that parity in education has not yet translated into universality. ▪ Labor and Employment: The workforce participation gap is notable, with a significant disparity in earnings where women make 51 cents for every dollar that men earn. ▪ Political Representation: Despite progress, women are still underrepresented in political and managerial roles, which impacts decision-making processes and policy development. ▪ Urban Development: Without inclusive urban planning, it is estimated that 1.05 billion women and girls could be living in inadequate housing conditions by 2050. ▪ Climate Impact: Climate change is poised to disproportionately affect women and girls, with millions at risk of poverty and increased food insecurity. The data underscores the necessity for integrated strategies that address gender disparities as part of the broader sustainable development agenda. The advancement of gender equality is not only a standalone goal but also a catalyst for achieving all SDGs. Source: THE GENDER SNAPSHOT 2023 (UN) #sdgs #sdgs2030 #sustainability #sustainable #gender #genderequality #sustainabledevelopment #climatechange #genderequity

🔻 “Just Say No.” Three words that sound like power, but land like punishment... Because for women, “No” isn’t just a decision, It’s a reputation risk, a relationship gamble, and an emotional weight we carry long after the meeting ends. Women don’t lack the ability to say no. Women lack the permission to say it without consequences. 🧠 When women say no, we don’t just avoid a task. We spend the next 72 hours running mental spreadsheets: “Will I be seen as unhelpful?” “Did I just close a door?” “Will this show up in my performance review as ‘not a team player’?” Meanwhile, the system quietly does its thing: 👉 Women are asked 44% more often than men to take on the tasks no one wants. 👉 The ones that don’t lead to promotions, raises, or recognition. 👉 The “office housework” that keeps things running, and keeps us invisible. 🤔 Why does this keep happening? Because the system assumes women will say yes. Because we’re trained to value harmony over ambition. Because it’s easier for leaders to lean on “the reliable one” than to fix a broken distribution of labor. 🧾 So how do we actually break the cycle, not just in theory, but in Tuesday-at-4pm reality? 1. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗼𝗿.    If it matters to the business, put it on the record. Add it to goals, KPIs, project charters. Recognition should be measurable, not just “thank you so much, you’re a star.”     2. 𝗘𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗽.    Stop asking for “a volunteer” and watching the same women raise their hands. Rotate. Track. Make fairness the default, not convenience.     3. 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝘂𝘀𝗮𝗹.    “No, not this time,” should not require an apology, a nervous smile, or a 7-line justification. A healthy team can absorb boundaries. A dysfunctional one punishes them.     4. 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱, 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗿.    If your team’s stability rests on the unpaid emotional and operational labor of a few women, that’s not high performance. That’s quiet exploitation dressed up as “she’s amazing, she just handles everything.”     And here’s the career truth no one puts in the leadership decks for women: 💥The more your value is tied to invisible labor, the harder it is to move. If you want a real career move in 2026, up, sideways, or outside of the company, you need your time back for high-impact work, not an endless stream of “can you just…?” 📆 On 26 November at 7:30pm Singapore time, Uma and I are hosting “𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 – 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗠𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗘𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲.” We’ll get practical about three things: What to say no to, what to double down on, and how to make sure the right people actually see the difference. 👇 Join us here: https://lnkd.in/gp2qU5yD 👊 Because your next promotion should not be built on unpaid, uncredited “yes.”

Why it’s time to use reskilling to unlock women’s STEM potential: "Women make up just 28% of the global STEM workforce and only 22% of artificial intelligence (AI) professionals. Left unaddressed, this deficit will restrict innovation and economic growth during the reskilling revolution. Fostering collaboration, cultivating mentorship and delivering tailored solutions to country-specific challenges will close the STEM gender gap. Reskilling provides an opportunity to rethink how we are planning for the future of work. We must reconsider not only how we work, but who works. If the Fourth Industrial Revolution is rewriting the rules of work, now is the time to rewrite the rules of opportunity. Enrolment among women in STEM-related university programs has stagnated over the past decade, with the causes of this disparity differing across industries and regions. If left unaddressed, however, it will compound reskilling challenges that are already expected to cost G20 countries more than $11 trillion over the coming decade. Multiple inspiring stories have shown how these barriers can be broken. Ritu Karidhal, one of the 'rocket women' of the Indian Space Research Organization has inspired a rise in the number of women pursuing STEM fields in India. And she is not alone: From Esraa Tarawneh’s work on mitigating flash floods that's helped multiple communities tackle one of our century’s largest environmental threats, to Ayanna Howard’s assistive technologies that are revolutionizing accessibility for children with disabilities, women are pioneering ground-breaking innovations. Gender-diverse teams are also more profitable and productive. Companies in which female representation exceeds 30% are significantly more likely to financially outperform those with less. Gender diverse R&D teams are also more likely to introduce new innovations into the market over a two-year period. The case for closing the gender divide in STEM is clear, but it will persist without deliberate interventions. Women face a variety of barriers to accessing STEM fields and solutions must reflect this reality. In some regions, there will be a need to break stereotypes that dissuade girls from pursuing science. Elsewhere, the challenge will be infrastructure and ensuring access to resources and learning tools. Addressing these intersectional challenges demands localized strategies, which are essential for creating interventions that have enduring impact." Read more 👉 https://lnkd.in/eryKvFxp #MentorMonth #WomenInSTEM #GirlsInSTEM #STEMGems #GiveGirlsRoleModels

📉 For the third year in a row, the rate of women hired into leadership roles is declining. In 2024, women accounted for 51% of total hires, but just 33% of leadership hires. This is no longer just a matter of representation—it's a red flag for the competitiveness of our organizations. As highlighted in the Global Gender Gap Report 2025, developed with data from LinkedIn’s Economic Graph, inclusion is not just a value—it's a strategy. A strategy for innovation. For resilience. For future readiness. The full report is packed with eye-opening data—disaggregated by industry, role, geography, and income level. It reveals that economic parity is still over a century away. And that the greatest gaps remain in leadership and earnings. As AI redefines leadership, human skills like empathy, adaptability, and critical thinking will only grow more vital. Women—often with non-linear, cross-functional careers—bring precisely the kind of agile mindset this moment demands. The path forward is clear: ✅ Transparent career progression ✅ Investment in skills, not stereotypes ✅ Cultures that value people, not just positions We all have a role in shifting the trend. 📊 Explore the full report here: https://lnkd.in/djw4MrZn #GenderEquity #FutureOfWork #Leadership #AI #Inclusion #GlobalGenderGap #DiversityInTech #LinkedInEconomicGraph

It’s International Women’s Day coming up! And a business just emailed me offering 20% off solar lights to celebrate..... Because nothing says gender equality like a discount on outdoor lighting. And honestly, this sums up how most businesses approach today. They post pictures of their female staff. They put on cupcakes. But what are they actually doing? Women are still the primary caregivers. In 54% of Australian families, the mother is the main carer. Only 4% say it’s the father. Mothers are the ones making career sacrifices. 80% of UK mothers leave full-time work after having kids, moving to part-time or reducing their hours. Workplace inflexibility is forcing women out. In Australia, nearly one-third (32%) of mothers who faced discrimination related to pregnancy or parental leave quit or had to find a new job. In the UK, over half (52%) of women have left or considered leaving a job due to a lack of flexible working options. Businesses that actually offer real flexibility (remote work, part-time, hybrid) retain their female talent longer, boost productivity, and perform better financially. So, if a company isn’t offering real flexibility to support women’s careers, what exactly are they celebrating today? Because cupcakes don’t fix this.

When men step into caregiving roles, they begin to understand the systemic barriers women face daily. Globally, women perform over three times as much unpaid care work as men, totaling 12.5 billion hours every day. Valued at minimum wage, this equals $10.8 trillion annually — more than three times the size of the global tech industry (Oxfam). In countries where caregiving is shared and publicly supported, #women are freer to pursue economic and leadership opportunities. In Iceland, both mothers and fathers are entitled to six months of paid parental leave at 80% of their salary under a “use it or lose it” policy. This has led to more women returning to the workforce after maternity leave. Combined with heavily subsidized childcare, these policies help reduce the “motherhood penalty” — a major driver of gender inequality that accounts for 80% of the gender pay gap (World Economic Forum). In 2020 alone, over 2 million mothers left the workforce, contributing to a sharp drop in women’s labor force participation (ILO, via WEF). But when governments and families share the responsibility of care, women are empowered to stay in the #workforce, lead, and thrive. Transforming norms of masculinity and investing in shared caregiving are not just #gender issues — they are economic necessities. Only by sharing care can we build a future where everyone has the freedom and #opportunity to lead. #economicempowerment