Tackling the five challenges of women in business

This week is the 100^th anniversary of International Women’s Day. A century on and the progress of women in business remains a prickly topic.

It is a time of significant reform – changes to the Sex Discrimination Act; the introduction of Paid Parental Leave and the new ASX guidelines that make it mandatory for ASX200 companies to report on the gender ratio of senior executives and company directors, release a diversity policy and set gender targets.

However, these signs of progress cannot be looked at in isolation. Attitudes and behaviours are not necessarily changing and, in some cases, are going backwards. Significant barriers to success for women remain and not all of these roadblocks can be legislated again, as they are personal beliefs and ways of working that get in the way of success.

Our stellar panel discusses how they have avoided these traps.

1. Micro-managing

If there is one trait that these successful women are allergic to, it’s micro-managing. Abigail Forsythe, co-owner of KeepCup, a business that markets reusable coffee cups, believes that micro-managing is the antithesis of what an entrepreneur is.

“Find people you trust and let them do their jobs,” she says.

Founder of Carman’s Fine Foods Carolyn Creswell can’t afford to micro-manage. She is leading a business that just keeps growing. Her muesli is flying off the shelves at Costco by the pallet load; Carman’s is a supplier to clients including Coles, Woolworths, Qantas and Lite ‘n’ Easy and the business is moving into new export markets.

To add to the workload, Creswell has four children, including a nine-month-old baby.

“I never was a micro-manager. It is not part of my personality,” she says, adamant that she can do what she does because she has “an army” of support that she leaves to get on with it.

Creswell meanwhile, works on strategy and big picture stuff.

“I trust that everyone here is bloody good at what they do,” she says.

James Cook University Vice-Chancellor Professor Sandra Harding agrees that micro-managing is hazardous.

“If you have made the right appointments it’s detrimental.”

Harding is leading the North Queensland University that has 3,000 staff and 18,000 students across three campuses. She cautions against falling into the trap of micromanaging instead of building teams and working on strategy.

“If your view of your role as CEO is that you have to do everything then it simply can’t work.”

Of course, Harding isn’t saying that the buck still doesn’t stop with her but delegating accountability and authority are critical leadership skills to master.

TIP: Unsubscribe to the theory that if you want something done, do it yourself.

2. Fear of debt

A blanket fear of debt is a major obstacle for women in business.

“Not all debt is bad,” says chief executive officer of Dun & Bradstreet Australia and New Zealand, Christine Christian.

“Don’t be afraid to take on debt. It really is the heart of the growth of this economy.”

Christian has been in her role for a decade, overseeing 500 staff and an avalanche of financial data about local businesses. Obtaining affordable credit wisely, “good credit that you can afford to repay is liberating for women.”

Carolyn Creswell couldn’t get a loan when she started Carman’s.

“Now I have banks wanting to schmooze me and invite me out to dinner,” she says. Creswell has always worked and those early experiences have made her conscious of the value of every dollar.

“I was on the checkout at Coles the moment I could work,” she says, Early on, she developed the habit of saving up for things she wanted to buy. She owns her office premises and she is the kind of person who’d prefer to buy a good second-hand forklift rather than renting the latest whizz bang model. She is not averse to debt, particularly for property investment, but is not the person who is going to take out a big loan to fund an advertising campaign.

Just as women can be averse to debt, there is also the issue of dealing with bad debtors. Christian says so many Australian business owners are terrible at calling in overdue debts for fear of losing customers.

“Women are even worse,” she says. “Women need to get a lot more liberated and assert themselves. They are entitled to being paid.”

For women who aren’t prepared to be assertive and confident about chasing their overdue debts, says Christian: “You’ll get what you deserve.”

TIP: Debt is not the enemy.

3. Fear of thinking big

A 2011 Institute of Leadership and Management of 3,000 UK executives has found that women managers have lower levels of ambition and confidence than their male counterparts. The survey reports that only 30% of women under the age of 30 expect to become senior managers, compared with 45 per cent of men. Perhaps part of the problem is fear of failure.

“Fear can be overwhelming and can really take over the decision-making process,” says chief executive of telco PacNet Australia Deborah Homewood. “Then you become irrational.”

“Too many women default to roles that are in the background because they are not prepared to be seen making mistakes,” says Christine Christian. This means women opt for comfortable roles over positions “that will test their mettle”.

“It is not going to happen any other way, no one is going to drop it in your lap.”

All the panelists for this feature talked at length about taking risks and taking on big roles. Sandra Harding talks about “head on the desk moments” when she has overwhelmed, but all these women have clear strategies to cut through this mindset and focus on what matters.