On March 8, we are invited to think about those women who not only leave their mark, but also inspire us: women who offer support, who provide support and mentoring, empowering others to make bold decisions and grow in their professional development.
This day also gives us the opportunity to reflect on effective initiatives that allow us to advance gender equality, and thus create a fairer, more diverse and equitable world. Therefore, today I would like to reflect especially on the power and importance of creating alliances.
Many times in my personal and professional life I have experienced the benefits of creating support networks and solid collaboration to promote gender equality and contribute to a more diverse and inclusive society and organization, where men and women act as mentors and allies for the achievement of this objective.
Various strategies and Alliance Programs are usually implemented in organizations: mentoring programs, sponsorship programs, affinity groups (ERG), involvement groups, Diversity and Inclusion Committees. To do this, we must consider that in gender equality, true alliance implies active and committed collaboration to support women in all facets of life and work and create change that is lasting and sustainable.
Thus, we can generate alliance programs exclusively between women and some others where men also get involved and participate (each option has pros and cons which we will analyze on another occasion). However, I believe that involving men in ally programs makes them part of this transformation, involved, and able to empathize with certain unquestionable challenges that arise in the professional development of women. Some of the concrete alliance actions that men can collaborate with to actively promote gender equality and equity in organizations are, for example, giving credit to women for their ideas and contributions, advocating for the promotion of women or report gender discrimination within the organization.
A recent study by the Integrating Women Leaders Foundation has exposed a significant gap in the perception between men and women about the effectiveness of men as allies in the workplace. That is, despite increasing awareness of gender equality, many women still perceive a lack of active engagement on the part of their male colleagues.
This study, however, yields another promising result: alliance programming can make a difference if men participate. That is, it gives us a kick to understand how we can move from awareness to action.
To encourage alliance actions, it is necessary to promote participation in alliance programs, to the point of making it mandatory. According to the study cited, men who participate in these programs are not only more aware of inequalities, but also of the importance of acting to overcome them. Additionally, men who participated in alliance programs are shown to be more likely to recognize gender-biased behaviors that frequently occur in the workplace (e.g., interruptions, questioning a woman’s experience, not giving her credit for their contributions), with respect to men who had not participated in the programs.
Participation in these programs will require making the alliance an organizational value and priority, ensuring that leaders can clearly communicate its importance and the benefits of taking part. Additionally, it is essential to actively listen and collaborate, demonstrating understanding and taking meaningful action, in conjunction with Diversity and Inclusion (DEI) and Affinity Group (ERG) leaders.
Creating a community of allies that share experiences, challenges and grow together allows us to learn from mistakes and develop skills to support women in our organizations.
By closing the perception gap, we can create a work environment where alliances for gender equality – and different underrepresented groups – are a tangible reality, leading our organizations and society towards a more inclusive, equitable and prosperous future.
Lawyer
Source: Ambito
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