How to Champion Your Female Colleagues

Some years ago I established ‘Inspiring Women’, a series of speakers designed to appeal to Warwick’s female staff. Would inviting women who were willing to share how they had become successful by sharing their stories encourage staff to apply for more senior roles? Would events create opportunities for our female staff to network across roles and departments?

The result has been a resounding ‘yes!’ with speaker events proving extremely popular with typically 80-100 (mostly) female staff in attendance. ‘Inspiring Women’ is an informal undertaking with currently four staff members volunteering to organise speakers, update the webpage and administer bookings. Events were originally in person. However, since the pandemic we have hosted them online. These take place over a lunchtime and mid-week, enabling more part time staff to participate.

I would actively encourage you/your organisation to establish ‘Inspiring Women’ events. For a modest amount of administration the benefits are well worth it. You will be actively demonstrating your commitment to supporting female employees.

10 reasons ‘Inspiring Women’ has been successful.

1. The power of informal networks. Initially there was no formal support from the University- it was an under-the-radar initiative as we sought to test out the idea. Word of mouth went a long way to developing a following early on and in helping to secure venues from supportive colleagues at no cost.
2. The advantages of patronage. Later on, when we sought funding for refreshments, endorsement from the Provost meant we were able to promote events through the internal weekly staff e mail, further increasing attendances. Her personal contacts also provided access to some very impressive speakers.
3. Only connect.  The combined contents of our respective little black books have yielded some amazing speakers. We’ve invited internal senior leaders who in turn have shared their contacts and enabled us to access some high-profile external speakers as well as alumni in senior roles.
4. Authenticity appeals. The willingness of our speakers to be frank in their story telling by sharing not just their successes but also those things that have gone less well, enable speakers to be seen as highly relatable. Many have shared personal information not just career narratives, making their stories richer.
5. No recording. We don’t record sessions due to the disclosures that can emerge so speakers feel more comfortable being candid.
6. Benefits to the speaker. Several speakers have commented that sharing their stories has been cathartic. It has provided an opportunity for them to pause and recognise their achievements in the context of their wider life experiences.
7. Staff suggestions shape events. Attendees have contributed their suggestions for speakers and  topics, enabling us to shape sessions staff see as relevant and timely.
8. Flexibility of format. Keeping the format flexible has enabled us to bring variety to events.  Some have comprised one speaker with Q & A. Others have been panel events where panellists discuss a hot topic and invite audience participation. Some speakers have focused their content on a specific area of expertise.
9. Accessibility. While events pre-pandemic were in-person and enjoyed the additional luxury of lunch and networking, virtual events have attracted greater audience numbers. As speakers don’t have to travel it’s been easier to secure their commitment and potentially broadened the range of speakers we can include.
10. It creates a virtuous circle of support. Feedback from participants has been incredibly positive. One event on the topic of how challenging women find it to avoid using the word ‘sorry’ led to a 4-day discussion and debate on the ‘Inspiring Women’ Teams channel. So much so that we are now exploring what other activities might develop alongside the ‘Inspiring Women’ speaker initiative as more staff are keen to contribute.

What can you do to contribute to support your female colleagues?

Why not create your own version of ‘Inspiring Women?’ Or seek out opportunities to be a speaker. There are still far too many male-dominated speaker events. We all have a story to tell. Why not share yours? It will raise your profile within your organisation and beyond if it’s an external event. It’s a great opportunity to share the stage and boost women’s visibility.

You may find it helpful to take a look at an earlier post on the Lifeline exercise as this provides a structure from which you can curate your story.

For examples of high-profile women telling their stories take a look at The Female Lead which contains many short video clips of inspiring women who have helped shape the world in different ways.

We rise by lifting others.   Robert Ingersoll