Two of the 21 British Columbians honoured as the Top 100 most powerful women in Canada agree that they key to helping increase the gender diversity in corporate leadership is to raise the visibility of female leaders.
“To sit with 100 amazing women, some young, some old, some in entrepreneurial startup roles through to established organizations, to see that diversity all in one place and to provide that kind of visibility to folks who may be watching the event, I think that’s a big part of the solution,” said Laurie Schultz, who is president and CEO of business software company ACL and was recently named one of the Women’s Executive Network’s (WXN) Top 100 most powerful women in Canada.
WXN honoured 21 British Columbians as part of their Top 100 on November 24, but at least one of those women is concerned that B.C. may be behind the rest of North America.
“I’ve seen a lot more women in technology leadership roles in North America than I’ve seen specifically in B.C., which is why it’s so great to see leaders like Shannon Rogers from Global Relay Communications,” said Schultz.
Schultz can’t pinpoint the reason why there seem to be fewer British Columbian women in leadership roles in the technology industry compared with other provinces and the United States. Schultz said showcasing women in leadership roles in the industry will help demonstrate to future generations that women can thrive in the sector. Schultz says events like WXN’s Top 100 most powerful women allow young women to imagine themselves in careers that they may have not previously considered.
Schultz said businesses have learned the importance of reflecting the world’s diversity in the workplace because diversity of staff leads allows companies to broaden both their intellectual capital and international market reach.
Schultz likened the difference between female and male leaders to the difference between her own son and daughter. She says women can be perfectionists while men can be good at taking risks.
“My son, who’s amazing, if he gets 79% on an exam, he just thinks that’s pretty damn good. He doesn’t let that 21% get in his way of feeling like he can do anything he wants to do,” said Schultz. “My daughter in contrast, and maybe females in general, has a really high bar. If women don’t get 93% on an exam, they’ll often kind of scream themselves out. They’ll wait until it’s perfect before they put themselves ahead.”
Karen Hardie, the first female vice-president of sales for rail tour company Rocky Mountaineer, and also one of WXN’s most powerful women, agrees that increased visibility of successful women is important. Hardie said that when women hold positions typically held by men, it helps future generations of women think about career options they may have not previously considered.
“By being the first female vice-president of sales at Rocky Mountaineer, it demonstrates to others that it’s an opportunity to pursue, whereas before women may have thought, ‘Well I’m not going to go into sales because the executives are always men,’” Hardie said. “When you as a woman and as a leader step into a new role, you demonstrate that there is actually opportunity everywhere; you just have to be brave enough and confident enough to follow that path.”
