Women can’t lean in and thrive if the culture is not inclusive

It has been five years since the book Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg came out and became a best seller. After years of the needle not moving much, it was time for a solution, for some great advice on what women could do to achieve their goals, to become leaders within organizations and Ms. Sandberg published a book with stories and ideas on what could be done to achieve the goal.
You have to take the initiative, you have to ask, you need to have the uncomfortable conversation, you need to lead with your own agenda. And I think more and more women are doing this, and the new generation of women coming into the workforce might be better prepared to do these things. However, the challenges are still present. The biggest challenge is the culture of the organizations, the companies, the political system, and society.
In order for women to lead and move into the top jobs that they aspire to, there needs to be a support system that welcomes their leadership. There needs to be a culture that is inclusive. Women alone can’t do it, I am sorry to say. The fact is that we can try to lean in more and more, but if the walls are still set on the old foundation, not much progress will be made. Until the current leadership is willing to make changes that will ensure that the women who are willing, ready, and can lead do, we will not see the needle shift.
Willingness to make the necessary changes by those in charge is fundamental. Those in charge—and it is usually still men—have to make the decision that they themselves are now wanting to lead in the issue of women in leadership. This move does make business sense: there have been many studies that prove that organizations have better results when there is gender balance in the decision-making teams.
However, the decision to learn has to be present, as well as the willingness to say that it is time to try something different, even though it might not be as comfortable as the way things have been done up to now. So willingness to step out of the status quo and learn more about working alongside women is fundamental. And also giving the teams time to learn, adapt, and correct along the way.
My recommendation is more education and coaching for the top executives who can influence the decisions that are being made with regards to women. I believe that there are many male leaders who still don’t appreciate the benefit of having more women in decision-making roles. And they also are not aware of the many challenges that women face getting those roles. The benefits of having greater gender diversity in all levels of an organization are many. Here are some key ones:
• Strategies based on insights from a diverse population will lead to better results in achieving the desired objectives. This is specially true if there is a lack of representation from the target audience in your team
• Different styles and preferences represented in decision-making groups lead to better balanced decisions
To achieve the better results, you do need diversity—the representation—and you need inclusion—the how to make the diversity work at its best. So men, accept the challenge: help women who are leaders achieve their goals, and you yourself will enjoy better results for your own organizations. And I would love to show you how. As a knowledgeable executive and as an executive coach, I have the experience and the training to help you in this journey.
Are you ready to be the best inclusive leader possible? I am ready to coach you!