A woman’s place is in... the workplace (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

A woman’s place is in... the workplace

9:22am Wednesday 16th March 2011 in Linda Pollard By Linda Pollard

Last Tuesday was International Women’s Day. It’s something I celebrate each year, when I reflect on women in business, in particular.

I’m no stranger to working in a male-dominated environment, but I have also seen the benefits – both quantifiable and cultural – to being part of a more gender-balanced management team in action.

The value of women in the workforce shouldn’t be considered just as a gender issue, but a serious business issue. As Lord Davies’s recent Women On Boards report points out: “A more balanced workforce has a positive effect on corporate behaviour and better decision-making occurs as a result of directors having a range of experiences and backgrounds”.

You will agree, I’m sure, that this seems like common sense, but action hasn’t necessarily followed this train of thought here in the region.

The Yorkshire Report 2008 showed that Yorkshire and Humber was seen to be lagging behind the rest of the UK by having less women on the boards of its top 150 companies, while other regions were increasing their female representatives, year on year.

And before I hear the rumble of any naysayers argue that this is just ‘fluffy feminism’, let’s talk about the bottom line… There is a direct financial impact when it comes to having a balanced workforce.

A Leeds University Business School study showed that more gender-diverse companies were 5.3 per cent more profitable than the average companies; that having at least one female director on the board appears to cut a company’s chances of going bust by 20 per cent, and that having two or three female directors lowered the chances of bankruptcy even further.

If that’s not a compelling argument in this difficult economic climate, I don’t know what is!

“Let’s hear it for the girls,” indeed.