I am sure like me you followed International Women’s Day last week on 8 March on social and mainstream media as it launched its #PushForProgress campaign, aimed at encouraging global society to think, act and be gender inclusive. This year’s commemorative day looked to challenge stereotypes and bias, and to increase the positive visibility of women in the workplace. So here’s the challenge - the statistics being quoted by the IWD campaign bemoaned the fact that too few women in the world’s listed companies occupy seats in the boardroom and that this situation is likely to continue for many more years to come. As a result, if we are looking for visible women role-models in business that can help to drive real change through example, then surely we are focusing attention in the wrong place. Shouldn’t we instead be celebrating the game-changing women entrepreneurs who are not content simply to wait around for corporate boardrooms to change, but instead are building major companies and brands themselves - and disrupting established business and industry sectors in the process. Now surely that is a way to #PushForProgress.
Have yourself an inspired entrepreneurial day! - Melanie