Challenges Faced by Women Leaders

Dealing with Traditional Mindsets

1. One of the main challenges women leaders face today is not bias, but having to deal with traditional mindsets in a male-dominated environment.

2. Women have come a long way from the days when most of their leadership was centered at home. Across the years, they have been working against stereotypes and traditional mindsets and as a result, the proportion of females in the Singapore workforce has doubled from 28% in 1970 to 56% in 2008 , with almost 40% holding managerial and professional positions. Despite these successes, it is never easy to completely eradicate such traditional mindsets. However, they should not be discouraged by this and must continue to persevere to pave the way for future generations of women leaders. They must capitalize on their strengths, be nimble and be open to taking up new and challenging tasks.

Balancing Family and Career

3. The second challenge that women face today is work-life balance. Although work-life balance is equally applicable to men, women leaders face the additional social pressure of having to manage their jobs with their other multiple roles as a wife, a mother and a daughter. And with this social pressure comes guilt when a woman is forced to juggle her work and the demands of her leadership role round her family.

4. Women all strike their own balance depending on their own goals, and the stage of life they are at. There's no black or white point for which demands are nicely countered. Hence, it is neither wrong for a woman to continue working even after having children nor for a graduate mother to give up her career to be a full-time housewife. These are personal decisions, a large part of which is obviously shaped by what companies do.

5. It is heartening to see more employers introducing telecommuting and flexi-work arrangements which have made work environments more conducive for working mothers today. The Government has also been actively promoting family-friendly practices in the workplace through the slew of measures introduced last year as part of Enhanced Marriage and Parenthood Package. These provide additional assistance to help women cope with their competing roles. However, at the end of the day, women have to ensure that they do not overburden themselves. They have to constantly examine what is important to them and be mindful of what is practically possible, but without short-changing themselves.

Conclusion

6. Leadership is by and large gender-neutral and has to do with one being competent, convicted about his or her role and responsibilities and being dynamic enough to inspire and lead a group of people. With education and changing mindsets, society has given women more opportunities to excel beyond the wildest dreams of our predecessors.