C-suite still very much a ‘boys’ club’, says female group COO

However, while positive developments in the public and private sectors are being witnessed, women are still fighting for their seat on the leadership table, according to Susy Aryani Singgih, group COO and group general counsel at Lootah Holding in the UAE.

Earlier this year, the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) mandated all listed firms in the country to have at least one female member on their board of directors, accelerating the rise of female representation on company boards in the UAE.

The UAE has also passed more than 20 legislative reforms over the past three years, according to the UAE’s Gender Balance Council, which aims to enhance women’s economic participation.

With that, the UAE ranked first in the Gulf region, followed by Saudi Arabia, according to the World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law (WBL) Report, which measures global progress towards gender equality in the law.

But according to a Harvard Business Review research, only 4.9 percent of Fortune 500 CEOs and 2 percent of S&P 500 CEOs are women, and those numbers are declining globally.

“In the last 16 years, I have seen only a slight shift. In most sectors, it’s still very much a “boys’ club”, and you don’t find many women in key leadership and executive roles, which is a shame,” said Singgih, in an interview with Arabian Business. 

And diversity in the workplace is imperative, believes Singgih, stating: “Any form of diversity, I believe, can be beneficial for a business as it provides multiple perspectives.”

“This leads to an increase in creativity and innovation.  More importantly, it permits us to adopt a broader view and create a work environment that embraces an abundance mind set,” she added.

A recent report by McKinsey & Co, revealed companies with greater gender diversity are 25 percent more likely to achieve above-average profitability than companies with less.

Inclusivity stretches beyond inclusion of women in the workplace, according to Singgih, and embraces the inclusion of different cultures, nationalities, experiences, age groups and those who are physically challenged. 

With that, a disconnect still exists between the growing commitment of organisations to racial equity and the lack of improvement witnessed in promoting women of colour.

“The inclusion of women should not even be a topic of discussion in 2021…it’s a non-topic because it shouldn’t even be on the company’s agenda.  It should instead be part of any organisation’s DNA,” stressed Singgih.

“There seems to be a glass ceiling that women are just unable to break, especially women of minority,” she added.

With that, several outdated stigmas continue to surround women in leadership positions. She explained: “If a woman is a mother, there is fear that she will not be able to fulfil her role as well as a male counterpart as she has the added stress of raising a family.” 

“The stigma is that if you are a successful business leader, you can’t possibly be a good mother.  This is not always the case. Despite my success as a female executive leader, I can clearly say that I am a very present and hands-on mother,” she added.

With employed mothers working a “double shift”, struggling to strike a balance between their personal and work lives, mothers are considering downshifting their career or leaving the workforce, with a majority citing childcare responsibilities as a primary reason, according to McKinsey & Co’s ‘Women in the Workplace 2021’ report.

“Then there is a stigma that effective and assertive women are overly emotional and temperamental…what women bring to the table is a different, nuanced perspective, and studies have shown that irrespective of the fact that we hold equal qualifications and skillsets, we thrive when it comes to empathy, which is a critical leadership trait,” she said.

“There is finally the biggest misperception that female leaders are more risk-adverse and, consequently, don’t pursue growth and risk at a similar pace to a male leader.  If anything, we should be recognised for our ability to make calculated assessments and judgment,” she added.

Change is slow, but is coming

As businesses continue to strengthen their stance on gender equality and inclusivity in the workplace, a major organisational culture shift and the continuance of work flexibility will be needed to provide women with the opportunity to demonstrate their full capabilities, shared Singgih.

“The predetermined belief that women will be unable to tackle the challenges is the greatest obstacle.  Remove that mind-set from the leadership, and this will ultimately lead to a shift in the culture of the workplace as any form of change needs to be led top-down,” she said.

Singgih also explained how creating a healthier balance between work and personal life has become crucial, especially post-pandemic, with the hybrid working model being beneficial for both women and men.  

“The hybrid working model has made organisations recognise that productivity is critical, and the outdated “face time” model of sitting in the office between 8am and 8pm may not be the right approach after all,” she explained.

“This has been a positive move that indirectly impacts working mothers, and flexibility has been the one factor missing in the workplace, which, if it existed earlier, could have led to more women in leadership roles,” she added.