Not invited into the boardroom. Dismissed when proposing a solution. Ignored for a promotion well overdue. Do any of these sound familiar?
No matter the industry, women are keenly aware of the obstacles that limit our growth, whether it’s gender bias or the pay gap. With companies being slow to recognize the importance of DEIA, corporate spaces continue to make gender equity a nice-to-have instead of an absolute must.
If we plan to move the needle, there’s no doubt we need our allies to uplift us and our experiences. But we must do our fair share of the work, too. Honing our self-advocacy skills is one way to build our confidence and ensure people listen to our needs, ally or not.
Here, we spotlight four women who, amid their share of challenges, elevated their voices and came out the other side.
As Vice President of Strategic Growth, I've advocated for the needs of our organization and team members to drive key results. Early on, we struggled getting buy-in for a new tech platform to boost productivity. I compiled data on time savings and ROI, then presented the case to leadership. They approved the budget, and last quarter platform usage resulted in a 32% increase in transactions.
For women, using evidence to make a persuasive argument is key to overcoming obstacles. Mentoring women, I stress researching specifics to support your case. Several years ago, I found a compensation gap between myself and a male counterpart. I met with leadership, provided industry reports on salary benchmarks, and got an adjustment reflecting my contributions. While uncomfortable, advocating with confidence and data achieved the goal. Overall, women advocating for each other progressively moves us all forward.
There have been several times throughout my career in which I have had to advocate for myself. As a nurse, a problem that I have had to deal with multiple times (which most nurses have had to deal with) is being overworked. It is not uncommon for staffing shortages at healthcare organizations, and nurses are often required to work longer hours and take on extra responsibilities to make up for those—even though it should be the responsibility of management to fix staffing issues.
In times where I have gone through this and needed to stand up for myself, I have had success by sending emails to my supervisors about the problem, outlining the specifics of exactly how me and my fellow nurses were being overworked beyond our job descriptions. I chose email correspondence specifically so that I could express myself in exactly the way I needed to AND so that I could have physical evidence of the interaction.
At a past job years ago, I found myself frequently being asked to take on responsibilities that my male coworkers at the same level weren’t being asked. It hit me one day in a meeting that only I was ever asked to take notes in our team meetings. Even though I was of the same role and rank of my male coworkers, I was the only person being tasked with the “secretarial” job (a type of job often associated with women) of note-taking.
This was both a burden to add on top of my other responsibilities and a hindrance to my ability to contribute to the meeting in the same way as my coworkers. I ended up scheduling a meeting with my supervisor to discuss my problem with this, and it ended up being a fruitful conversation. He hadn’t even realized that he had been expressing bias in this way and felt terrible about it, and from that point on he made great strides to turn the workplace into a more equitable environment intentionally.
As the owner of Copeland Insurance Agency, advocating for my needs and my employees' needs is crucial for our business success. Early in my career, I had to push back on an unreasonable deadline that would have compromised service for our clients. I explained how the timeline was unrealistic, and we were able to negotiate an extension. Speaking up ensured we delivered the high quality our clients expect.
For women, self-advocacy is key to overcoming obstacles like unequal treatment or lack of opportunity. If you don’t ask, you likely won’t receive. I mentor other women on using data and concrete examples to build a case for why their needs or concerns need to be addressed. With confidence and evidence, you can persuade others to make a change.
A few years ago, I noticed a pay discrepancy between myself and a male colleague with less experience. I scheduled a meeting, presented research on industry standards, and received a salary increase that properly reflected my value. While it wasn’t easy, advocating got results. The confidence that experience gave me has served me well in negotiations since. Overall, women speaking up and supporting each other is how we slowly but surely level the playing field.
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