Tag: women leadership

In the dynamic and challenging business world, women’s leadership roles have been evolving rapidly, yet there remains much ground to cover. Kerry van der Merwe, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Rainbow Chicken Ltd., stands as a testament to the progress made and the work still to be done. Her journey, marked by perseverance, strategic foresight, and a commitment to gender equality, offers valuable insights for aspiring female leaders and decision-makers across industries.

I am sure all of you have seen the movie 'What women want' starring Helen Hunt. Believe me, you don’t have to go that far to understand what women in the workplace truly want. You can just ask! As the end of Women's Month drew to a close, I reflected a bit on the journey as a woman in the workplace.

The world of work is evolving and while we have seen some positive changes to the workplace since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a change taking place that negatively impacts our businesses, community and economy. It is the greater decline of women in the workplace.

COVID-19 has placed demands on people and organisations in almost all aspects of their daily lives. From going online (transforming digitally) to working remotely, and - perhaps most critically - demanding a change in consciousness from leaders across the globe.

Corporate South Africa has made strides in recent history to be more inclusive of formerly marginalised groups in an effort to rectify the disparity of the past and be more diverse, including in the executive decision-making tiers. But the retirement of Maria Ramos, the last remaining woman CEO in the Johannesburg Stock Exchange top 40 listed companies earlier this year, illustrated that we are not making the progress we thought we were on gender parity.

“The world would be a better place if men thought like women.” This is the conclusion of John Gerzema and Michael D’Antonio, the authors of The Athena Doctrine, published in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial meltdown – the direct result of testosterone on steroids!