Half of Irish women cite shortage of inspirational female figures in their workplace

Ellen O'Donoghue

Half of female professionals in Ireland have cited a shortage of inspirational female figures in their workplace.

According to new poll data from Robert Walters, 52 per cent of female professionals cited a lack of representative figures.

38 per cent do not feel their hard work is recognized as much as their male peers, while 45 per cent of all professionals agreed with Mark Zuckerberg that corporate culture has become subdued, and over half (55 per cent) think that corporate culture has ‘evolved for the better’.

According to the poll, 43 per cent of female professionals think relevant personal development programmes would help them advance.

Suzanne Feeney, country manager at Robert Walters Ireland said that visibility challenges persist for women, despite the business landscape constantly evolving.

“Companies are increasingly aware of the need for inclusive role models, and while they are beginning to implement strategies, this needs to be continued to ensure women’s advancement is supported at every career stage,” Ms Feeney said.

A lack of role models was cited as lacking by half of female professionals, with 22 per cent saying they have no such examples, and 30 per cent mentioning that they ‘hardly ever’ encounter them.

However, visibility was not the only hurdle mentioned, with women facing substantial obstacles in climbing the corporate ladder, captured by ‘glass ceiling’ and broken rung’ theories.

“There have definitely been moves in the right direction, with greater gender pay gap reporting. Yet more diverse voices need to be heard in senior leadership to attain greater equality in the workplace and ensure that all professionals feel represented,” Ms Feeney said.

“Zuckerberg’s comments touch on an important discussion around the direction of workplace culture. However, making associations with ‘male’ and ‘female’ energies creates an ‘us vs them’ attitude rather than resulting in any meaningful improvements being made,” she added.

35 per cent of women stated that they are met with inadequate support and opportunities for progression from their current employer.

The research found that the three most important workplace benefits to female professionals were relevant professional or personal development programmes (43 per cent), child and family planning benefits, for example, childcare allowance and flexi-work (34 per cent), and menopause and menstruation leave (21 per cent).

“Personal development plans should be designed to address the specific challenges faced by women at work,” Ms Feeney said.

“Aspects like providing flexible work options for caregiving responsibilities, setting realistic and achievable targets as well as providing women experiencing menopause leave options that don’t jeopardise their career growth.”