In a world of inspirational memes and #girlpost Instagram posts, it’s easy to forget that we all get stuck at work, or feel like we can’t find a way forward at times. Sue Unerman is the Chief Transformation Officer at MediaCom and Kathryn Jacob OBE is the Chief Executive at Pearl and Dean. Together they wrote The Glass Wall: Success Strategies For Women At Work And Businesses That Mean Business. Each week answer your work questions with pragmatic, honest advice that’s proven to work…
Q: I attended a conference recently where most of the people on stage were men, and most of the audience too, which was really off putting, and made me feel like it just wasn't for me. How do I become the go-to woman for speaking at such a conference next time?
SU: Did you ask a question? Because that is a good first step at getting yourself heard. At a recent conference I attended there was a brilliant mix of gender in terms of questions and challenges, but this is still unusual enough for me to remark on. A good question or challenge is one first step at getting yourself heard.
KJ: That’s just the first step, how do you get yourself out of the audience and on the stage? It’s one of the characteristics of developing your personal brand. Ask yourself, what do you stand for, and what do you stand against? Could you create an area where you have a distinctive point of view?
SU: Because one of the benefits of today’s media landscape is that if you can find a point of view, you can share it with your particular industry or sector and start to build a profile. Create a series of blogs for example on linkedin, or a podcast or simply start tweeting about what you believe in, or as a first perhaps easier step, start retweeting those who have a point of view you share.
KJ: Another way of approaching it is to talk to people who are organising the events and tell them what expertise or opinion you can bring. One of the reasons you see the same type of people on panels is that the organisers haven’t found new talent, because its hard to find the right new speakers. Just write a couple of paragraphs of what you’d bring and put yourself out there. Prepare some sample content so that you can prove that you know what you are talking about.
SU: Conducting your own research is one way forward. Again there are quantitative research resources that are either free or low priced on line. Find one of those and ask some questions. This could fuel a new point of view. And qualitative research is good too. Don’t just ask your mum and your best friends of course but find a community that can resonate with your sector. For example, I once generated newspaper headlines, in the Sun and Star, and even the National Enquirer, about some research I conducted amongst some groups of housewives. (It was about sex and shopping which is why the headlines were big! But the budget for conducting the research was very small).
KJ Sue, that is a great story! If you can’t find an angle like that, then you could blog about an event you attended, then offer that feedback -which should hopefully be constructive or offer a new perspective on the topic – and then send it to the event organisers or even some of the speakers if you can find their contact details. One of the issues everyone who runs events struggles to find something new to say and let’s face it, we do want to attend these things to be informed, not to be counting down the minutes until the coffee break.
When you do get to speak, don’t worry that you might not be able to answer a question (I know some colleagues who worry about this and think they will look like idiots). If you find the question tricky, a good “out” is to say that the question deserves consideration and that you would like to think about it. This works in two ways; the person who asked the question feels incredibly clever and you get the chance to form your answer. That way you both win! If you don’t have an answer, say you’ll email the questioner later.
SU Try and get to know some journalists if you can that specialise in your sector. They too will be often open to finding new people to speak to, as they don’t always want the same old opinions. If there’s a journalist who writes for a trade magazine that you admire, then tell them so, most of them have linkedin profiles or Twitter. Journalists like positive feedback just as much as the rest of us do. You might then be able to say hello if you bump into them at a conference, and establish a relationship. This too will help you to build a profile and help you find that platform.
KJ Do be careful. If you are in any doubt about any remarks you might make please check in with your boss or your HR team. It takes experience to know how to nuance a public profile so that its good for your career. If you do talk to journalist, check that the conversation is off the record unless they specifically ask your permission to quote you.
SU Business today needs fresh ideas. It needs change and stereotypes need challenging. Too many people just keep a low profile and get on with what they’ve been asked to do. That’s not how you get step change, either in business success or in your career. We think its great that you’ve got ambition to speak up for a different way.
Sue and Kathryn’s book The Glass Wall, Success Strategies For Women At Work And Businesses That Mean Business is available from amazon.
Have you got a question you’d like Sue and Kathryn to answer? Email your questions to feedback@graziamagazine.co.uk. Please note, we will be unable to respond to every single question we receive, and will not be able to respond to any questions personally