Those who know me know that my mantra is to keep it simple and tell it as it is... so it might seem counter intuitive that I think it's a bad thing the Federal Court of Australia is ordering the names of witnesses be disclosed in the Kristy Fraser-Kirk / Mark McInnes case.  However with one in twelve women saying they've experienced sexual harassment at work - but are afraid to speak out against it - my concern is this move by the Courts will deter other women from speaking up and supporting colleagues who've been wronged... and importantly prevent employers from fixing this problem. Read More

If you’ve ever been responsible for establishing employee development programs, conferences or leadership offsites, you’ll know just difficult it can be to find fantastic, out of this world, leading-edge service providers.  In a sea of social media and spin, my vast network send me calls for help every day – by email, LinkedIn, twitter and the sphinxx website - all looking for advice about who they should hire for their own professional development needs, or to supplement their in-house women's programs. Read More

This article explores the findings of a new study that proves the mentoring is valuable for both genders, but the benefits of mentoring needs to be articulated clearly and differently for men and women. It also includes some findings about which mentoring programs were most effective because "for senior levels that [specifically tailored programs for senior women] can make sense because that's where companies are missing out on squeezing that last piece of the lemon.” Read More

Ladies do I have exciting news for you… Have you heard of the gorgeous La Chance bracelet range?  Whether you have, or not, you’re in for a treat!  Because I’m delighted to welcome La Chance – the Danish designed bracelet range inspired by the ancient eastern zodiac – on board as our newest Ascend event sponsor. Read More

For those of you responsible for measuring and managing the number of women in senior roles in your workplace, you won't want to miss the launch of the 2010 EOWA census results.  This is the official measure of women in leadership in Australia and feeds into the Catalyst international reporting metrics.  Mike Smith, CEO and Executive Director of ANZ Bank will again be delivering the keynote address at the launch of the Census results at a lunch on 6th October in Sydney.  Registrations for the event can be made via the Australian Institute of Company Directors website.  And let me know if you're planning to go - I'll be there and it would be great to catchup! Read More

Much is said about the gender diversity quotas introduced to Norway's boardrooms since the 40% quota was introduced in 2005.  But I find in the presentations I deliver that surprisingly little is known about this poster child country for gender equity and the path it followed to achieving the more than 40% of women on boards it now boasts.  Did you know, for example that Norway has enforced a 40% quota in all public committees since 1985 – yes, twenty years ago!.  Read More

Often it takes a while for the idea of gender diversity, and the diversity benefits to gain traction with someone not familiar with the challenges. If you’re new to the gender diversity conversation, or just need an update or refresher, this article effectively summarizes some incredible findings from a new study that finds discrimination is both less visible, and starts earlier in women’s careers then many suspect. Read More

As a corporate member of UNIFEM Australia, sphinxx is delighted with the recent appointment by United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon of Michelle Bachelet, former President of Chile, to be the first Under-Secretary-General of UN Women.   Ms. Bachelet, Chile’s first female President who prioritised women’s issues throughout her tenure and since leaving office has been working with UNIFEM to advocate for the needs of Haitian women following January’s devastating earthquake, will bring her extensive experience to the role with the goal of advancing the interests of women and girls right around the world. Read More

Could it be that women in their attempt to gain gender equality have resorted to power plays and manipulation in the same manner as historically deployed by men?  Being a woman, it concerns me that the social injustices that women were fighting against may now be levied against their male colleagues in the corporate world. Some women, it seems, are showing that they are equally capable of abusing power and compromising moral ethics for ambition. An analysis of the results of sexual harassment and office romance surveys indicate these shortcomings in female behavior in office setting. Read More

One in 12 women has felt sexually harassed in the workplace but less than half have reported it to another member of staff, according to a recent survey of 1,500 women conducted by HR consultancy Reabur.  The research found that women often did not report sexual harassment because they felt it would affect their future career or that they would not be taken seriously or would be accused of over-reacting.  Other findings of the survey include: Read More