Jane Headon (Publicis Sapient) wins D&I Champion (Individual - Partner) Award
As winner of the Women in ICT Awards (WIICTA) D&I Champion (Partner) award in 2021, Jane Headon, general manager of transformation at Maurice Blackburn Lawyers, earned this honour for her seminal webinar series, 'The Confidence Playbook for Women', which strives to help women overcome self-doubt, imposter syndrome and other barriers to success. In her former role at Publicis Sapient, Jane strove to address practices and behaviours that prevent diverse perspectives and voices from being shared.
What diversity and inclusion strategies or programs did you help develop and adopt in your company?
I developed “The Confidence Playbook” program – a series of webinars and panel discussions that explores the confidence challenge for women (and men). The series provided advice and inspiration on building self-esteem, leadership skills, and overcoming the hurdles that hold women back, like unconscious bias. It was part of a broad company program of global and local initiatives to drive the diversity and inclusion agenda. Gender diversity was one of several focus areas, especially in technical domains where female representation continues to thin out at more senior levels for most companies. This series came at a time of great energy and connection for women as we’ve journeyed through the frontiers of societal movements like #Metoo and Time’s Up.
What sparked your ambition and how did you get these initiatives into action?
My initial inspiration came from organising a tech conference – which brought into stark relief just how few women had submitted an abstract for consideration for a speaking slot. When researching why, I heard the all too familiar response 'I’m not ready yet, I’m not really an expert in my field – maybe in a few years'. The male cohort, who had a similar level of skills and experience, didn’t let the need to be a bona fide ‘expert’ stop them from throwing their hat in the ring to present. Confidence was such a challenge for many women. Having trusted leaders who believe in them, and who can help remove barriers and unlock our strengths can have a profound impact on career trajectories. There are so many social norms and entrenched beliefs that hold women back.
Whilst there have been big steps forward (for example, representation of women on ASX200 boards have now ticked over 34 per cent), there continues to be a glaring gender pay gap of 13.8 per cent. Never has there been a more important time to have the female voice ring loudly at all levels in the workplace, and addressing what it is that holds women back is part of the solution.
For women, not displaying enough confidence, or displaying too much, or displaying it in unacceptable ways, is a conundrum. Understanding the psychology and the ‘game’ behind the intangible skill of confidence can be intriguing.
How important is diversity and inclusion to you and how do you think it impacts company culture?
Hugely important. Many studies are emerging to support the value of diversity across all areas and all levels of an organisation. Companies have become more attuned to the DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) agenda as they now recognise not only do their wider stakeholder communities expect it, but that it has emerged as a key driver of a thriving culture and ultimately, business performance.
Regrettably, we have exposed the darker side of company culture in Australia, where sexual harassment, discrimination and other unacceptable behaviour have been found to be endemic in many workplaces. This has recently included one of Australia’s iconic mining companies, and our own federal parliament. The seminal Jenkins Report into parliament’s toxic culture identified gender inequality as an influence, and new targets for gender diversity and elimination of exclusionary practices were among the report’s recommendations.
Undisputedly, we are now at the starting line of a profound change in how we live, work, and learn – with a once-in-a-generation opportunity to redesign the systems that haven’t worked in favour of a fair, inclusive and equitable society. We have an anachronistic habit of drawing inspiration for these systems from only one half of the population. A diverse mix of skills, backgrounds, lived experience, opinions and attitudes is critical for achieving the required level of differentiated thinking to solve complex, global problems. Elevating the voices of under-represented groups – especially females - into this re-design is essential.
Credit: ARN / IDG What are some of your strategies to further enhance these initiatives the months ahead?
We need a portfolio approach -- a range of initiatives, that target the areas most in need of change now, whilst looking out years and even decades ahead to what is needed for a bright, equitable future. This must include a focus on supporting and inspiring the next generation of female talent.
Initiatives include mentoring, scholarships, and fostering highly visible and accessible role models. Affirmative action – like setting diversity targets - is important. Whilst no person wants to get the job/promotion/opportunity because ‘it’s good for hitting diversity targets’, putting targets in place that signal expectations and drive accountability is prudent. Movements such as the 40:40 Vision and 30% Club should also be supported, for the work they do to activate senior leaders, influence those with the power to drive change, and enable future women. Beyond gender diversity, employers should also lean into the creation of pathways into future high-demand careers – as per the work of the Digital Skills Organisation – ensuring that under-represented groups are not left behind along these pathways. Programs like the AICD’s ‘Investing in Greatness’ are also promising, as are didactic initiatives that target unconscious bias such as the emotive Publicis Sapient ‘Make Some Room’ workshop.
Who or what has influenced you professionally?
Influence has come from many places. I’ve been fortunate to have had the gift of some standout leaders along the way, who have backed me and helped me overcome my own limiting beliefs. I am trying to ‘re-gift’ this many times over. I’m a big advocate of reverse mentoring - where a mentoring partnership with a junior-level colleague can help fill in the knowledge gaps of a senior person, especially where they relate to technology and the expectations of different customer demographics. Reverse mentoring has helped me understand the fundamental shift in the role of work and how it needs to enrich the lives of young people in different ways. I also enjoy reading widely – especially female autobiographies (Kamala Harris’ book is my current source of inspiration) and thought-leadership by strategic futurists who champion an optimistic ‘tech for good agenda’. I do love to clock up a few ‘podcast and walk’ sessions every week, and mix it up with tech-geek, current affairs, and coaching-style content (for example, from mindset coach Ben Crowe).
Finally, my young daughters – who have been very clear about what they need and expect from their future workplaces, and contribution they expect businesses to make to society and the planet. Especially those businesses that wisely may recognise them as future talent, and of course, as customers.
