Less reset, more recommitment: Driving gender equality
Opinion
WACL’s campaigning co-chair offers practical steps to remove barriers, advance gender equality and create better workplaces for all.
In a talk before Christmas, I was struck by something Mark Ritson said:
If you have more than five objectives for the year, they’re not goals – they’re dreams that won’t come true.”
As a very positive optimist, (it’s always possible right?!!) I took this to heart: when we fail to focus on the priorities that really count, progress toward that goal declines.
So coming into February (after the longest January ever!) I’m recommitting to what truly matters to me and to the future of our industry: gender equality.
As Ritson reminds us, focus beats ambition that is spread too thin. In our ever-changing industry, we need to support and nurture women’s talent to thrive, not just survive.
Whilst women currently only make up 42% of the global workforce, advancing women at work benefits everyone and could increase global GDP by up to 20%, according to the World Bank.
But when this progress stalls, creativity suffers, growth slows, and top talent leaves. Sound familiar?
Specifically in advertising and media, the case for recommitment is clear: despite women making up 60% of the workforce (All In 2025), women’s representation in leadership roles remains low, with only 46% reaching the C-suite, leaving women 23% underrepresented in C-suite roles.
If we want to retain top talent, drive creativity and build workplaces where everyone can succeed, we need a hyper-focused approach.
We don’t need to reset every year. We just need to recommit to practical steps that remove barriers, advance gender equality and create better workplaces for all.
So, here are my optimistic recommitments for our industry:
Focus on successful leadership – without gendered labels
Great leadership can take many forms, so why are we still letting gendered language guide our expectations of what great actually looks like?
Male gendered language-like dominance and assertiveness still command the ‘desired’ leadership archetypes – often at the expense of other proven successful leadership traits such as collaboration and empathy. It’s a language that excludes women – and can also stifle men who don’t identify with those traits either.
Shift the talent focus to potential – not ‘perfect-on-paper’
When progression processes lack transparency, and decision-makers – consciously or not – hire and promote people like themselves, women in the industry tend to get left behind.
Shifting the focus to potential – skills, adaptability, and readiness to grow creates fairer pathways for all.
Recruiting based on matching the qualities, skills and attributes needed for the role, rather than solely on past experience, will see talent pipelines flourish and new voices add value to the industry.
Get flexible (and not in a ‘new year, new you’ kind of way)
Flexible working is one of the quickest ways to advance gender equality, yet it is still treated as a perk, with some companies even regressing their policies.
Women often carry the burden of care for family members, so normalising flexibility not only levels the playing field but also keeps women in the business for longer.
If we let people work in ways that let them do their best work, it signals a culture that values people as much as performance.
Focus on health policies for a healthy business culture
From periods and fertility to maternity and menopause, workplace conversations, policies, and support for women’s complex health needs still have a long way to go.
One in four women (25%) report facing challenges at work related to menstruation, menopause, or fertility, and a third of working women aged 40–65 say menopause symptoms have led them to consider leaving their jobs.
Broader parental policies, such as extended paternity leave, are critical to supporting and advancing equity across working families. Building cultures where women can progress without barriers, and ensuring policies and support meet the real needs of all employees, must remain a priority.
Getting the message right, inside and out
Similarly, when it comes to work, we produce as an industry – representation matters.
Research from Inclusive Advertising (Unstereotype Alliance), highlighted by a Mars case study, found that ads featuring a higher proportion of women are linked to stronger sales performance. In fact, campaigns featuring 58% women in ads showed an “excellent” sales lift.
Representation sends a powerful signal about who belongs. When women are visible, heard, and supported at every level, it sets expectations for behaviour, opportunity, and accountability.
Recommitment beats constant reset
Gender equality is shaped by more than just these five factors, but evidence shows that focusing on them can have a real impact. We all benefit when women and male allies work together toward a more inclusive and safer culture.
So let’s all recommit to bringing these goals to life, and leave the dream of having a dedicated cheese fridge (just me?) to be the one that falls by the wayside.
Lianre Robinson is WACL (Women in Advertising and Communications, Leadership) campaigning co-chair and CEO of The Marketing Academy Foundation. Read her regular column for The Media Leader on the first Friday of every month.