View from the Top
For Georgette Nicholas, diversity isn’t personal, it’s good business
You’ve been in Australia for almost four years. What has been your experience of networking with other CEOs?
That’s probably been one of the biggest challenges – coming to a new country at my age and starting to re-establish that network. I tried to leverage some relationships I had through Genworth but I’ve also joined organisations, trying to see if they fit and, if not, finding the next opportunity to join something.
Have you found Australia to be a boys’ club?
Whether it’s here in Australia or anywhere else, it’s very male-dominated from a business perspective. So many times I get invited to events or meetings and I think it’s what you make of those opportunities. I try to use them as a way to promote women. Strong leadership is not gender-specific – it’s about having a strong CEO.
What reaction do you get on gender diversity?
There’s an openness to discussing it. The question is: how much support do they put behind it when they go back to their own organisations or communities? Are they really championing it? It’s something I think we’ll always be talking about. There are a lot of factors as to why women are not getting senior leadership roles. Certainly, if you set targets and measure against those, it gives you an opportunity to put a focus on it. But it’s also about developing policies for people as they come through the workforce and have families – and that’s both men and women.
Is that the piece of the puzzle we’re missing? We’re setting targets but do we need to do more work on training and understanding what women need?
Yes and some of that involves flexible working. How do we think about working flexibly? It’s not just about putting a program in, it’s also about educating managers and leaders about how you manage that person. It’s providing broader support and leadership development around the whole topic of flexibility.
You set a target of 30 per cent women on your senior leadership team and you’re at 43 per cent. Is gender diversity an ethical issue or a business issue for you?
I believe it’s a business issue. I’m a big proponent of diversity of thought and background – it’s about better business outcomes. The more you influence experience and gender in a team, the better the outcome for the business. Having come through the