As part of their research into those business performance skills that women feel they most need to develop in order to progress, Susan Sarfati, CEO of High Performance Strategies, and Liz Jackson, President of Jackson Consulting Inc, recently conducted a survey of 140 women currently working in the meetings, events, and incentive travel industry.
The resulting research and its detailed findings will be used to craft the content of their first ever Women's Leadership Forum to be held at IMEX in Frankfurt, May 24-26 this year, as part of the award-winning trade show's New Vision program. The survey also gathered feedback from a small number of men.
The survey results show that many women still share concerns about how to achieve a sustainable work-life balance, but they are also doing battle with other workplace issues, which are specific to the 21st century. When asked “what is the major challenge you currently face in your leadership or management role?" time management, especially in an age of “always-on" social media, was highlighted by many respondents. Others expressed a desire to understand how to be assertive in the workplace without appearing dominant or aggressive, especially in a tougher economic climate.
Although some of the issues raised by the women polled can clearly be divided along male or female lines, others are fundamental to everyone working in the meetings industry. These include how to guide clients towards more ethical and fairer business behaviour; how best to manage and motivate Generation Y employees, staff retention issues, how to achieve board-level support and understanding of the real value of meetings and events.
When it comes to developing specific skills and new areas of confidence and expertise, these women said their greatest need is for improved time management, better sales and marketing skills, and superior financial management, as well as presentation and communication skills. Many respondents also said they would like to improve their negotiation and conflict resolution skills.
(You need to login first to read complete news). New User? Register for FREE!
» Back to Travel News