With organisations struggling to balance gender diversity in the workplace, particularly at the executive levels, Skillsoft, a global leader in learning and talent management develops a program to support women leadership development in Singapore.
A startling fact is that across the globe, less than five percent of public companies listed in global stock exchanges are led by women and only three countries out of the 200 surveyed countries by the International Labour Organisation have a majority of companies managed by women.
However, despite the absence of women in leadership positions, researches show that organizations with more women represented in management perform better.
“The opportunity for women leaders in the workforce has never been greater,” said Priti Shah, Vice President of Leadership Product Strategy and Corporate Development at Skillsoft. “The Women in Action leadership program makes the learning and development processes a continuous one that is easy and impactful for women by inserting micro learning opportunities into their everyday work schedule.”
The Women in Action™ leadership program is the industry’s first learning program specifically designed to help women across the workforce build specific competencies and immediately apply newly acquired skills. The new program will enable Skillsoft customers to deliver ongoing learning opportunities for women at all levels of an organization, whether they are emerging leaders or hold positions in senior-level management.
Designed to support the professional development and advancement of women in the workplace, the Women in Action program is:
According to a recent survey of more than 450 professionals, two out of three women think work-life balance is the number one challenge for women in the workforce. Today’s organizations must provide women development opportunities to not only help them grow professionally and advance their career, but also are sensitive to their competing interests outside of the workplace.
“Ascending a traditional hierarchical pathway upwards to senior leadership positions in prominent firms, particularly global public companies, may prove to be a barrier to entry for many women given the personal sacrifices that must be made in time away from family, friends, and societal commitments,” said Christa Manning, founder and analyst at Eudemonia, a research and advisory firm focused on workforce support.
Working with Jodi Detjen, acclaimed author of The Orange Line and professor of management at Suffolk University, Skillsoft built the Women in Action leadership program to help women hone in on competencies they naturally excel in to get better at their jobs and push their careers forward. The program consists of high impact videos, business book summaries and full text books targeted at emerging-, mid- and senior-level leaders. The curated content covers competencies such as negotiating, collaborating for impact, building work-life balance, taking risks, strategic thinking and sponsoring and mentoring.
Monthly assignments take about one hour to complete and encourage immediate application of learned skills through team discussions, activities and individual reflection. The leadership program is designed to be effective on its own or to complement event-based learning initiatives an organization may already have in place.
“The Women in Action program is valuable because you can take it wherever you are. Most people in business today are busy – they’re traveling, they’re in meetings, they’re working long hours,” said Detjen.
“Skillsoft’s program implements a systematic approach to learning that mirrors developmental theory, in which women are able to complete learning assignments in digestible chunks. They can view a short video, ask some provocative questions, engage in topical discussions with co-workers, reinforce the newly acquired knowledge with exercises and continue that process over the course of the year.”
Manning added: “Taking a time sensitive approach to developing women in business is likely the most practical approach to enable and empower women interested in pursuing advancement. Skillsoft’s continuous approach to development will greatly benefit women in the workplace by enabling high-impact learning with minimal time commitment.”
Designed to be effective on its own or complement event-based learning initiatives, the new program gives HR and diversity leaders flexible delivery options of learning templates through email, calendar and documents. Skillsoft also offers various levels of professional services to customers to help organizations effectively deliver the 52-week program.
