We thought WTF so we created WLTF!

Older women are the fastest growing group of homeless people. Why? Because they don’t have financial stability. Why? Because they never had career stability and therefore little financial independence or security.   

WTF!? 

Our WTF attitude is what initially pushed us to disrupt the coaching industry by creating a way to make coaching scalable and accessible to all levels within an organisation, not only executives. And we are so proud of the fact that since 2020 we have coached more than 1200 emerging and developing leaders, 51% of whom are women. That is approximately 600 women who have been through or are currently on one of our programs. But, clearly, this is not enough! 

At least 49,000 women in Australia are facing homelessness every night. 49,000! WTF!

This latest WTF was the impetus for us to create the WLTF – the Women Leaders for the Future program. Things need to change, so we’re going to use our expertise and experience in our industry to help where we can. 

Over the years (many centuries in fact), we have made progress in terms of women’s rights. But we haven’t moved far enough forward nor nearly fast enough. And COVID has seen many organisations going backwards when it comes to women’s participation and promotion in the workplace. The data to prove this exists, and so too do the people – the coachees we work with and the organisations that we partner with are backing up what the research shows.

The data tells us:

  • In the ASX300 there were fewer female CEOs in 2022 compared to 2021. 1

  • Of the 28 appointed CEOs, only four are women (14%). 1

  • In the US, 23% of women with children under ten are considering leaving the workforce. 2

  • Middle managers and female leaders are leading the resignation wave and exodus. 3

  • To make sustainable change we need to work with teams and cohorts of women, not just one or two in isolation. 4

Our coachees and clients are telling us:

  • Middle managers are burnt out, and especially women leaders. For their own mental and physical health many women are resigning, even with nothing to go to.

  • At Peeplcoach we’ve had an influx of requests to develop Leadership for Women programs to help these leaders find some balance.

  • But many women are responding with, ‘Don’t send me to a course by myself. I can’t move the dial on my own.’

  • We need to learn better tools of leadership to empower others, embrace then tame the inner imposter, and find some balance.

  • Our women coachees have valued the ability to be vulnerable and honest with their coach without being seen as weak or not up to the job.

We’re not solving homelessness with WLTF but we’re doing our part to provide women with opportunities to take control. Organisations and leaders are desperate to find programs and incentives to keep employees – especially women employees – engaged, productive, resilient and retained. So, stop saying WTF and take some time to understand WTLF!

Learn more about our Women Leaders of the Future programs.

Sources

  1. An Urgent Wakeup Call – CEO Gender Balance 100 Years Away   

  2. Seven Charts that Show COVID-19s Impact on Women’s Employment   

  3. 2022 Employee Experience Trends   

  4. The Big HR Question: Do female leadership programs move the needle on equality?

  5. Women in Leadership Trends

  6. Older Women and Homelessness  

Christine KhorComment