Almost 10% of women are on top management positions among 500 member airports of ACI EUROPE. Although this is not yet the ideal proportion, there are good examples that show that the European airport industry is taking steps to promote the ascendancy of women leaders. Inês Rebelo reports.
The need for more gender diversity in leadership is widely acknowledged in aviation and in any other business in Europe and elsewhere. However, the reality is not yet very favourable to women, who usually do not reach managerial positions as easily as men, despite their skillset. Gender equality, particularly in decision-making roles, requires a social and cultural shift that we should make happen sooner rather than later for the benefit of women, businesses and the entire society.
It is no coincidence that the United Nations (UN) has included gender equality among its Sustainable Development Goals. For the UN, gender equality is “not only a fundamental human right, but a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world”. Gender should not be a limitation for women to unlock their true talent and potential, and men have a role to play in supporting them and breaking the walls of gender disparity. This is why the UN launched the “He for She” global solidarity movement in 2014. It seeks to mobilise men and boys to promote gender equality and help to build a more balanced society.
Fittingly, this year’s campaign theme of the International Women’s Day (8 March) is #BalanceforBetter. This campaign, which will run all year long, calls for a more gender-balanced world. The message could not be clearer: “balance is not a women’s issue, it’s a business issue. The race is on for the gender-balanced boardroom, a gender-balanced government, gender-balanced media coverage, a gender-balance of employees, more gender-balance in wealth, gender-balanced sports coverage… Gender balance is essential for economies and communities to thrive.”
How can we have a more gender balanced and equitable workplace and world? The answer can be twofold: on the one hand, it is important to challenge existing barriers, including the male-dominated power structure, by removing cultural bias that women are born to care and serve rather than to lead. Recognising female talent and empowering women to advance in their careers is a step to a more balanced democratic society. On the other hand, it is crucial to attract and retain more young women to business areas that have always been seen as a “man’s thing”, such as aviation. Encouraging women to embrace “non-traditional” pathways and give them the same career opportunities will allow them not only to grow and succeed, but also to make those jobs much more competitive.
Accelerating women’s participation & professional growth in air transport
The transport sector is vital for the European economy. According to the European Commission, transport employs 11 million people of which only 22% are women. Across the range of transport modes, aviation is the most gender balanced mode of transport with 40% female workforce as opposed to 14% women in land transport and 20% women in waterborne transport. Yet, there is still some way to go to increase female representation in this sector.
Recognising the need to strengthen gender parity and equal employment opportunities in transport across the EU Member States, the European Commission launched the “Women in Transport – EU Platform for Change” in November 2017. The platform is open to all stakeholders in the transport sector that are committed to taking actions to improve female employment and gender equality. It also serves as a forum to exchange best practice (for more information: https://ec.europa.eu/transport/themes/social/women-transport-eu-platform-change_en)
At an international level, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is striving to promote gender equality and the development of women in aviation. Two ICAO key initiatives in this regard have been the launch of the Aviation Scholarship for Professional Women, in conjunction with the International Aviation Women’s Association (IAWA), and the organisation of the first ever Global Aviation Gender Summit in Cape Town last August, in collaboration with UNESCO.
The airport community is also making efforts to improve gender parity and to get more women into executive positions. Since 2014, ACI World has an affiliation agreement with IAWA to work collaboratively on education, training and job opportunities in order to create the future network of airport women leaders. Moreover, in the second quarter of this year, ACI World, together with 4 other key aviation and aerospace organisations, including the International Air Transport Association (IATA), International Aviation Women’s Association (IAWA), Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) and Korn Ferry – Civil Aviation Practice, is due to release a global study on women in leadership – “Soaring Through the Glass Ceiling”. This study aims to understand the root causes of the underrepresentation of women at leadership level in aviation and to identify successful practices and stories in increasing the ratio of women in senior roles.
Women flying high at airports
At last year’s ACI EUROPE Annual Congress in Brussels, Dr Michael Kerkloh, President of ACI EUROPE and President & CEO of Munich Airport, said: “Looking at airports, our own business transformation has certainly benefited from the more prominent contribution of women. At Munich Airport we currently have a share of women in the supervisory board and executive board of more than 30 percent. We definitely see the need to systematically increase the share of women in executive roles within the next years – and we do have a series of measures & projects to do that.”
Munich Airport is not alone. Today over 40 airports in Europe have women in the top position – including Madrid, Barcelona, Venice, Catania, Stuttgart, Göteborg and Quimper-Cornouaille airports, as well as Hermes, the Cyprus airport group. Given ACI EUROPE’s airport membership as a whole (500 airports), this is not yet sufficient but it is already encouraging to see how the airport industry is actively becoming more inclusive.
In parallel to the lead interview with Monica Scarpa, CEO of the SAVE Airport Group, we decided to catch up with some of the other female CEOs of European airports, to find out how they see their job and the role of women in airport leadership, as well as what key lessons they wanted to share as a way of inspiring more women to follow in their footsteps.
find more details here : http://www.airport-business.com/2019/03/yes-can-women-leading-european-airports/