International Women’s Day has been a phenomenal success in raising awareness of gender equality. What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
For me, it’s a fantastic opportunity to take a moment to think about all the women that get involved in real estate, all of the work that that they do and to take a moment to thank them. For example, at the Church Commissioners it’s amazing just how many women we do have in so many different and varied roles. This year’s focus is on breaking the bias and for me, there are women in real estate trailblazing every day and challenging the perception of the types of roles women are succeeding in.
In your experience, how has the industry changed and how much progress has been made?
There has been a lot of change in the last decade; there are significantly more women working across a range of roles in the sector today. It’s increasingly visible at industry events which have a greater number of female professionals sharing industry insight. You now see more women on panels, interviews and delivering presentations on topics which were often dominated by men. Part of this is due to women stepping up and taking part and putting themselves outside of their comfort zone.
Workplace culture has also shifted significantly over the last ten years, in part driven by technology and the ability to work from different locations (I still miss my Blackberry!). Companies have become more flexible in their approach to working families, which is helping more women (and men) to balance work life and raising a family. We have also seen a sea change in attitudes to family life and parenting; there is a growing acceptance that young children are not just the responsibility of a mother and that fathers should have support too. Flexibility doesn’t just apply to women or women with families but equally applies to everyone. Everyone wants a bit of flexibility in their working life, don’t they?
In what ways can we ‘break the bias’?
Being consistent and visible with female representation in the industry. We need further female representation across all levels and disciplines.
I think the gender pay gap reporting will also have helped on breaking the bias, but you still come across people that deny that it even exists. We also need to be more supportive of women during maternity leave, including pay. I have always thought it would be a real step forward if departmental budgets were automatically topped up to cover maternity and paternity benefits.
What are the best ways to implement change in the industry?
There should be more flexible and innovative routes into the industry. For example, more apprenticeships offered to young women, so they have the opportunity to secure a place on a career pathway in the sector. Social mobility will be the next London Property Alliance Diversifying Real Estate guidebook, and I’m keen for this to explore the challenges around access to the industry. I am equally passionate about people from diverse backgrounds coming into the industry. From my own experience this just makes for much better team working and decision making.
Who are your female role models?
I was very fortunate to listen to a talk by Dame Stephanie Shirley. For those who don’t know her, she was a child refugee at the start of the Second World War, arriving to the UK without her parents aged just five-years-old, via the Kindertransport from Vienna. She later became an extremely successful businesswoman and philanthropist who did so much to help break the bias. I saw her speak a few years back and she was really inspiring. She has done a lot to support women in the workplace, especially the IT sector, where she founded an all-female software company in the 1960s, at a time when many women didn’t have their own bank account. In the 2000s the company was estimated to be worth around $3bn and its co-ownership structure made a large number of its employees millionaires. She also set up the ‘The Shirley Foundation’ in honour of her autistic son. The foundation aims to help pioneering projects with strategic impact in the field of autism spectrum disorders with emphasis on medical research. I would recommend listening to her. You can watch her TED Talk here.
What was your route into the property sector?
I left university with a degree in business studies and I was fortunate to join the Church Commissioners and work on the rural and commercial portfolios. I was given the opportunity to continue my professional development and training while I worked at the Commissioners, so I went to night school to become a qualified surveyor. I was the first person at the Commissioners to train and qualify in this way, but the Commissioners have always been good at developing talent regardless of gender or background. Over the last ten years, we have helped six people from different backgrounds qualify as a surveyor, including people who joined us as administrators and secretaries.
Read more about gender in the property sector in the London Property Alliance Diversifying Real Estate: Gender guidebook.
