Report on the 6th INSEAD Women in Business Conference

INSEAD is a corporate partner of PWN Global

The Conference took place last 19 May 2021. This year’s theme centered on the idea of disruption – not in the notion of a COVID-19 disaster – but in the context of channeling personal pursuits to benefit and truly make an impact, whether it be across teams, home, or the larger community.

The conference was joined by influential and powerhouse women, spanning careers from Consulting to Tech, Entrepreneurship / Founders, and NGOs. The most notable aspect of this conference is that it combined panels with breakout rooms (BORs), presentations, feedback, action plans, and 1:1 (depending on BORs) interactions.

Given that impact can often be generally discussed in a work setting, there is a special spotlight on disruption in the community, featuring leaders from Professional Women's Network Paris, Dress for Success Singapore, and McKinsey Women. During this discussion, attendees acted as strategic advisors to optimize the NGO / initiative’s efforts on embracing more men as allies, increasing fundraising efforts, and creating action towards gender equality, respectively.

Findings from the workshop organized with PWN Paris representative to discuss " How to engage men in a network dedicated to women and gender balance" :

Other brainstormed ideas :

• Increase female role models in male dominated areas and their impact on male members of their environment. E.g. a working mother who is open about the hardships at her work as a women to her male family members or other public female role models voicing their challenges related to gender inequity

• Join corporate partnerships with brands with high male consumer ratio incl. brands like Gillette. Not only will it lead to a better reach to male allies because of their consumer base, but it will be "new" and potentially "controversial" which can increase awareness. (example case: Lean In's corporation with the NBA). In addition, if male CEOs of male brands take initiative, it will role model the behavior amongst other men

• Nudge corporates to introduce DEI KPIs. By making corporates more aware of their DEI targets in a measurable manner, it can incentivize businesses to take gender equity more seriously

• Increase visibility and representation of male allies in gender equity NGOs. Celebrate male allies and showcase their involvement which will inspire other male allies to join.

• Allow for flexibility in the involvement of a male ally. Small actions and interventions by men in the workplace or men to women coaching / mentoship matter and it does not always need to come with a 5 hour commitment per week to advance the organization's goals. Exemplify the range of involvement for male allies to make it clearer.

• Name of organization and initiative is important: probably. No clear cut answer here.