This week, for the first time, we realised that it was light when we awoke. It's funny how such a small thing can lift your heart so much, isn't it? And in our newly-cheery state, we've noticed other tentative suggestions that winter might finally be drawing to a close. The cherry blossom at the school gate is cutting a dash through the grey afternoons. When the sun does come out, the March sky is so intensely blue - so sharp and crisp - that it almost hurts to look at it. They're tiny, incremental steps, but every day feels a little brighter here at 9-2-3 HQ. We're looking forward with renewed excitement to the months to come.
How appropriate, then, that this year’s International Women’s Day, on 8 March, is all about inspiration - and more specifically, inspiring inclusion. This year’s theme highlights the benefits of empowering women and supporting their inclusion in all spheres of society. It emphasises that inclusion and diversity are vital elements in the fight for gender equality. It draws our attention to the importance of ensuring that women’s voices are welcomed, valued and respected - in the workplace, in politics and in society.
We’ve long believed that helping women to stay in - or re-enter - employment, whenever they want to do so, is key to reducing inequality. Partly, we think it’s important that women have a place at the board table, where far-reaching decisions are made on a daily basis. Partly, we think that enabling women to continue - and continue to build - their careers, even through the crunch years when there are competing demands on their time, helps to reduce the gender pay gap for ourselves and our daughters. But the same principle applies on a wider scale also. We all know that there are places where women’s power to make decisions about their lives is restricted by social norms or economic circumstances; the ability to access work and secure financial independence can give rise to a life-changing freedom of choice.
And inspiration is an essential part of this process. Witnessing the professional triumphs of role models who've faced the same challenges we're experiencing really does matter. Representation, it turns out, is crucial. But interestingly, research shows that inclusion requires more than just representation. Whilst diversity's obviously a worthy goal, it may not be enough on its own to win the battle. A survey by McKinsey suggests that hiring people from diverse backgrounds is great, but it's the experience they have once they start at the organisation which determines whether we've really achieved "inclusion". Are our working environments effectively promoting inclusive leadership? Have we really moved away from workplace bias and discrimination? And do employees feel that they have access to equality and fairness of opportunity?
We wish that we could answer each of those questions with a resounding, "Yes!". As you'll no doubt be aware, at a societal level, it can sometimes feel like an ongoing project. But in fighting the good fight, flexible working can play a huge part in opening up new opportunities for women, both whilst searching for new roles and once in employment. It can help them to access new career moves and promotions, and to level the playing field. The ability to balance our working lives with the needs of our families or other commitments, or to return to employment after a career break, is a huge step towards equality - and, thank goodness, is a trend that’s growing year on year. It opens up possibilities to us which our grandmothers could in many cases only have dreamed of. From a personal perspective, the 9-2-3 team work part-time and remotely. The paths which brought each of us to 9-2-3 were different, but we all have in common the fact that working flexibly has opened up professional options that we simply couldn't have pursued under a more traditional, 9-5, model. At a societal level, everyone's ideal flexible working pattern is slightly different - it might consist of part-time hours, flexible start and finish times to facilitate the school run, a job share or an element of remote work. But whichever choice an individual makes, flex can have a hugely positive impact on their opportunities for inclusion - their ability to stay in employment, develop their career and earning power and accept promotions.
On this day, we pay tribute to those women on whose shoulders we stand, and we look forward at the work that still needs to be done in order to achieve true equality. Nobody’s pretending that it’s going to be easy. Change, after all, always involves challenge. It’ll require us to ask sometimes-uncomfortable questions. To lift our heads above the parapet. Possibly the ruffling of some more traditional feathers. It’ll need us to join together to nudge, over and over and over again, long-standing social and professional norms. But we know it can be done - not least because we have absolute faith in the determination and the strength and the intellect of the amazing women, and the fantastic male allies, we’re privileged to speak to, every day.
Together, let’s go out and inspire inclusion in our communities - our boardrooms and schools, our sports clubs and our political bodies.
You, the incredible people we meet at 9-2-3? You are our inspiration.