Women in Leadership is a podcast about inspiring women in Ireland. Each week Angie Mezzetti speaks to a special guest to discuss their experiences and answer listener submitted questions.
Sarah Perugia talks to Angie Mezzetti and discusses the challenges women face in leadership, including imposter syndrome and micro-aggressions. She highlights the importance of leadership development, noting that 94% of people cite it as a factor in their job retention
Women Conductors of orchestras, why do reviewers comment on their costume rather than their conducting? Why do women conductors still face unconscious bias? Dr Carolyn Watson shares insights from her research, also optimism and wisdom on this podcast.
Dr Jackie Maalouf says that despite advances for women worldwide, there will always be impediments because of the pull of the motherhood and caring roles she believes. Her motherhood role however was her ignite button, she is unstoppable! She shares her Pearls of Wisdom and ideas about not setting limits for yourself. You’ll be amazed what you can achieve she says in the latest podcast. Listen Now!
Nuala Walsh author of “Tune In, How To Make Smarter Decisions In A Noisy World” joins the podcast with Angie Mezzetti to discuss the importance of making better not quicker decisions when in leadership roles. Walsh emphasises the need to confront biases like overconfidence and to challenge confirmation bias. As a neuroscientist as well as a banker for many years, she has researched the whole area of whistleblowers in particular – people who were not listened to when they should have been!
Advocating for women before during and after birth is the life’s work of Prof Jacqueline Dunkley Bent OBE Chief Midwife with ICM International Confederation of Midwives. She used to work for the NHS now she is working at a global level where the need is as great as ever. It takes takes courage to face those who hold the levers of power in society, politically and sometimes even within a family or a relationship. Women are at their most vulnerable when giving birth. While the ideal image we have of the pregnant mother is of the women surrounded by loving family or partner in a safe, high-tech hospital, for very many women around the world, this is far from the norm. Over 287,000 women die worldwide in the period just before during or soon after delivery and that was from a 2020 statistic*. Many because they are in third world countries or war-torn places where standards of midwifery are not high up the agenda if they exist at all. Prof Dunkley Bents mission is to have the best medical and midwife care available to every woman. “This is why health systems, ministries, governments, decision makers, policy makers, strategists, people in power, must pay attention to how we can move the dial on on perinatal mortality, that’s stillbirth and death within the first 28 days of life, and how we can move the dial on maternal death so that all women have the same maternity outcomes and experiences as those who have the best.” These maternal deaths she believes are a violation of human rights and must be taken seriously.
Ali Cox CEO of Noble West believes consumers, especially women consumers want to see food become safer and farming become more sustainable. That involves telling stories about the individuals especially the women who farm and care about their products. Ali Cox is the storyteller.
Regina Mangan Liberty Blue Estate Agents and Author is the guest on the Women In Leadership podcast. She talks about the need to live by your values and make sure your actions align to those values. She also advises not to be afraid to let people off the boss if their values don’t align with yours.
Dr Louise Kavanagh McBride on Challenges In Nursing
Dr Louise Kavanagh McBride Chair of the NMBI talks about the retention of nurses and midwives, something the NMBI have as a priority. In the podcast she talks about the various challenges facing nurses and the profession in general. She also advocates for nurses to acquire microcredentials and continuous upskilling in the profession. Advocating for the patient when they are at their most vulnerable is a key part of every nurses job she believes. Dr Kavanagh McBride also stresses the importance of self care and reflective practice which is vital to the profession.
Nina Noonan is the guest on this episode of Women In Leadership. She says systemic barriers still exist for women in the workplace and often companies are not aware of it until someone points it out. “Some organizations have picked up on that and are trying to create a different system around that. But you know, very often, if there’s a systemic barrier, we might not even know it is one, until somebody points that out. But if a meeting is being scheduled for five o’clock, and we don’t stick to a clear finishing time, by default, it might affect your female colleague, the one who has to excuse herself perceived early and run off because the crash closes at six. That may not be a problem for your male colleague who doesn’t have to go off because his wife picks up the child. So nobody might say I’m putting up a barrier deliberately here for women, but ultimately, what it means is if it is a woman who has to leave early, that’s how she’s going to be perceived.”
International Women’s Day in UCC University College Cork was celebrated with a series of presentations and discussion on the subject of ‘why the world needs more women in leadership’. After the event, the co-chairs of Mnà UCC, Emma Connolly and Clíodhna O’Callaghan together with Dr. Lee Ann Burke the Mnà Treasurer, recalled highlights of the IWD event in UCC. They are terrific women and recalled the messages they took from the morning and are well worth a listen.