Category: Women

Kenya firms hire women for top jobs as gender equity gains pace

Posted on by Hellen Githaiga

Top firms in Kenya are increasingly hiring more women and placing some at the centre of decision-making in the boardrooms as the race for gender equity at workplaces gains momentum globally.

Many corporates including BAT Kenya, Absa Kenya, Co-operative Bank of Kenya, KCB Group and Safaricom have crossed the 40 percent mark for the proportion of women in senior leadership positions.

The progress has come on the back of these firms implementing policies and practices that promote gender equality, including equal pay for equal work, generous maternity and paternity leave, flexible working hours for new mothers and offering opportunities for advancement and leadership for women.

Still, the firms are alive to research that has shown that companies with more women in senior positions are more profitable, more socially responsible, and provide safer, higher-quality customer experiences—among many other benefits.

Read: Kenya’s healthcare sector scores big in global gender parity ranking

And of course, there is a clear moral argument for increasing diversity among top management teams on the back of the push by shareholders and financiers.

The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), for example, joined the 30 percent club, a global campaign, to increase gender diversity in boards and senior management at the workplace.

The NSE drive has helped listed firms deepen their focus on diversity, and put their sights on gender parity.

The Kenya Institute of Management (KIM) Board Diversity and Inclusion report shows the share of women in NSE firms’ boards has risen from 12 percent in 2012 to hit 18 percent in 2015, 21 percent in 2017 and 36 percent in 2021.

At 36 percent, KIM said, the figure was above the global average of 23.3 percent. The institute is working on a new report to be released later in the year.

Catherine Musakali, chairperson at Women on Boards Network (WOBN), an initiative that champions for women into board leadership through training and mentorship, says beyond the listed companies, more women are taking up boardroom positions as firms seek to diversify their skills set.

“The ground is shifting. We are seeing younger women joining boards and they are challenging the status quo and adding value on both listed and non-listed firms,” said Ms Musakali, adding that of WOBN’s more than 1,000 members, about 60 percent already sit on boards.

“I see progress and I can bet that when the next data for NSE firms is out later this year, the numbers in terms of diversity will be better. That is because we are seeing more and more requests for nomination of women to sit on boards. When you look at listed companies only, the number of female board chairpersons is also going up.”

East African Breweries PLC (EABL) says it increased the representation of women in senior leadership roles to 47 percent by end of June last year from 37 percent in the same period in 2022, moving it closer to hitting the target of 50 percent by end of 2030.

The beer maker has since 2015 been partnering with Strathmore Business School to run a ‘Women in Leadership’ programme that has so far built leadership capability of over 360 women in its business.

EABL says it believes that diversity and inclusion at all levels are necessary for growth of an organisation and has also structured its graduate programmes and mid-career development programmes to ensure they have an equal intake of women.

“We believe that the most inclusive and diverse culture makes for a better business and a better world. We have been passionate about changing the narrative around the underrepresentation of youth, women and people living with disabilities in employment and supply chains across our business and have made empowering them a business priority,” said EABL.

Such a deliberate push has seen some organisations like KCB, NCBA and Absa Kenya manage to push the share of women in their total workforce above 51 percent.

KCB, for instance, last year saw the number of women employees rise by 1,017 to hit 6,233 to take the share of female employees to 51 percent and outnumber men for the first time ever. This was a rise from 2018 when their share was at 43 percent.

“As a result of our deliberate efforts to entrench diversity and inclusion at the workplace, the proportion of female employees in the organisation rose to 51 percent in 2023,” said Paul Russo, chief executive at KCB Group.

Read: Women outnumber men in KCB workforce

Such progress has put women on course to catching up with men in labour force participation as more employers embrace gender parity policies at a time multiple studies are showing companies putting women in boardrooms are posting better performance.

A study by Catalyst, a global NGO that is pro building conducive workplaces for women, found in a study, Fortune 500 companies with three or more women on their boards significantly outperformed those with low representation by 84 percent, 60 percent and 46 percent on returns on sales, invested capital and equity respectively.

Safaricom, which targets to have 45 percent of leadership positions occupied by women, continued to make progress, with new hiring and promotion in senior roles being 19 in the year ended March 2024.

The hiring and promotion of the 19 women into leadership roles raised the share of female employees in senior positions at Safaricom to 42.4 percent from 40 percent in the previous year. The telco has already achieved a 50:50 gender split in its boardroom while the overall workforce is now 49 percent women.

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Calibre of outstanding women is getting younger, bolder

Posted on by Hellen Githaiga

Every year, the process of compiling the list of the Business Daily’s Top 40 Under 40 women starts with scrutinising the nominees.

How have they used their position or power to create a lasting and meaningful change in the community? What is so unique about their position be it in the marketing field or technology?

Which of the 1,000 nominees have made the greatest strides in using their talent, voice, or resources to pull other women up the ladder?  Yes, the job and educational background matter, but it is more than the job and degrees.

Often, the answers to these questions determine the newcomers for the list.

This year we picked women across industries, social status, and age, remarkable women of influence and achievement. They are fierce and talented. They have shattered glass ceilings with complete competence and defied poverty, disability, and male domination.

Every year the calibre of outstanding women keeps changing. They are getting younger. They are bolder. They are charting into waters their mothers and grandmothers only dreamt of exploring.

When the project was launched 15 years, several women who made it as finalists were in traditional careers. This year’s list has Artificial Intelligence (AI) experts, a genomic scientist who has a PhD in cell biology, entrepreneurs on an enviable success trajectory, and doctors in fields dominated by the over 50s.

However, missing out on the list does not mean a woman is not powerful or is making zero impact in society. There are so many women under 40 who are rising—and rising at a rate that could earn them a spot on the list next year.

Diana Mwango

Rise not about hard work, hard skills

Posted on by Hellen Githaiga

As we celebrate the Top 40 Under 40 Women in Kenya, I would like to share some insights with these young winners and any other women who aspire to rise to the top in their careers.

Having spent decades in corporate leadership, coaching, training, and consulting, I have seen what it takes to succeed in a male-dominated corporate world, and I can tell you that it is not just about hard work and technical skills. It is about cultivating a set of essential soft skills that will set you apart.

First and foremost, having boundaries between your professional and personal life. Often, I have seen women throw themselves into their work as I, unfortunately, did, only to realise later that they missed out on the best things in life, such as spending time with family and friends, a financial base and pursuing hobbies or other interests or even creating one’s own nuclear family.

As you continue to scale greater heights in your careers, it is crucial to establish boundaries between your personal and professional life.

This means prioritising yourself as what I call, “Me Plc” and focusing on your well-being, first. Take care of yourself, invest in your physical and financial health, and pursue your interests beyond your career.

It is important to strike a balance between your work and personal life to be a well-rounded individual and secure your financial independence by building passive income streams which I learnt, to my detriment, rather late!

The old Kikuyu proverb, “Ukuru iriaga wethe,” roughly translated to “Old age eats from its youth,” holds true. Therefore, invest in your future by prioritising your financial stability and forget the ‘nice car, desired residential address, the designer clothes…’ which are liabilities.

Instead, seek simplicity to acquire that critical nest egg. The moral of this point is that a successful career should not come at the expense of your well-being or financial independence. Rather, it should be a catalyst for living a fulfilling life.

Secondly, develop your leadership skills. Leadership is not just about delegating tasks and managing a team; it is about being able to influence people to achieve your set goals.

This requires managing relationships and nurturing a top team that is competent, confident, motivated, empowered, and that feels psychologically safe to work for you.

So, grow your emotional intelligence skills, an essential leadership competence to truly ‘lead’ people, and stop over-focusing on technical competencies and more degrees, more certifications, and more courses as I have seen many women do!

Just focus on learning how to manage and grow relationships, and you will be well on your way to playing golf, or, being home early with your family while your team gives their ‘10 out of 10’ effort for you because they want to.

Lastly, I encourage women to develop collaborative networks, particularly among ourselves. Women groups, chamas, and other collaborative networks have a history of being very successful because of their collaborative nature.

Just as men (and companies) are collaborative with just about anybody in pursuit of their interests, there is a need for women to collaborate because it is socially more challenging for us to network as men do.

In this regard, I would like to share the story of Uri Triesman, a mathematics professor at Berkeley University in the early 1980s, who discovered that black students, despite their academic competency and studying harder than their Asian counterparts, were failing dismally while the Asians were doing well.

This is because they were studying alone as opposed to the Asians who were studying in a community.

The very successful Norwegian-backed FKE Female Future Kenya programme that I am a proud facilitator of these past 10 years works on the same principle.

Therefore, I challenge the ‘strong-Mrs Atlas -perfectionist-Can-do-it-all-ATM’, women like me to ‘stop trying to do everything by themselves, stop struggling in isolation, stop pushing help away; and, to form networks of like-minded people, men and women alike, and see how far you will go.

I challenge you to make 2023 your year of collaboration.

Mary M’Mukindia is a business consultant, mindset coach, certified Genos Emotional Intelligence practitioner and motivational speaker.

Skills, attitude that sustain your success momentum

Posted on by Hellen Githaiga

“The King may rule the kingdom, but it’s the queen who moves the board.”-D.M. Timney

As we celebrate the Top 40 under 40 women, I could not be prouder. As someone who has close to four decades of experience in the corporate sector, I know the amount of courage and grit it takes to be the best in your industry, particularly as a woman.

It saddens me that the number of women rising is still painfully low, even after such a long time, but I remain optimistic. While I used to be the only woman in many boardrooms, I now find myself in the company of other women.

As women strive for success, or to break that proverbial glass ceiling, two factors are consistently important: skills. Here are some lessons I learned that can help women sustain their success momentum.

1. Resilience

Nobel laureate Wangari Maathai said it best: the higher you go the fewer women there are. It can be quite lonely up the ladder, be it in the corporate, political, or NGO space. Many times we have to fall on our inner strength, our resolve, and our resilience.

2. Be of service to other women

Support other women in your network. I have opened doors for women, many without them knowing. The greatest satisfaction I have is sitting back and watching them thrive.

3. Learn to say No

When I started my professional life I struggled with boundaries. As women, we need to learn to put ourselves first and learn to say No, be it to a new role, project, or client.

4. Collaborate, don’t compete

In my early corporate life, we played by rules written by men for men. A lot of that was quite aggressive and resulted in us not being nice to each other. Women can write their own rules and be a lot more collaborative.

We must expand our tables to ensure there is more space and when the time comes, we must give up our seats for other women.

5. Expanding networks

Our networks need to be both men and women in diverse fields. We benefit more from varied perspectives. Our networks should not just be local but global.

6. Don’t play small

Women must always challenge the status quo because most times we are not it. One of the things I learned is to dream big, challenge assumptions, and inspire teams to be big-picture people.

7. Working with women

I have had largely women staff. I loved their flexibility and agility. If something was not working, they were quickly able to change direction and find a different approach.

8. Comfort zones

Every time I get comfortable in a role or project, I know it’s time to do something else. I have interviewed many women for jobs and it’s like they struggle to get out of second gear. Change the script. Try something new. Grow. See what else you are capable of doing.

9. Experience

I am an assertive rather than an aggressive leader and the higher up the ladder I went, I found that being clear about my vision was important to get my teams aligned.

I had much more cooperation when there was clarity in the direction we were taking. These days I am often asked if I have lost my edge. Absolutely not! My edges are just softer.

10. Be yourself

Oscar Wilde, an Irish poet and playwright, put it best: be yourself, everyone else is already taken. I am proud of having created an industry from scratch as opposed to a copy-and-paste situation.

I believe every entrepreneur has a defining moment and mine was in 1997 when I identified a void in the marketplace and started a communication company that went on to become Africa’s most awarded agency.

11. Leading a team

One of the reasons I was successful was that I knew my craft inside and out. I was able to get into the trenches with my staff if I needed to. People want leaders they can connect with, and who understand them.

12. Meticulous learning

Becoming a well-rounded corporate leader is not all bells and whistles. The climb to achieving a consistently reliable reputation is largely due to your willingness and ability to learn.

I put in years of learning in different industries from governments to banks to telcos and aviation before I was able to advise on global public relations issues and I am not done yet. I am still learning.

Gina Din Kariuki is the founder of Gina Din Group and the author of ‘Daughter of Africa’, a book that will soon be a digital platform highlighting inspirational daughters of Africa, telling their stories in their words.

Ways to Succeed as a Woman

Posted on by Lilian Oduor

As we celebrate Top 40 under 40 women this week, we are reminded of great women who are doing an amazing job in areas such as corporate leadership, entrepreneurship, law, finance, medicine, academics, research, technology, sports, philanthropy and media just to name a few.

Even with these feats, women still face struggles at the workplace; from unequal pay to advancing into leadership roles.

Did you know that only 14.6 per cent of executives in companies nationwide are women? More strikingly, did you know that women hold just 4.6 per cent of CEO positions?

Why is this the case?

Is this difference because women leave their careers to care for their families before reaching a top position? Or are women afraid to ask as a result of attitudes towards them in the workplace?

This got me critically thinking about what a career woman can do to set herself apart.

What should women do to boost confidence and get ahead at work?

To succeed at the workplace, the tips I have outlined in this article below are necessary.

The courage to speak up

We get in life what we have the courage to ask for.

Women don’t speak up as much as men do at the workplace, often because they lack confidence and also because our culture has for a very long time, encouraged the man to speak up more than the woman. Women need to realise that the promotion, the salary raise, the change of terms for their career cannot be addressed if they are silent.

The worst that can happen when you push for what you deserve is getting “No:” for an answer.

Imposter Syndrome

Imposter syndrome is the belief that you are not as competent as others think you are, or that you don’t deserve the success you have.

Many women suffer from imposter syndrome – the self-doubt that they have what it takes. The career woman has often struggled with rising above the challenge that comes with gender equality in the workplace, often wondering how they can balance between being mothers, wives and still deserve a seat in the boardroom full of powerful men.

Women then must begin to feel comfortable in both spaces, deserving every good thing that comes with the responsibilities placed on them. Women deserve it too.

Rising above the challenges

The responsibilities placed on the woman are quite heavy. The career woman has often struggled with work-life balance, better pay especially for roles majorly held by men, workplace harassment, fewer seats for women leadership in the organisation and so much more.

Women can grow if they rise above these challenges by pushing to lead. It’s through leadership that they can change the unhealthy cultures and bring new policies at the workplace that support their growth.

Persuasive communication

This is the key to unlocking the woman’s full potential.

Persuasive communication is a valuable skill that women can learn and use at the workplace. Being excellent at your job, unfortunately, is not enough. There is a need to persuade at interviews, at sales pitches and in meetings among other areas.

Part of being persuasive is being genuine, natural and a little charismatic. Stepping out of your personality and comfort zone and improving your interpersonal relationships is one of the best ways to become more skilled in persuasion. Successfully implementing your persuasion skills will require time, energy and practice. Once you learn persuasive communication, then there is no opportunity that you cannot scoop.

Confidence

Confidence is many things. It’s how we speak, how we behave, how we dress. It’s our ideas and how we articulate them. Most of the time, women who are picked to lead and for that promotion, have mastered the art of confidence.

A woman must brand herself in a certain way to set herself apart. Learning to be self-aware and portraying emotional intelligence at the workplace allows us to be confident in our speech and thoughts and when we top that up with our outward image, then people want to hear what you have to say. People change how they view you.

Supporting our own

Sometimes women are told they are their own enemies. Controversial as it is, lies some truth in this.

I believe there is something we can borrow from the man on this one. The need to celebrate one another and support others’ success. Every woman also needs to learn to go where she is celebrated instead of sticking in toxic spaces that tear her down.

“Your candle does not dim because you lit another woman’s candle, so go on, pick her up, celebrate her, give her a chance. If she shines, you shine too.”

Conclusion

The power to lead and be seen lies in the hands of women themselves. All these women we celebrate today had to step out of their comfort zone and do it differently to stand out. Women compared to men undersell their experience and capabilities but these must change if the woman wants to stand out. Women need to be more intentional about their careers and where they are headed, because one of the things that have continuously worked for the man, is his focus to keep pushing through and how intentional he is about growth. Real change in the career woman begins when she inhales that confidence and exhales the doubt.

Silvia Mwangi is the training and development manager at Corporate Staffing Services, an HR Consultancy firm based in Westlands, Nairobi.

Kenyan Women in Boards Rise by 36 percent

Posted on by Lilian Oduor

In the past decade, the representation of women in Kenyan boardrooms and executive suites has trebled, but much has to be done if parity is to be achieved.

Board diversity and inclusion has risen from 12 percent in 2012 to 36 percent this year, a survey carried out by Kenya Institute of Management (KIM), Kenya Private Sector Alliance (Kepsa), Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) and New Faces New Voices (NFNV) shows.

In the C-suites, the percentage of women stands at 37 percent, up from 26 percent in 2017 and well ahead of the global average of 21 percent.

For instance, Kenya’s two listed energy utilities—KenGen and Kenya Power— both have female chief executives, with Kenya Power also having a female board chair.

Old prejudices remain, however, keeping a large number of deserving women out of their rightful place in the executive offices and boardrooms.

This is despite convergence in academic and competency levels between the two genders.

“Although there is plenty of progress in gender diversity and inclusion, unfortunately, it has remained challenging to break down roadblocks of age bias and prejudice in board recruitment,” read the survey report.

“This can be attributed to negative bias, unconscious or otherwise; a lack of opportunity for employers to access key talent and skills; inadequate retraining programmes and retention; or policy support requirements.”

The survey polled 193 firms, consisting of 112 private firms which are Kepsa members, 41 NSE listed firms and 40 other non-listed firms.

On the bright side, companies are taking concrete steps to address the gender imbalance in boardrooms, which will likely improve Kenya’s leading position in Africa in gender inclusivity.

According to the report’s findings, 97 percent of the polled companies were encouraging employees of diverse backgrounds to apply for board positions, while 85 percent had diversity and inclusion policy statements.

A similar number (85 percent) were providing training programs aimed at promoting diversity and inclusion to the rest of the organisation.​

Charles Mwaniki

There’s a new breed of women who are hungrier, trailblazers

Posted on by Lilian Oduor

There was an assumption that women value careers less or that they do not take up high-profile jobs and that it is okay to relegate the younger ones to less erudite, non-challenging jobs set up far away from the glassy C-suite offices, just a tiny desk tucked in a corner. Not that there is anything wrong with a tiny desk.

Then came a new breed of women who are hungrier than their mothers and grandmothers. They have become trailblazers in medicine, having studied specialities that were unheard of in Kenya, or icons having branched off in different spectrums of law or gotten bolder in changing the world.

In recognising the strides they have made to stand out, the 2021 Top 40 Under 40 project attracted over 1,000 nominees.

These were highly educated, some whom we could read ambition from their long list of achievements, very impactful in society and real models to the younger generation.

The list had activists, artists and athletes, scientists, and several people running enterprises. These are women who have broken rules and questioned why such rules existed in the first place. They broke records. They broke into new boundaries, revealing that what young Kenyans need is just a chance.

In coming up with the final list, the Business Daily, together with judges from key sectors and professional bodies, used all sorts of yardsticks to measure ‘outstanding.’ The judges picked the majority of the candidates, while the rest were cherry-picked by professional bodies, and a few from the original nominations list.

To capture what sets the winners apart, we reached out to people who watched them rise, to professional bodies that understand them better, and interrogated their success stories.

They share their experiences, attitudes, and decisions that catapulted their careers. Our goal is for every girl and woman to read someone’s story of scaling the highest reaches of success and hear that it is safe to climb.

​ Diana Mwango

Are You Worth The Investment?

Posted on by Hellen Githaiga

By Smurti Patel

How many times have you received unsolicited advice or heard, “Women need …” fill in the blank? Let’s add to that, “Women need to get a coach.”

Scepticism is high. Rightly so, when anyone can call themselves a coach and it feels near-impossible to differentiate between life coaches, mentor coaches, leadership coaches et al.

Actually, anyone interested in excelling and rising to their fullest potential MUST have a leadership coach.

A high quality one with the requisite skill set otherwise, as one of my bosses used to say, “If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys!”

Due diligence is imperative before deciding to work with a coach and by the way, a high-powered executive with a lot to learn from might make an excellent mentor but they don’t necessarily have coaching skills!

The merits and results of working with a high quality leadership coach have been evident for a number of years and some of the most high profile business leaders have one.

Coaching engagements customised to a client’s needs are the most effective and yield the best results.

In my experience, women benefit greatly from two areas, in particular.

The first is influencing which I refer to as the master skill and because our professional growth is vastly dependent on our network, it is imperative that we learn how to influence others.

While women are often well skilled at maintaining and influencing their personal networks, they can fall short with their professional networks and it is a different skill set that is required for the latter.

The result is a series of missed opportunities ranging from profits to professional development leading to salary raises.

Whether you are starting out, in the C-suite, an entrepreneur or a professional, how rapidly you build relationships and the extent to which you influence your network, (inside and outside of the organisation), is critical to how quickly you can get things done.

In other words, performance. And high performance is a calling card that opens doors — fast.

A leadership coach can help you understand your network better and strategically map out how to influence it.

Additionally, you would be able to better understand your personal communication preference and style so influencing would stay authentic and natural.

A high quality coach will also hand-pick relevant resources from their own canon of materials to broaden your perspective, help build the skill set and most importantly, raise self-awareness.

The second area is conflict management and this is often where the greatest self-awareness work is done.

How often, in conflict, do we immediately blame the other person? It is extraordinarily difficult to take a neutral stand let alone examine our role in conflicts.

A leadership coach specialising in this area helps you understand your conflict profile and stance. What provokes? What is the history behind common triggers?

How can you manage yourself through conflicts and choose your response to others versus reacting?

A coach can help develop a skill set to manage difficult conversations that align with your values and even create a conflict philosophy.

How can you ask for what you want? How do you draw boundaries? Incidentally, it is a folly to think that conflict only means a blow out argument.

The most insidious kind is the slow, simmering, passive aggressive type that contributes to a toxic culture and paralyses organisations. Ignoring unhealthy conflict bleeds profits.

So, if we know that working with a leadership coach is transformative for professional growth why don’t more women work with one?

In my experience, I’ve watched how men will overwhelmingly prioritise their professional development and make the decision to do so almost instantaneously.

They will take the leap. The exceptions among women also do the same but largely, someone else decides for them as part of a strategic women’s initiative or perhaps it’s a visionary leader.

They won’t do it for themselves or ask for a coach.

A potential client engaged in conversations about working with me for two years.

In the same time frame, I completed an engagement with another client, a man, who practised his learning on the job, closed his gaps and got promoted with a hefty salary increase. She still calls to talk about an engagement on the same growth areas.

I give this example because I am left to wonder if the gender pay gap might narrow faster if women assumed a greater personal responsibility in taking charge of their own development.

Simply translated: invest in yourself and choose the best. You determine your worth.

Smruti is a seasoned leadership coach and facilitator specialising in conflict coaching. She has a career spanning corporate consulting and law. E-mail: [email protected].

Dear Women, The World is Your Oyster

Posted on by Hellen Githaiga

By Dr Cathy Mputhia

In the history of Israel, there once lived a woman known as Deborah. Deborah was fondly referred to as the mother of Israel.

“She was a prophetess (highest spiritual leader), a judge, a song writer, a mother and a wife. Of all her famous leadership successes was counselling the army commander Barrack on battle strategy.

The general was afraid to go to battle and begged the “Mother of Israel” to accompany him.

She told him that due to his hesitance, the victory in that particular battle would be attributed to a woman, that is, Jael. Jael was a woman who managed to kill Israel’s enemy using “soft skills.”

She convinced the fleeing enemy to take a rest in her tent and went as far as serving him milk to rejuvenate him. While the enemy was sleeping, she finished him off.

This is an interesting account of how the cultural and social environment at the time was very supportive of women in leadership. It also shows how a woman used her soft skills to attain goals and implement strategy.

From this story, we see how diverse personalities can work together to achieve same goal. While Deborah seemed firmer and more authoritative, Jael’s strength seemed to be good people skills. Therefore, the perception that women have to embrace a soft or weaker leadership style is misleading.

Time is now

The current global trend is shifting in favour of supporting rather than stifling women in leadership. This is not to say that men in leadership have lost their ground, the shifting trend is cognisant of the fact that capable women ought to be equally supported to take up leadership roles.

The global trend is shaping women leadership in Kenya.

Congratulations to the 40 winners of this year’s Top 40 under 40 women. These are young women who are making a mark in their circles of influence.

The 40 women are top performers in each of their sectors, whose successes as women can be emulated.

This is especially relevant to women as the legal environment is very supportive of women in business and leadership. This is not to say that it is unsupportive of men. If there is a time and season that capable women in Kenya can grow their careers, businesses and horn their leadership skill, the time is now.

This all started with the new Constitution 2010. Article 27 provides for equal opportunities between men and women. While this provision does not favour either of the sexes as they key standard is equality, a lot of corporates have since 2010, provided more opportunities for women.
Corporates are taking a cautious approach to be gender sensitive as gender policy can affect a corporate’s image and brand.

Therefore, when recruiting staff, many corporates ensure there is gender balance by ensuring the recruitment in not too skewed to favour one gender.

There has been a huge policy shift supporting women and youth owned businesses in access to procurement opportunities and finance.

At least 30 percent of all Government tenders are reserved for this group and at least 30 percent of the budgetary allocation is for this group. This means it is easier for women owned enterprises to supply goods and services in the requisite category.

There are many financial institutions that provide access to credit for women. This is because some women lacked collateral to use as security for a loan because of cultural hindrances. Before the shift in the legal environment, married women were challenged in inheriting a portion of their parents ‘property because the assumption was she would enjoy her husband’s portion.
The law allows all children whether women or men, married or single to inherit.

The specialist women finance institutions sought to address this challenge.

There are more mentorship and training opportunities for women-led businesses. I have benefited from such initiatives that support networking, mentorship, training and placement. This is because the demand for women led suppliers has gone up.

Globally, board diversity is an emerging trend. A good board is one that is diverse in terms of expertise, age, location and gender.

In closing, do not forget the environment is supportive, therefore you have no excuse not to excel.

The Books That Mould Us

Posted on by Hellen Githaiga

By Daisy Okoiti

Dr Laila Macharia, Director at Africa Digital Media Group, Absa Kenya , and Centum Investments

What are you currently reading?
“Everything Happens for a Reason and Other Lies I’ve Loved, “Factfulness” and “The Great Stagnation”.

How many books do you read in a year?
I usually have three different ones open at a time, so perhaps 20 or 30 a year.

How would you describe your library?

Eclectic. There’s lots on the state of our planet. Old favourite books like “Guns, Germs & Steel” sit next to more recent tomes like “Get Better at Getting Better” and “Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow.” I cherished the late Hans Rosling so I’ve just started “Factfulness”. I have a policy to buy and read anything my friends write or recommend so I have Amy Chua and Anand Giridharadas’ books.

I have many biographies from Wangari Maathai and Margaret Thatcher to Lee Kuan Yew and Prathap Chandra Reddy. As I mature, I find myself drawn to more complicated, pensive memoirs by authors like Anne Lamott and Nancy Mairs who writes on faith, disability and mortality.

Similarly, I love technical and management books that straddle French, law and business but lean to the practical, covering scaling and turnarounds, like “Built to Sell”, “No Man’s Land” and contrarian ones like the “Illusions of Entrepreneurship.” Also, religious debate like “The Meaning of Jesus”, “The Thinking Person’s Guide to God” and “A Big-Enough God”. And I have books on religious politics, “The Future of Islam,” “God’s Politics” and “What’s the Matter with Kansas?” I also have the inevitable section on marriage, parenting, housekeeping and health. And children’s books and puzzles seem to be taking more shelves each year.

And at work?
Management has a standard reading list that includes “Good Boss, Bad Boss: How to Be the Best … and Learn from the Worst”, “The 4 Disciplines of Execution”, “The Checklist Manifesto”, “The Founder’s Mentality” and “Radical Candor.”

How many books do you have?
Over 700.

When did your love for reading begin?

Probably in the womb! My parents are great readers. My mother still completes the crossword every day and beats everyone at Scrabble. Pressure. (Laughs) We were taught that each book was a treasure. You never write in a book, highlight or dog-ear it. A book was to be preserved and passed down.

What is that one thing young people ought to understand about the importance of reading?

Reading is liberation, mentorship, adventure, perspective… and you become a better writer by reading.

Softcopy or hard copy?
Hard copy. The smell and look of any library takes me back to childhood.

It’s a visceral connection to hearth and home and to everything I treasure most.

Where do get your books?
Books are borrowed and shared. Some are bought used or new online or from shiny or dusty bookstores.

——

Dr Nancy Muriuki, Chairman at Kasneb, CEO Africa Success Enhancement Lab

What are you currently reading?
I am a polygamous reader. So, I have three books open before me; “Courageous Leaders: Transforming Their World” which was birthday gift I got from my children, “Boards That Deliver: Advancing Corporate Governance From Compliance to Competitive Advantage” which I got at an award ceremony in 2017, “Reinvention: Accelerating Results in the Age of Disruption” which was recommended by a colleague.

Which books have influenced your leadership style?
The Bible,“The Power of Servant-Leadership”, “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” and many others by John Maxwell. Earlier on, Ben Carson’s writings were a destiny changer for me

You are heavy on non-fiction …
Absolutely. I am drawn to literature that embodies actual life. I also search for knowledge in whatever area I am involved in. For example, I am reading many books on youth and marriage because I mentor them. We learn through mistakes but we may not always live long enough to make all the mistakes ourselves before we can learn. So reading other people’s experiences is an opportunity to learn.

When did reading become serious business for you?
In college. I read many books on dating then.

How many books do you read in a year?
Three to five, depending on how busy a year is. The number was bigger before because I had more time in salons or when travelling.

One advice to young women professionals?
Learning is a lifelong journey. If you’d like to remain progressive and relevant, you must cultivate a reading culture. In life, you learn and unlearn as you grow. If you are depending on knowledge acquired 10 years ago, you are in trouble. Also, as you get older, life gets busier, so seize all the time you have now to read.

Hard copy or soft copy?
I did my PhD online so that introduced me to reading online. However, I still prefer hard copy, to buy and keep my books.

——-

Rose Kimotho, MD and founder of Three Stones, a board member at Stanbic Bank, PSI Kenya, and Cytonn Investments

When did your love for reading begin?
When I was a little girl. My father emphasised reading a lot. His rule was that when he returns from work, everyone was expected to be reading. This grew on us. He would come home with book series in several volumes, sometimes up to 12 such as “Reader’s Digest”, “Uncle Ben’s Story”, “Uncle Arthur’s bedtime stories.

I don’t know if they are sold the same way these days. Each time we completed a volume, we went back to my father for more and he would be so pleased. So even at that age, I could not understand why people would not want to read.

Any preference in genres?
I’m into fiction. But I’m getting into the non-fiction space, autobiographies. I also like spy books and comedy. “The Complete Henry Root Letters” is a favourite.

How important is reading to a corporate leader?
Reading broadens your mind about people. Books teach you about different personalities, characters and what motivates people. If you limit your world to the people you know, you will not understand the broad spectrum that is human nature and what triggers people.

Part of the lesson in management is understanding why people behave the way they do. And as a leader, I have to get people to produce — because you do not produce yourself. To get people to produce, you must know them.

When I launched Kameme FM, there was a shame about vernacular. People in rural areas spoke vernacular and it identified the uneducated. I knew people loved their mother tongues so I had to look for insights on the shame and what could draw people back in.

What are you reading?
I want to start reading “Satya Nadella’s first book: Hit Refresh.” I want to understand how companies transform and restrategise.

What do you prefer, hard or soft copy?
I’m still attached to hard copies — smelling and turning the pages. I like to sit with a book.

I buy my books mostly from Amazon. But I have a Kindle, I’m trying to force myself into the 21st Century. It will be a loss for me when all books are gone.

When do you read?
When I go to bed. It is a nice way to switch off. I also read over the weekends.

How many books do you have?
I have no idea! The older I get the more books I get.