This International Women’s Day (IWD), we’re reflecting on both the progress and the persistent challenges in achieving gender equity in leadership.
For many women, IWD brings mixed emotions. On the one hand, it’s an important moment to celebrate women’s achievements and honour the hard-fought gains of the women that came before us, fighting for equal pay, the right to vote, and the right for equality. On the other, some IWD celebrations can feel tokenistic (cupcake anyone?) rather than a genuine commitment to real progress.
Then there is the worrying trend, originating in the US, of global organisations abandoning DEI initiatives. The National winner of the 2025 Australian Awards for Excellence in Women’s Leadership said it best in a recent op-ed about the DEI backlash.
“This award comes to me at a moment when I plan to support an Australian approach to navigate DEI. Let’s not slip back as other countries have or may do.” Cathy Foley, former Chief Scientist of Australia.
That’s why this year’s IWD UN Women theme—March Forward: For All Women and Girls—and the call to action, “It’s time to turn promises into progress,” feel so poignant.
More than a decade after Julia Gillard’s famous misogyny speech, many women still face sexism, out-dated messaging that they just aren’t leaders, or the absence of mentorship or sponsorship to support their career journey. Recently in a debate about proposed gender pay gap targets an MP suggested the cause was simply that “many women don’t want to be CEOs of companies or take leadership roles”, rather than the systemic barriers that hold women back from leadership opportunities.
We need to stop peddling excuses for persistent inequities, that are disproportionately borne by women.
The Leadership Data We Can’t Ignore
Earlier this week the Workplace Gender Equality Agency released the latest gender pay data, showing that the gender pay gap remains stagnant. Women earn, on average, 78 cents for every dollar a man earns, amounting to nearly $29,000 less per year. And despite making up 51% of the workforce, women hold just 22% of CEO roles and 40% of senior management positions.
Our recent survey about the leadership ambitions of aspiring and experienced women leaders from the public and private sector reveals the truth. 89% said they wanted to develop their leadership capabilities, but 94% said they face barriers to progressing their career. Barriers included a lack of career progression opportunities (51%), lack of mentorship (50%), lack of management support (39%), gender bias (38%) and an unsupportive workplace culture (37%).
These findings and the WGEA data make one thing clear: ambition is not the issue—systemic barriers such as limited access to development opportunities is. We’re committed to our part in the solution – by engaging with organisations to deliver practical leadership programs and development opportunities to support women’s leadership growth.
That’s why this year for IWD, Women & Leadership Australia is not doing cupcakes or cookies, or an event without a call to action. For us IWD isn’t just once a year—it’s every day of the year that we work to break down these barriers, help women advance their careers, and help organisations harness the full potential of their workforce.
Beyond IWD – Practical Ways to Support Your Women Leaders
- Gather a team and attend the Australian Women’s Leadership Symposiums – read how the Dreamworld team use the event as a springboard for innovation and inclusive practices.
- Implement a mentoring program to develop your leaders from within – read about Navitas’s award winning mentoring program.
- Invest in leadership development – explore our range of programs designed for women at every level of their career – read more about the leadership journeys of our alumni here.
- Run an Inclusive Leadership in Action Program for your leadership team – explore how this helped NEMA’s leadership team enhance their culture and develop a shared understanding of Inclusive Leadership practices.
