EXCURSION • unaware of where to begin to impact structural inequality in the workplace. In our work in Women in Mining, we have learnt many lessons about what is having an impact – organisations that adopt some of these approaches are seeing the needle move. Here are a few to consider:
Understanding women’ s needs in your organisation: Start by asking women in your organisation about their experiences working there. What is working well? What needs to improve? And, what needs to be done to address their challenges? engaging awareness campaigns and opportunities to share initiatives and get the whole organisation involved is critical for buy-in and sustainability.
I left the conference feeling a sense of hope and comradery – that as women, if we can truly champion one another, anything is possible. In the words of Rebeca Andrade, on her competitor, gold medallist Simone Biles:“ I know that she wants to win, but she will continue rooting for me. And she knows that I want to win, but I’ ll keep rooting for her.” •
Leadership support and buy-in: It is critical that any equity initiative is led and supported right from the top. It needs to be put on the agenda, and one way to do this is to share with leaders the outcomes of the above needs analysis and enable leadership to hear directly from women working in their organisation.
Prioritise key areas of focus and create a clear plan: Create a clear plan that addresses the challenges identified in the needs analysis and establish a multi-stakeholder structure to ensure that there is a team to deliver and report regularly on this.
At the Pinpoint Stewards Women and Leadership in Engineering, Innovation & Infrastructure event in March, Taegan Devar, MD of PeopleSmart, asked Dr Gugu Moche group exec: Digital Transformation and acting, DCEO: Research, Innovation, Impact Support and Advancement(@ RIISA), the National Research Foundation of South Africa( NRF),“ What are the steps we should take to tackle unconscious bias the tech sector?”
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Engage the organisation to champion women: This work cannot be accomplished without the collaboration of both men and women to champion the cause. Ensuring that you create
43 % of STEM graduates are women, only 19 % hold senior roles in tech fields. This gap costs the economy billions in lost talent, stifles innovation, limits GDP growth and reduces competitiveness.
About: PeopleSmart( www. peoplesmart. global) is an organisational development consultancy working across South Africa and the continent. The company focusses on leadership development, the design of self-sustaining wellness and safety programmes, Women in Mining, executive coaching, and team building. For more information contact info @ peoplesmart. global.
www. africanmining. co. za African Mining Publication African Mining African Mining • May 2025 • 25