The Bullog - September 2022

(Un) equal Opportunities

How far should we take the notion of equal opportunities in the workplace? Are there some jobs that are simply better suited to a woman than a man or vice versa?

More than a few eyebrows were raised when Teeside Council in Scotland appointed Jason Grant, a man in his 30s as their new Period Dignity Officer. It provoked a huge storm on social media where high-profile celebrities such as Tennis Star Martina Navratilova called it “f****** absurd”. ?I must confess that when I first read the article I was inclined to think exactly the same.?

I’m absolutely delighted that my native Scotland is the first country in the world to legislate to grant free access to sanitary products in public places through the Period Products Act.?Campaigners have argued that they should be as accessible toilet roll which I think is spot on.?Grant’s role will be to drive an awareness campaign for the new law across schools and colleges and help ensure government funding is allocated effectively.

The job advert asked for a?"successful track record of engaging and empowering a large range of people from a diverse range of cultural and socio-economic backgrounds, in particular young people who menstruate".

But why pick a man for such a role?

The local authority defended its decision by saying that Grant was by far the best qualified candidate for the role and that it was mostly about program management. Critics argue that the role would be far better done by a woman who obviously has more first hand knowledge and experience of the subject. I don’t want to open any cans of worms and am a completely neutral observer in this controversial and fascinating debate.?However, it did make me think whether we should only have male doctors talking to men about testicular cancer and only women doctors talking about breast cancer. Seems absurd.

The broader question for me is whether we, in business, should be hiring based on optics or capabilities. ??Here’s an interesting statistic for you: across the entire US population 14.5% of men are 6ft or taller, yet amongst the Fortune 500 CEOs it is a staggering 58%!?I remember listening to a presentation by financial trader turned author Michael Lewis, who quoted a similar statistic and drew the conclusion that the US Fortune 500 CEOs who are shorter than average must be extra good because they didn’t get the job simply looking the part – they must be extra good.?He invested in companies with shorter than average height CEOs and made abnormal returns versus the market.?Pretty smart.?

Lewis then went on to extend this philosophy into his bestselling book (and subsequent movie) called Moneyball which applied the same analytics to how baseball teams picked their players.?It charts the story of Oakland A’s coach Billy Beane who bought players who didn’t look the part, saved a fortune on salaries and outperformed far better funded rivals.

I wish Jason Grant the best of luck in his important new role and if nothing else, his controversial appointment may help to drive awareness for this ground breaking new law and help to remove the stigma around women’s menstrual health.

(STOP PRESS: As this edition was about to be sent, news came out that Jason Grant lost his job as Period Dignity Officer and is taking legal action against the local authority for what he terms a “public dismissal”)

This article is an extract from the?September edition of my Bullog,?my monthly?blog. To read the full blog or to sign up to receive The Bullog directly each month?visit………www.gibbulloch.com/bullog.