Unity in Diversity - Breaking Cultural Barriers

Presented by Women on Boards and the WOB Cultural Diversity Committee

Sponsored by Grant Thornton

Australia is one of the most culturally diverse nations in the world. Since 1949, we have welcomed more than 6 million new citizens to our shores who identify with more than 270 ancestries. This rich cultural diversity is one of our greatest strengths and is central to our national identity.

Women on Boards’ vision is gender balance and cultural diversity within board and leadership roles. As advocates for women, WOB's Cultural Diversity Committee focuses on elevating cultural diversity within boards by working to address the barriers to opportunity and access for culturally diverse women in Australian boardrooms.

Through this inaugural national breakfast series (held in Perth, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney), WOB fostered unity and connection by hosting a panel discussion on the topic of Breaking Cultural Barriers.

The key objectives of WOB's Cultural Diversity Committee are to:

1. Drive better governance through diversity.

2. Share lived experiences on navigating and breaking cultural barriers.

3. Elevate more women with different backgrounds and experiences into boardrooms.

Perth's Women on Boards Unity in Diversity - Breaking Cultural Barriers

National Citizenship Day Breakfast

Today we were privileged to be able to celebrate Australia's rich cultural heritage with a panel of extraordinarily accomplished women, including:

Jahna Cedar OAM

Jahna is a Nyiyaparli woman from the Pilbara region of Western Australia and a prominent Indigenous community leader. She is the youngest person elected to the WA International Women's Day Hall of Fame in 2012, winning Business News 40 Under 40 and Telstra Businesswomen Awards WA in 2017, receiving the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2020, and being named WA recipient of The Australian Awards for Excellence in Women's Leadership in 2022. In 2023, she delivered a TEDx talk on "walking in two worlds" and became one of ten founding Blak Angel Investors.

Dr Sandy Chong

A Harvard Alumna and Principal of Verity Consulting, Dr Sandy Chong is the winner of USA Stevie? International Business Awards for Executive of the Year, and Entrepreneur of the Year, Asia's Top Sustainability Women of the Year, and the Singapore Management Consultant of the Year. Sandy is the first Asian to be elected as President of the United Nations Association in WA as well as being appointed onto the board of WA Indigenous Tourism Council. She has shared her vision on leadership, international strategy and inclusion at the Harvard Leadership Summit, World Economic Forum's Davos Agenda for Women in Tech, and most recently at the United Nations conferences in Geneva.

Elizabeth Lang

Elizabeth Lang is the Founding CEO of Diversity Focus, a research and training consultancy advocating for workplace inclusivity, with an emphasis on racial and gender equity. Elizabeth is a recognised speaker on international stages, including presentations at the United Nations in Geneva. Elizabeth was named in the 2021 Global 100 Under 40 Most Influential People of African Descent. She has received prestigious awards, including 2023 Business Migrant Award and 2024 finalist of the Telstra Best of Business Awards.

Walking in Three Worlds: Western, Cultural and the Space Between

Jahna shared a powerful story about her great grandfather choosing not to hand over his cultural heritage and assimilate with colonial Australians.?Thankfully in the times we live in today, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are able to practice culture and custodianship of country and be celebrated as Australians.

She reminded the audience it’s not her job, or any other Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person, to educate you on 300+ different Indigenous nations within Australia. She is happy to walk shoulder to shoulder with you on your journey but won’t take on that cultural load that is imposed so often, on so many minorities.

Sandy echoed this sentiment, sharing a story of when she was appointed as the first woman to an ASX board, she was told she will be of great value in negotiations with Asian stakeholders - based on the assumption that being Singaporean Chinese Asian she could speak for all Asian cultures.?

Jahna talked about being a bridge between corporate culture and 65,000 years of cultural governance, where at times there will be tension, and a paradox between the two, which needs to be navigated purposefully.

Key Differences in Culture

The panelists shared how in Indigenous, Asian and African cultures, broadly speaking, community is valued and prioritised over individual values. As is respect for Elders, and the elderly or more senior members of a group. Collective decision making is a priority and Leaders are often?the last to speak, not the first: a powerful skill of well seasoned board Chairs.

Sandy shared how Western culture is very transactional, compared to Singaporean Asian culture (and many First Nations cultures) being far more nuanced and contextual.?

The Business Case for Diversity

Sandy challenged the sentiment that ‘it’s hard’ to build diversity on boards. She has seen first hand how homogenous boards have been flipped to include diversity and intersectionality across numerous areas. She also managed to do this on the UNAAWA board she Chairs in a relatively short period.

"All great teams go through storming after forming, before norming and then performing," she said.

Sandy shared the business case for diversity in that diverse boards and companies typically achieve greater profits, and are more innovative.?

"Thailand ranks among the top 1 percent in the S&P Sustainability Yearbook 2024, and also has some of the highest diversity at board level and the C-suite."

"80% of the world population is not Western," stated Sandy, reminding board directors of the commercial need to consider the demographic of their market and customers, and strive to have that representation at board level, or at least their voice heard and respected.

Tackling Bias

In response to tackling bias, Elizabeth will often comment in meetings or a conversation: “That’s a really interesting way you asked that question.”

She shared that dialogue begins with an invitation to others to speak. "I may have ideas, but I don’t need to be the first to share them. Sitting back and allowing others to speak up is a key element to inclusivity."?

“We don’t need more mentoring of the women, or women of colour. We need the culture in boardrooms to change,” she said.

Many times in board recruitment we only think one dimensionally. It’s not uncommon to hear boards, or programs, commenting we’ll address gender diversity first, then racial diversity. People are not one dimensional, there is always intersectionality. Elizabeth asks the rhetorical question... "Am I a woman or African?"

"I’m actually a black woman who brings all of that experience to the table."

On Imposter Syndrome:?

Jahna shared, I still have major imposter syndrome. Still when I walk into a room as the only women or only Indigenous person, I feel like I don’t deserve my seat at the table, or I’m not smart enough, and I get tongue tied trying to make a point. I coach and mentor others on how to overcome imposter syndrome, and... I also need to practice that positive self talk equally myself.

Sandy shared, a lot of the time building trust and connection is the fastest way to be able to influence others compared to wowing them with great commentary. Just being yourself helps to build that connection.

“What is meant for you will not go paste you,” she reminded the audience.?

Elizabeth suggested considering what portion of imposter syndrome is inherent vs picking up on what others are saying about you and the way they are behaving around you.

Marilyn echoed this sentiment stating we need to navigate rooms full of projections. We’re not responsible for that, but we need to navigate it.?

Top piece of advice from each of the panelists:?

Jahna: "Allyship. Don’t lead us, we don’t need you to lead us. Walk shoulder to shoulder and open some of those doors, or smash those glass ceilings with us."

Sandy: "As a Singaporean Chinese Asian, I’m very straight forward," she said. "As a company director you want the best people on your team. Open your eyes, ignore the colour, what you see in front of you, and truly recruit for the best. We still have unconscious bias, let’s move to Scandinavian and United Nations recruitment processes of removing names from CVs as an example of removing bias in recruitment."

Elizabeth: "More of us need to be willing to get more comfortable with being uncomfortable. Instead of defaulting to safe conversations, engage in constructive and meaningful dialogues. It’s not easy, but this will drive the change we want to see."?

And in response to a powerful question asked from Divya-Jyoti Sharma the audience...

Question: “Yes I’m Indian, but I’m also Australian, what is your advice to your children on how to navigate these racial barriers. It doesn’t matter how long we’ve been here, we still look different. What is the legacy we leave our children?“

Sandy responded saying her parents always backed her, encouraging her to be proud and appreciate her culture, and to always stand behind her values.

“People can attack colour, your accent, the way you look, but they can never attack your values,” she said.

Jahna highlight that her children have been raised with multiculturalism.

"We can build resilient children, but at what point is society going to take responsibility for racism and lateral violence?" she said.?

Finally, Elizabeth simply stated:

“If racism and hate is taught, equity and respect can be taught.”

Women on Boards is pleased about the recent announcement of CALD targets by the Australian Public Service Commission and hope to leverage the momentum in steering conversation in breaking cultural barriers and bringing unity in diversity across Australian boardrooms and leadership teams.

#2024UnityInDiversity #DiverseWomen4Boards #BreakingCulturalBarriers #WomenOnBoards