Women on the road to greater success and visibility

In October, the Euregio Inntal invited to the event Success Factors for Women in Working Life at novum in Kufstein. The event focused on inspiring insights from successful women from Bavaria and Tyrol, who described their professional careers and highlighted paths to success. A particular highlight was the keynote speech by Prof. Kristina Kampfer, a professor at the University of Applied Sciences Kufstein Tirol, who, under the provocative title “Is success gender-biased?” highlighted the challenges that still exist for women in professional life and provided specific ideas on how these can be overcome.

WOMEN ARE STILL DISADVANTAGED

At the beginning of her presentation, Kampfer pointed out the structural disadvantages that women still experience. A key example is the “gender pay gap”, which shows that women in the Kufstein district will work 73 days unpaid this year compared to their male colleagues. But the disadvantage goes beyond their salary: lower pensions, a high proportion of unpaid work and the “glass ceiling” at management levels are further, often invisible hurdles. In Austria, for example, only 12.2 percent of management positions are held by women, which impressively illustrates the structural imbalance.

SELF-LEADERSHIP AS THE KEY TO SUCCESS

But Kampfer didn't just take stock; she also presented concrete ways in which women can take their success into their own hands. A central approach here is “self-leadership”. “Self-leadership means treating yourself as a good friend would treat you, focusing on your own strengths and pursuing goals with resilience,” explains Kampfer. An important aspect is self-care and balance, which help you to shape your own success.

Women should celebrate their successes and build on their potential. Another important point is to be aware of your own prejudices – not only in dealing with others, but also with yourself. In this context, Kampfer points to the phenomenon of “unconscious bias”, in which women unconsciously harbor prejudices against other women as well. A study by YouGov showed that almost one in five women would rather work for a male boss, while only 8 percent prefer a woman at the top. These deeply rooted thought patterns need to be questioned.

VISIBILITY AND POSITIONING – THE WAY TO MORE INFLUENCE

The importance of visibility was also discussed. “If you're not visible, you're invisible and ineffective to yourself and others,” emphasized Kampfer. Visibility doesn't have to take place on a big stage, but also in everyday life: Does your family know what you do for a living? Is your commitment seen? Kampfer called on the audience to strengthen their positioning and to communicate clearly what they stand for and what they want to achieve.

BRAVE THE FUTURE – WITH MUTUAL SUPPORT

In her presentation, Kampfer also gave an outlook on the next steps in supporting women on their way to greater success. One example of this is the “Empow(h)er” initiative, which empowers women who want to advance to management positions. Through lectures, workshops and networking events, women are to develop their leadership skills and advance their careers with self-confidence and determination.

“With self-confidence, self-management and targeted visibility, women can take their success into their own hands. Mutual support is particularly important in this. Projects like 'Empow(h)er' are an example of how we can create more diversity in leadership positions together and open doors for everyone,” says Kampfer, summarizing her message.

The lecture was very well received by the participants and sent a strong signal for more equality and visibility of women in the world of work. The next event in the “Empow(h)er” series will soon provide an opportunity to exchange ideas with like-minded people and work together on the next steps towards a more equal future.