After women's conference gaffe, here's what leading women say they really need

They were told to smile, relax at home to maintain their appearance and pray if times got tough but attendees at a government-led women's conference Wednesday weren't having any of it.

Outrage over a 1936 booklet containing tips for success that some criticized as antiquated,presented at a networking sessionby a male speaker from the Dale Carnegie training program,seemed to overshadowthe Women in Leadership event.

With a man at the podium for over an hour, women didn't actually get much time to speak up, critics said.But achance to workthe room would have revealed women's distinct approachto networking, saidKelly Hickey, a business owner seated in the audience that day.

'Do you have children?'

To break the ice, according to Hickey, the male presenter advised asking about other women's children, which struck her as out of touch and insensitive.

"There's a million reasons not to ask that," she said.

"How do you spend your days? What are your passions? Why are you here?" she said.

"These are things that we actually talk about, and we didn't need a man on that stage to tell us how to talk to each other."

Strong ties needed

Lori LeeOates, a historian and lecturer at Memorial University,agreed it was an unfortunateoversight that the networking session ended up as it did, especially considering how women need strong professional relationships in order to overcome traditional barriers.

"Everything we know in the literature on women in business, women in the workplace we know that networking absolutely has to be a priority if you want to address the issue of women in leadership," she said.

"Women have a harder time finding mentors than men do. Women frequently, in the workplace, get left out of drinks after work, or golf on the weekends with co-workers.

"All of those are things that affect a woman's ability to move forward in business, if you don't have the networks and mentors to help advance you."

"Women are often more like lateral power leaders," Hickey said.

"I'm not a person who's into biological determinism, but there is a behavioural pattern that is undeniable. Women in leadership tend to have the more lateral power, they tend to listen more.

"If you have a critical number of women in decision-making bodies [whether]it's a family, or a community, or a town council, they're more inclusive, they're more consensus-building, they're more environmentally friendly, they'remore family-friendly."

Giving women space

But as long as men hog centre stage, Hickey said, none of that can materialize.

It's "condescending to assume that women don't know how to talk to each other," she said of Wednesday's session.

"Instead of having an opportunity to actually network, there was a man up on stage who was rather tone deaf abouthow to speak to women taking up all of the time, and all of the air, in the room."

Hickey recalls glancing around her table at women she admired and had hoped to network with, thinking, "'I don't want to hear from this guy.'There's already an overrepresentation of men's narrative, and an underrepresentation of women's narrative," she said.

Ball defends 'fiasco'

The provincial Oppositioncriticized the event's organization in Monday's question period at the House of Assembly, calling whathappeneda "fiasco."

Premier Dwight Ball defended his work on gender parity. "No othergovernmentin the history of this province, no other government inCanada, has set aside a department for the status of women," he said.

"That is our commitment to women's leadership," Ball continued. "We have seen ... significant progress in the number of women that are in leadership roles on our boards, agencies and commissions."

Minister Carol Anne Haley, heading the newly formed Office for the Status of Women, said there were "lots of positives" coming out of the event.

"The conference was a tremendousopportunity," she said. "Iacknowledgethere were issues with the networking session and I apologize for that."

In a scrum with reporters, Haley was pressed by CBC's Anthony Germain about complaints from members of the opposition parties, who claimed they never received an invitation to the conference.

NDP Leader Gerry Rogers said the event seemed "hastily pulled together," calling it a PR stunt that did little to advance the conversation. She said she was not directly invited to the conference.

Watch Minister Carol Anne Haleyexplain who did and didn't get an invitation:

Pressed for answers

6 years ago

Duration 2:40

Carol-Anne Haley speaks with reporters, including the CBC's Anthony Germain, about whether opposition MHAs were invited to a women's conference

Oatesagreed the event was generally positive, and expressed disappointment thatthe gaffe eclipsed recent announcements by the Ball government.

"Iwas really pleased with the policy directions. That seems, to me, to bemirroringwhere the federalgovernmentis going," she said, addingtheTrudeaugovernment's gender-parity policies are held up internationally.

Oatessaid government leadership isessential to getting more women into decision-making roles, which she views as a universal benefit.

"We need women's voices there. We need to create the space, we need to encourage, we need to empower, so that we can have a brighter future."

Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador