July 29, 2016

Janet Salazar: UN Representative Shares a Real Solution for Diversity

31 minutes

While the world has seen many women stake their claims as leaders, there is still a gap between genders in terms of leadership. In today’s episode, Janet Salazar, human potential activist and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, talks about a solution to bridge the gap and create real change. She discusses her innovative dialogue series, Conversations with Men™, a pioneering and groundbreaking executive forum with the mission of engaging men in leadership roles to accelerate women’s leadership at the top, and achieving gender equality.

Janet relates her own experiences with taking on responsibility and management, and how that helped her gain her position in the UN and establish Impact Leadership 21, a social enterprise dedicated to sustainable leadership worldwide. She also discusses her thoughts on leadership, and the importance of having men be champions for women leaders.

While the world still has some distance before achieving a better balance between genders in terms of leadership, Janet’s initiatives are paving the way for a future for the best and brightest leaders, whether male or female.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Just how big the gap is between men and women in leadership roles.

• How Impact Leadership 21 has been empowering men and women for sustainable leadership.

• What the Conversations With Men forum has been doing to bring awareness about this disparity.

• Why Janet wishes to someday do away with the term “women’s leadership”.

Tweetables:

• I believe that the changes that need to happen have to come from conscious decision from leadership.

• At the end of the day, it really boils down to humanity and being human. There is no gender.

Big Takeaways:

• Many organizations, such as the United Nations, have been working to empower both men and women for leadership positions. Notably, the leaders of the private sector are highly influential in this scenario, and making them aware of their influence is a key step to bridging this gap.

• Women leadership is not just about salary increases or positions. It is about realizing the economic impact that women bring to the table as well, and involving them to be part of it.

• Having conversations with male champions of female empowerment is a powerful tool that can help advance gender equality in leadership.