HOME EXAM

LEADERSHIP AND GENDER

FOR: MICHELLE RYDBACK,

BY: MOHAMMAD MASHUKUL ISLAM

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 ANSWER TO THE QUESTION 2

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 Table of Content

INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................ 3

WOMEN IN MANAGEMENT: POLICY AND MEASURES BY TELSTRA.................................. 3

CRITICAL EVALUATION WITH ARGUMENTS … ........................................................... …….3

RECOMMENDTIONS ........................................................................................................................ 6

CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................................... 8

REFERENCES & FIGURES .............................................................................................................. 8

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INTRODUCTION

Alvesson and Billing (2009) presented four positions of view about women in management: Equal
opportunity, Meritocracy, Special contribution, Alternative values. To promote female
leadership and gender diversity in many male-dominated sectors, these positions might be
instrumental & effective. To achieve workplace diversity, Telstra, Australia's biggest telecom
provider, is reforming and redesigning its whole company. I will analyze Telstra management's
actions to encourage female leadership using the following four positions:

WOMEN IN MANAGEMENT: POLICY AND MEASURES BY TELSTRA

Equal Opportunities Position
• Diversity policy that encompasses all
employees and contractors
• Number of flexible working options
• Parental leave for elementary and
secondary careers
• Wide range harassment policy including
sexual harassment
• Equal labor policy with equal pay
• Coaching and sponsorship by leaders
Meritocratic Position
• Performance-based recruiting,
development, promotion, and
compensation.
• Diversity efforts are primarily grounded
on business outcome over processes

Special Contribution Position Alternative Values Position

• A job website for women & social media • A job website for women
tool • Networking to help leaders acquire, retain,
• Networking to help leaders acquire, retain, and grow female talent
and grow female talent
• Suppliers are also prejudiced to practice
diversity
• Special support for violence victim

Fig 1: Employee Management Position of existing procedure and policies of Telstra

CRITICAL EVALUATION WITH ARGUMENTS

1. Equal Opportunities Position
Equal Opportunities Position deals with the underrepresentation of females in management roles
from stereotyping, sexual discrimination, structural circumstances, and illogical social processes.
Telstra has implemented policies to eliminate prejudice and promote equal opportunity. Telstra's
diversity strategy addresses age, religion, life experience, communication styles, education,
functional competence, and problem-solving abilities, eventually striving to eliminate
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underrepresentation of females in leadership posts. Besides, Telstra focuses on equal opportunity
policies like flexible work options for employees, parental leave, harassment management policy,
equal pay policy, and coaching and sponsorship for everyone. These measures and programs aimed
to reduce inequality and increase female management opportunities.

2. Meritocratic Position
The second stance is the Meritocratic Position. Having female employees are vital not for moral
reasons, but for better resource management and competitive advantage & a male applicant can be
considered unless he is significantly underqualified than a female candidate, as defined by Alvesson
& Billing (2009). Telstra executes meritocratic position by diversity drive in entire organization. To
achieve this, Telstra uses performance-based hiring, development, promotion and pay. It appears to
be a Special Contribution Position. Contrary to this notion, I argue for meritocratic approach since
the diversity efforts are based on business outcomes not just a process.

3. Special Contribution Position

The third viewpoint, Special Contribution Position, asserts that women may create significant new
advancements in management since they possess additional credentials that males lack. Women may
be able to bring about a less hierarchical structure, as well as a more democratic and people-oriented
leadership style. Telstra made many initiatives, including developing a particular contribution
position through specific care for domestic violence victims, launching a women-only recruiting
website, and building networking to assist leaders in acquiring, retaining, and growing female talent.
These efforts are being examined under the Special Contribution Position because Telstra want to
improve the benefits of having women in management. Additionally, I propose include
partner/supplier participation in diversity initiatives inside the Special Contribution Position.

4. Alternative Values Position

The Alternative Values Position is a more radical variant of the third stance, in which the idea of
"leadership" is weakened entirely. This argument advocates the establishment of new feminist social
organizations above the inclusion of women in current ones. Dedicated job websites for women,
networking to recruit, retain, and develop female workers are the examples of alternative value
positions steps undertaken by Telstra. Without a doubt, the value of women leaders cannot be

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overstated. However, this approach may be classed as more radical than the particular contribution
perspective. This position disregards the value of male leadership and pushes for female leadership.

RECOMMENDATIONS
RECOMMENDATION FOR ADVANCEMENT TOWARD FEMALE LEADERSHIP
Telstra has already begun to reap the benefits of extensive diversity programs implemented
throughout the firm. However, consistency will be critical for future sustainable growth.
Additionally, I would like to offer a few other arrangements to strengthen and improve the diversity
effort.

a. Employee Fast Track Program

b. Prioritize Passions to bring the Champions
c. Employee Engagement Program _Lunch, Fun, Learn & Reward
d. Launching Telstra Priority Card

Equal Opportunities Position Meritocratic Position

• Launch Telstra Priority Card • Employee Fast Track Program
• Employee Engagement Program

Special Contribution Position Alternative Values Position

• Prioritize Passions to bring the
Champions
Fig 2: Employee management position of new recommendations for Telstra

Employee Fast Track Program

Within the organization, people with all qualities and backgrounds work together to achieve a
common goal. Telstra, for example, is a varied business with a large human resource base and a
wide range of quality levels. However, profit-driven organizations frequently use performance as
the primary metric for evaluating and rewarding employees. Fisher (2001) defined a fast-track career
as one that provides possibilities for promotion to top-level positions through a sequence of
developmental experiences given by the business. This program provides accelerated development
chances for high-potential individuals with the goal of advancing them to senior management

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positions more quickly than those who are not on this track. I urge that Telstra implement a
"Employee Fast Track" initiative to reward high-performing staff with a speedier career path. This
program provides a greater rate of return on both financial and non-financial assets based on
exceptional performance. Telstra might develop a comparable merit-based award and recognition
scheme without jeopardizing the equal opportunity principle. This is entirely a Meritocratic
Position method to increasing the company's efficiency through the utilization of exceptionally
skilled employees.

Prioritize Passions to bring the Champions:

While no job in a business is flawless, it would be ideal to engage employees based on their interests
in order for them to love their work and feel emotionally connected to the workplace. Routine tasks
may lead employees to lose interest in their employment, resulting in employee burnout. Sara Hodon
(2021) said that following one's passion might provide a sense of calm and fulfillment that one may
not receive from one's day work. To promote more female leadership, I would propose that Telstra
enable female new team members to discover something else they are passionate about and want to
pursue, and then design a path to bring them there. This Special Contribution Position will assist
in retaining young female talent that may otherwise quit ship. To recruit and retain female workers,
I would propose Telstra assign duties to those who are enthusiastic about them.

Launch Telstra Priority Card

Employees are always concerned with their benefit packages, which serve to inspire them in their
jobs. Simultaneously, motivation is inextricably related to job satisfaction, which helps employees
stay in their positions over time. These advantages might be real or intangible, but anything that
increases the organization's worth or status in the market can result in increased employee loyalty.
According to Mayank Singhal (2015), work satisfaction has a little effect on employee loyalty,
whereas tangible and intangible goals have a greater influence. With this concept, I believe a large
corporation such as Telstra might introduce a "Telstra Priority Card" as part of its staff motivator
program. Employees can use this card to gain priority access to a variety of services that provide
both real and intangible benefits. This Equal Opportunity Position will increase employee
branding and community participation, as well as provide an opportunity for workers to advocate
for the organization.

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Employee Engagement Program -_Lunch, Fun, Learn & Reward
Markos (2010) argued employee engagement is a better predictor of corporate success. So, I suggest
a monthly staff engagement program for Telstra called "Lunch, Fun, Learn, and Reward" that
promotes learning and competency recognition while having fun. Management may utilize such
casual meetings to announce new regulations and honor personnel. Promoting Equal Opportunity
will help build a diverse and cohesive culture. Positions where men, women, and trans people work
together.

CONCLUSION
Telstra is more placed than ever to lead, tear down boundaries, and actively create the diversity at
work place & I believe Telstra's commitment to diversity will remove unanticipated hurdles while
keeping the team together and the goal in sight.

REFERENCES & FIGURES

1. Fisher, A. 2001. If My Career’s on the Fast Track, Where Do I Get a Road Map? New York:
Morrow
2. Mayank Singhal (2015), JOB SATISFACTION AND EMPLOYEE LOYALTY: A STUDY
OF ACADEMICIANS, Creative and Innovative Excellence for World in Motion At:
Prestige Institute of Management, Gwalior Volume: 6
3. Sara Hodon (2021), Making Your Passion a Higher Priority,
https://workawesome.com/goals/making-your-passion-a-higher-priority/
4. Solomon Markos (2010), Employee Engagement: The Key to Improving Performance,
International Journal of Business and Management.

Figures:
Fig 1: Employee Management Position of existing procedure and policies of Telstra
Fig 2: Employee management position of new recommendations for Telstra

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