Closing the Gender Gap: How to Advance More Women into Sports Leadership

I wish I could find better words than 'deeply passionate' to express my commitment to supporting women in the sports industry. Passionate is an overused term, but right now, it will do!

In this article, I am sharing just what I have been up to since 2017, when I had an epiphany about the role I had to play in sport. When I had my realisations back then, I decided to do a bit of research, to better understand what the status quo really was for women in sport. That has now morphed and grown into independent and self-funded research to better understand and address the deeply ingrained gender inequalities within the Australian sports sector since 2017.  The research informs my approach to DEI strategy and the advice I provide to leaders across all sectors.

Starting Out 

When I started out, with a simple desktop survey and using WGEA data, I discovered:

• Women held only 3.9% of CEO positions in sports, significantly lower than the already low 16.5% across all other sectors. 
• There was a 31.6% gender pay gap. 
• 70% of female respondents felt that their gender impeded their career progression.
• The sporting industry is filled with highly talented but highly frustrated women.
  

‍

70% of female respondents felt that their gender impeded their career progression.

In 2019, I conducted a deeper examination of attitudes towards gender equality in sports along with the represetnation of women in leadership in sport. This involved a comprehensive survey of nearly 900 people of all genders in sport, paid and volunteers, and again using WGEA, AICD and other quantitative data.

My second report showed that despite a growing awareness of the underrepresentation of women in sport at that time, the continuance of male dominance in key roles and that the industry had failed to leverage women's full potential. Coupled with this was the distinct need for more insights and resources to help sports leaders make change, as information was largely academic and not easily accessible.

Changing Direction

My third report was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Still, I redirected my efforts to create the Advancing Women on Sports podcast with the first season called "Not Just a Statistic: Stories of Women in Sport from the Playing Field to the Boardroom." I chose to do this to amplify the voices of diverse women in the industry and provide sports administrators with a resource to make a change. This season highlighted, amongst other things, the fragmented efforts to address gender inequality and the absence of intentional dialogue at decision-making levels.

An absence of intentional dialogue at decision-making levels.

The success of my podcast led to another season in 2023, called "The Boys Club: Stories of People in Sport Smashing the Patriarchy" where I featured stories of individuals of all genders who are challenging patriarchal norms and promoting gender equality in sports. Despite some progress, the findings revealed that women, especially those with intersecting identities, still face significant barriers in leadership roles.

My Current Focus

My current research and the third season of the podcast aim to assess shifts in attitudes towards gender equality since 2019 and explore the persisting barriers to women's career and leadership advancement in sports. More importantly, I want to (again) provide the calls to action for sports leaders and administrators to close the leadership gender gap in sports. 

I want to (again) provide the calls to action for sports leaders and administrators to close the leadership gender gap in sports. 

Early analysis of the survey responses from 2023 shows that:

• Attitudes towards women and non-binary people in sport remain contradictory.
• 55% of people in sport believe that gender inequality exists in sporting workplaces.
• 88% of people in sport believe they have a role in achieving gender equality.
• 34% of people believe their organisation is taking sufficient action to address gender inequality. 

Unsurprisingly, there is still a long way to go, despite women's elite sport gaining much-needed funding and exposure in 2023. The gains made by elite level and in professional women's sports are very positive, but these gains are not being felt at other levels, including attitudes about and opportunities for women in sports administration and leadership. 

I have zero doubt that advancing more women into sports leadership is crucial for the sports industry's holistic and sustainable development and progress. So join me in helping to close the leadership gender gap in sport by downloading the reports and listening to the podcast. Then, engage me to co-design your Advancing Women in Sport strategy and implementation plan.