Page 34 - Australian Defence Magazine September 2018

DEFENCE BUSINESS
WIDA
“I worked with more Ians in the Combat Systems team than women. I worked with more Johns in the management team than women...”
ADM - LEIGH ATKINSON
ADM - LEIGH ATKINSON ADM - LEIGH ATKINSON
“With over 300 engineering and techni- cal personnel in our project team, there were only three other women. I worked with more Ians in the Combat Systems team than women. I worked with more Johns in the management team than women.
“Visibility matters. Recognition matters.”
That, in a nutshell, is the purpose be- hind the Women in Defence Awards.
It is worth spelling out clearly. Young women thinking of pursuing careers in Defence, in STEM, or related fields are more likely to do so if they see other wom- en in the area.
Numbers are not the only measure of equality, but they are a fair indication of whether an organisation is achieving eq- uity of access and opportunity.
Improvements have been made, but there is much more to be done. Women make up roughly 40 per cent of the Defence APS workforce, below the wider APS average of 57 per cent, according to government figures. Many Defence industry companies fail to have a nexus of women in senior lead- erships positions at a board level.
When 30 per cent female representation delivers significant bottom line results, according to the Australian Institute of Company Directors, this lack of presence is startling.
Top: Finalists gather for the pre-event networking drinks
Middle: Minister for Defence Senator MArise Payne and Hall of Fame inductee
Ms Shireane McKinnie.
Bottom: Communications category winner Nicole Davies of Broadspectrum (left) and Boeing’s Director of Communications Karinne Cilento.
34 | September 2018 | www.australiandefence.com.au