IN EASTERN EUROPE, CHIVALRY IS STILL


THOSE CUSTOMS ARE NOW REGARDED AS OUTDATED OR ANTI-FEMINIST.


be regarded as strong but far from respectable,” Eszter admits, “and I’m afraid some women managers mistake this as model behaviour to follow.


“Especially since I moved from the consumer goods industry into construction, I have encountered several high level women, who think that in order to be taken seriously, you have to adopt what are considered to be male traits: assertiveness, decisiveness, drive, ambition, etc. I would argue with the notion that these are in any way ‘male’ traits, but that is a different subject.


“The problem is that many women confuse these traits with being unprofessional, rude, aggressive, antagonistic or outright hysterical, which are all characteristics of ineffective managers, whether they be male or


Tomorrow's Flooring: Women in Flooring


female. Yes, there are hysterical male managers too, who bottle up stress and take it out on their employers in various ways. In order for a woman to be a good manager, I don’t think she has to turn into a man or a pitbull or anyone else other than herself, for that matter. I have met some really inspirational women during my time in the consumer goods industry who – without exception – were quietly confident, balanced and strong women. They not only were successful in their own work (directors and vice presidents of their own divisions), but also showed that women at the company could succeed without turning into someone they were not.”


So, as a respected woman in a leadership role, how does she feel about the fact that at last year’s Flooring Show, one stand hired young


ALIVE, WHEREAS IN THE WEST SOME OF


women to dress in bikinis and stiletto heels to hand out information to visitors? “This makes little sense to me as an advertising tool,” she says. “The audience for this product is clearly male, which is a bit presumptive, since women also make decisions about flooring products. Being a sustainability consultant, I – for one – often recommend products to clients, and it’s not the lady in the hot pants that influences my recommendation. And, for the record, I don’t believe that a similarly scantily-clad man would do the trick either!


“On the other hand, if I were a man, I’d think that the aforementioned scantily- clad lady would distract me from the product itself, so again, I am not sure what this advertising trick achieves other than playing to the most base instincts of people, which I’d consider to be an insult to men too. To me, advertisements like that in any industry seem very 1980s, and the times when products like soft drinks used to be advertised by half-naked women. Looking at a company that had similar practices would make me think that they also belong to a different century.”


Eszter’s opinions may be strong, but it is quite clear that they are well-thought through and thoroughly backed up. “My overall goal in my professional life is to be really good at what I do and be respected for it, but that is not the same as being feared.” Anybody who aims to gain respect, and not strike fear in the hearts of those who work for her, in the style of the Anna Wintour meets Maggie Thatcher caricature we so often hear about, must be on to something.


The route to success is never set in stone. If Eszter could give out a secret formula, we’d all be clamouring for it, and I might even have been kind enough to have shared it here. What she can say, however, is that: “Self- belief is really important, especially because support networks are often more difficult to find for women in male dominated industries. Look for inspirational role models whose personal values you can identify with.”


With a story like that, it looks like Eszter is well on her way to becoming a role model herself.


04


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