The BSGA Column
Greater diversity in the industry means greater ideas
It is an industry that has been predominantly male, but now sign-making seems to be bucking its history. More and more women are excelling in the business and recently more than 80% of FASTSIGN UK’s annual awards went to female colleagues. With this growing influence and push towards industry diversity, the president of the BSGA, David Allen discusses his thoughts.
I
wonder how many people who join a business hear the phrase 'we’ve always done it this way'; I know I did.
I was soon met with a wall of resistance that saw some of my wackier ideas swiftly dispatched into the bin. But how many businesses go by the wayside by failing to harness new potential? There is plenty of research, both anecdotal and factual, on the benefits of a diverse workplace and you do not have to look far to see many large successful brands that take this approach. But you do not have to be big to embrace this challenge in fact I’d say you have no excuse for not doing so. One area we could and should do better is employing women in our industry. I read recently that at the FASTSIGNS UK annual awards, 80% of the accolades went to women. It’s a great achievement, but I can’t help but feel that today, such a story being newsworthy shows how much work there is still to do. It's reckoned that despite women making up 50% of the workplace, just over a quarter of the manufacturing sector are female.
Much is made of women in senior leadership roles but what about those in practical roles more associated with the print trade? While there are no figures to show it, there are encouraging signs that things are changing.
Yet there are still barriers for women that do not exist for men in what is still a male-dominated industry.
Breaking the status quo If I look at my small circle, I can point to several examples of women who have made a real impact on the industry at large.
Sam Armstrong with her training, Paige Walton with the Wrapping
www.signupdate.co.uk
Academy – which offers opportunities to young people who perhaps have been pushed aside – and to others who run their own successful sign businesses.
One has gained a reputation in the Motor Racing sector and our own BSGA managing director also runs her own business. While the
manufacturing industry has made progress
there is still much to be done to level things up.
Main challenge
The main challenge is the lack of awareness of the trade and the diversity of roles available within it.
I read a quote recently from one of the speakers at a ‘women in industry’ event that said you cannot be what you cannot see.
Organisations such as FESPA UK with its Next Generation Committee are an ideal starting point with members such as Isabel Shanahan of Image Co, FESPA’s own Molly Jackson, and others showing how much potential is out there. Much is to be said of FESPA UK setting up this opportunity for the younger generations to have an influence on policy but to also act as ambassadors for the trade and show the possibilities that are available.
And it goes on to show how accessible the trade is as four out of seven are women in the industry.
But how do we get more women into the industry? That’s not easy, but it is in my view essential.
I think there needs to be a more joined-up approach between the various trade bodies. While I think having women- only groups isn’t the way forward in the long-term, groups such as Women in Signs and Graphics should provide a rallying point for other trade associations to get behind and learn first-hand the issues facing women.
More needs to be made of the role women play in our industry already, whether it’s running the trade associations like Suzi Ward at FESPA UK, running their own sign companies or working in the various areas of a sign business; we are fortunate that we have a trade that has a very broad skills base.
Like all craft-based businesses, the need to bring fresh new talent in is essential if we are to continue to thrive and grow as a trade, we also need to encourage greater diversity which in turn brings in new ideas new thinking and great products. We at the trade associations need to play our part too in making opportunities as visible as possible.
It’s a great industry to be part of and the more diverse we make it the stronger the sector will be in the long term.
January/February 2025 | 67 |
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