unexceptional now for a woman to be in that role.” These
senior with them the leadership course roles opportunity
further personal and professional development.
course leader
brought of
A prestigious proved pivotal
for Mary while she was at Omya. The
spotted
Mary’s potential; a moment that highlights the ongoing importance of ensuring diversity, equity and inclusion in training and leadership development opportunities. “On this leadership course, I
just went about my business being myself,” says Mary. “Then the course leader took me to one side to say, ‘you have a lot of talent, you could be doing this.’ He very much inspired, encouraged and promoted me to others as well. He was pivotal and really changed things.” This course, like the Outward- Bound course in Wales a few years earlier, again took Mary outside her comfort zone, but also brought opportunities. This time “a chance to project manage a small sales team within the organisation,” and an opportunity for Mary to extend her leadership qualities and business development skills in a new area.
BUILDING MUTUALLY SUSTAINING NETWORKS After a career break and consulting projects, Mary moved into the education
sector to
on her passion for people and wider understanding of business, including the
importance of
relationships. This move has been equally as successful and fulfilling for Mary. “It’s a privilege to work in such vibrant shape
a to organisation the helping next generation,”
says Mary. “I’m in my seventh year now at TASIS and I’ve had amazing opportunities. My current role is as executive director on the leadership team. I mainly look after the leadership of marketing, admissions, communication
and
external relations. We are very much an organisation that cares about enduring relationships. So that suits me to a tee.
It’s a very
good marriage there.” Supporting and promoting the
school and collaborating in networks “goes with the territory now,” says Mary. “External relations cover
alumni and parents, but it also very much relates to business partnerships; so professional services organisations, education, relo. Our school is a
member of BritishAmerican
Business, for example. “I also still connect with some of
my colleagues from my HR days in forums. Then a couple of years ago I completed a counselling diploma, which is something I always wanted to do. I thought it tied in well with the people aspect and I connect with people there too. “There is always the same old
challenge that we are all terribly busy and there
are so many
networking events. But networking is so important. You always learn something and pick something up from other people.” One area TASIS can share its
experience in is its leading DEI and wellbeing
initiatives, which
underpin the school’s mission “to embolden our learners to flourish as principled, open-minded and compassionate members of a global community,” which ties in with worldwide events like International Women’s Day. “We work really hard, as I’m
capitalise
sure many organisations do, with our DEI initiatives,” says Mary. “I think the thing that really shows our commitment to wellbeing is that we now have a senior leader – Darren Singh-MacPherson – who now works with inclusion, compliance and wellbeing. It’s quite awesome to have a leadership position dedicated to that.”
EMBRACING EQUITY AT TASIS Embracing equity – the main theme of 2023’s International Women’s Day – is clearly a common goal at TASIS, which has been working hard to break traditional gender stereotypes that play into the career choices of young people. “The very best way to get that
message across I think is to role model,” says Mary. “We
have
exceptional teachers at TASIS, including generalist
science
teachers in our lower and middle schools. In our upper school we have exceptional teachers in these traditional male subjects like physics and chemistry, as well as biology. We have some amazing role models.” Former students also have a key
71
“ NOW, I CAN’T THINK OF ANY AREAS WHERE WE DON’T HAVE FEMALE LEADERS. I’D LIKE TO SAY NOW THE QUESTION IS MORE ‘WHAT DOES A GOOD LEADER LOOK LIKE?’ I THINK THAT’S VERY ENCOURAGING.”
role to play in influencing the next generation. Mary had just shown a former female student around, who was now working in engineering and on assignment in the UK. Many alumni also return to talk to current students and support their projects in school. They show how much has changed over the decades. “Now, I can’t think of any
areas where we don’t have female leaders,” says Mary. “I’d like to say now the question is more ‘what does a good leader look like?’ I think that’s very encouraging.”
THINK WOMEN
INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION
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