ABU DHABI // Young women today need someone to look up to for inspiration and guidance in order to become the leaders of tomorrow, experts said yesterday at a mentoring workshop.
"This is especially important for women in male-dominated companies," said Ailsa Bernard, a coach and mentor based in Abu Dhabi. "It's also about managing perceptions."
Once women have families, outside perceptions often change, Ms Bernard said at a Big Sisters workshop at the Abu Dhabi International Centre for Organisational Excellence (ADICOE) training centre. But this must not discourage them, she added.
The Big Sisters/Little Sisters programme - the first of its kind in the emirate - was established by ADICOE and the Women's Excellence Group. The cross-cultural programme brings together women of different backgrounds and pairs them up based on their professional experience and career aspirations.
"Mentors help their mentees step outside of themselves and ask, 'how do I want to be seen by my colleagues, family and friends?'" she said.
According to figures shared during a Women in Leadership conference last year, women who have mentors are three times more likely to achieve their ambitions and overcome any obstacles along the way. However, this is only if the appropriate techniques are used, which was the goal of yesterday's workshop.
Some of these techniques include mentors asking open-ended questions about ambitions and helping their partners to set goals and keep a journal noting challenges faced.
Ruba al Hassan, the social development adviser and general secretariat at the Executive Council, said that despite government initiatives to provide career opportunities, the percentage of women participating in the labour force is still considerably low, at 15 per cent. This number is far lower than the average for Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, which stands at 58 per cent of the population, according to the 2006 OECD factbook.
"There are many factors that contribute to this," Ms al Hassan said. "Yes, we do have to work on establishing work/life balance policies and services, but another important factor is the lack of role models in certain industries."
Speaking at a networking event by the International Business Women's Group last week, Amanda Nimon Peters, the managing director at a talent development agency, emphasised the importance of mentors and role models.
"Women are more likely to view obstacles as barriers, while men view them as challenges," she said. "Studies show that successful female role models increase a girl's belief in her own abilities, but don't decrease male beliefs in his own abilities."
However, changing these views is not only the responsibility of the mentor.
"Of course, young women also have to be willing to learn and to take in the feedback provided to them," Ms Bernard said.
This presents another challenge when recruiting women in the workforce, Ms al Hassan added.
"After the government invests so much in these women's education, they have the responsibility to contribute to society," she said. "We're always talking about a women's rights and entitlement, but never her responsibilities."
mismail@thenational.ae
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Tomb%20Raider%20I%E2%80%93III%20Remastered
%3Cp%3EDeveloper%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EConsole%3A%20Nintendo%20Switch%2C%20PlayStation%204%26amp%3B5%2C%20PC%20and%20Xbox%20series%20X%2FS%0D%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Results
6.30pm: The Madjani Stakes (PA) Group 3 Dh175,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner: Aatebat Al Khalediah, Fernando Jara (jockey), Ali Rashid Al Raihe (trainer).
7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
7.40pm: Maiden (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Dubai Avenue, Fernando Jara, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh190,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: My Catch, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
8.50pm: Dubai Creek Mile (TB) Listed Dh265,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Secret Ambition, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
9.25pm: Handicap (TB) Dh190,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Golden Goal, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
The%20specs
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Sanchez's club career
2005-2006: Cobreloa
2006-2011 Udinese
2006-2007 Colo-Colo (on loan)
2007-2008 River Plate (on loan)
2011-2014 Barcelona
2014–Present Arsenal
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Test series fixtures
(All matches start at 2pm UAE)
1st Test Lord's, London from Thursday to Monday
2nd Test Nottingham from July 14-18
3rd Test The Oval, London from July 27-31
4th Test Manchester from August 4-8
Company profile
Name: The Concept
Founders: Yadhushan Mahendran, Maria Sobh and Muhammad Rijal
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 7
Sector: Aviation and space industry
Funding: $250,000
Future plans: Looking to raise $1 million investment to boost expansion and develop new products
Honeymoonish
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More from Aya Iskandarani
Retirement funds heavily invested in equities at a risky time
Pension funds in growing economies in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East have a sharply higher percentage of assets parked in stocks, just at a time when trade tensions threaten to derail markets.
Retirement money managers in 14 geographies now allocate 40 per cent of their assets to equities, an 8 percentage-point climb over the past five years, according to a Mercer survey released last week that canvassed government, corporate and mandatory pension funds with almost $5 trillion in assets under management. That compares with about 25 per cent for pension funds in Europe.
The escalating trade spat between the US and China has heightened fears that stocks are ripe for a downturn. With tensions mounting and outcomes driven more by politics than economics, the S&P 500 Index will be on course for a “full-scale bear market” without Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts, Citigroup’s global macro strategy team said earlier this week.
The increased allocation to equities by growth-market pension funds has come at the expense of fixed-income investments, which declined 11 percentage points over the five years, according to the survey.
Hong Kong funds have the highest exposure to equities at 66 per cent, although that’s been relatively stable over the period. Japan’s equity allocation jumped 13 percentage points while South Korea’s increased 8 percentage points.
The money managers are also directing a higher portion of their funds to assets outside of their home countries. On average, foreign stocks now account for 49 per cent of respondents’ equity investments, 4 percentage points higher than five years ago, while foreign fixed-income exposure climbed 7 percentage points to 23 per cent. Funds in Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Taiwan are among those seeking greater diversification in stocks and fixed income.
• Bloomberg
WTL%20SCHEDULE
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Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
Company%20Profile
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The%20Specs
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Diriyah%20project%20at%20a%20glance
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EMIRATES'S%20REVISED%20A350%20DEPLOYMENT%20SCHEDULE
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
