Beyond Cupcakes: Women deserve more this Women’s Day

As we approach Women’s Month, I am always struck by how far we have come as a country – and yet how far we still have to travel. South Africa can be immensely proud of the glass ceilings it has shattered in the last 30 years for the advancement of women; we have women in the C-suite, we have women in uniform on the battlefield, we have women commanding ships at sea, women raising children and women in the kitchen.

Often, they are the same person because women must juggle too many roles, often simultaneously. Women prepare for board meetings, while cheering from the sidelines of their children’s matches; they make dinner while checking their kids’ homework.

It is a cycle that doesn’t end for at least 18 years. Sometimes it starts all over again with your grandchildren and so every August, I take a bit of time to reflect. 

I don’t kid myself, like too many other women, I can’t call my life a balancing act because that would suggest I’ve got everything in balance. I don’t. My life is a daily set of compromises and micro-decisions, re-prioritising like an emergency surgeon triaging patients after a multi victim disaster and re-directing like a GPS when you take the wrong turn. 

There is constant pressure, choosing which responsibility wins the race for the next hour, or the afternoon, the evening or the next day or the weekend. Like so many other moms, executives and spouses I don’t always get it right. Something always has to take a back seat – and there are consequences every time; the disappointment in the eyes of my children, the resignation on the face of my partner or the frustration that my colleagues experience.

So, this Women’s Month, the question we should be asking is simple, what are we doing as business leaders to create enabling environments and supportive workplace cultures for the people we will honourand show respect to in August? 

There will be a lot of welcome noise about how important women are, which is as it should be. There will be plenty of words written about how far women have come and how important it is to give them opportunities in the workplace – or the formal economy, which is also vital. 

It is a travesty that women make more than half the population in South Africa, have to rear children and keep homes and yet bear an unfair share of employment opportunities. According to the Spencer Stuart South Africa Board Index conducted last year, women make up 37% of all directors. There are five women CEOs in the JSE Top 50 companies and 10 female CFOs.

So much more can be done and needs to be done, but how? It starts with building the right environment in the workplace. Business leaders need to create spaces where the whole person can come to work and sometimes that person is messy, trying to manage all these different responsibilities and failing in some of them.

 Companies need to evolve into spaces that truly understand the lived realities of women—not just in theory, but in practice. Too often, organisations overlook the nuanced challenges faced by women navigating demanding professional roles alongside broader responsibilities But our problem is that far too often Women’s Day is reduced to platitudes and cupcakes. 

We don’t need admiration for being wonder women, we know how tough it is. We don’t need to be thanked for showing up and getting things done, while still “balancing” our other responsibilities. We need tangible intentional interventions backed up by a deliberate strategy.

Having the right to compete as women is one thing, but having the capacity to be able to compete fairly is a totally different ballgame. Women don’t need special treatment— they need to be supported by systems that recognise their contributions, remove structural barriers, and enable them to thrive on equal terms.

Do the companies we work for understand that? And if they don’t how do we change that now, not for the next generation but for the generations of women in the workplace, at every rung of the corporate ladder. How do we create a proper environment in which they can thrive in every way and, most importantly, bring their much-vaunted whole self to work in all its complexity -  and be welcomed? 

As we mark Women’s Month, the question we should be asking our CEOs is this: How are we actively supporting the women in our organisation beyond symbolic gestures? A coffee and cupcake from HR may be a kind nod, but meaningful support is reflected in policies, everyday practices, and a culture that truly values women’s contributions.