Gender-inclusive leadership practices assume that leaders want to work for equal opportunities. They see the challenges women face on the path to leadership and want to actively support them. Supporting women in a tangible way is an essential field of action, but not the whole battleground. It is also vital that managers should actively intervene in everyday work situations if women are being discriminated against. They should promote cooperation in mixed teams, which also includes making it easier to reconcile work and family life and enabling good "work-life integration". This all helps shape the gender equality culture in the company.
These four practices, which we describe in more detail based on our research findings and consulting experiences in this brochure, all aim to facilitate women's pathways into leadership positions. Gender inclusion means fully involving women.
Every manager can actively apply these down-to-earth leadership practices -- regardless of whether there are overarching concepts, strategies, and measures to promote equality.
Many male managers involved in the project report on implementing gender-inclusive leadership practices as something already taking place as part of their experiences with gender equality.