{"id":6546,"date":"2016-01-29T15:30:13","date_gmt":"2016-01-29T15:30:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fitproblog.mysites.io\/cracking-the-glass-ceiling\/"},"modified":"2016-01-29T15:30:13","modified_gmt":"2016-01-29T15:30:13","slug":"cracking-the-glass-ceiling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fitpro.com\/blog\/cracking-the-glass-ceiling\/","title":{"rendered":"Cracking the glass ceiling"},"content":{"rendered":"

Women in senior levels of fitness are lagging behind but a new era of powerful players is\u00a0changing the landscape, says Karen Lisa Laing.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In October of last year, Britain dropped out of the top 20 most gender-equal countries for the first time. The Global Gender Gap report1<\/sup> presented at the World Economic Forum found Britain had dropped to number 26. At senior management level within the fitness, leisure and sports industries, the trend is similar. Across the major health club and gym chains in the UK, women in senior management positions are the exception. At general manager level there are more but they are still in the minority. These trends are common across the leisure and sports industries. According to Sport England, 49% of the national governing bodies (NGBs) they are funding have less than a quarter of their board membership made up of women.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Season for change<\/strong><\/h3>\n

At a time when campaigns like #ThisGirlCan are pushing forward an agenda to engage more women in sport, and with the emergence, this year, of the Women\u2019s Equality Party (WEP) \u2013 the fastest growing political party in the UK \u2013 it could be argued we are in a season for change. \u201cWe definitely need more women in senior management positions in health clubs,\u201d says CEO of the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) Tara Dillon. \u201cIt is a male-dominated world.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cLeisure management events tend to be a very male affair,\u201d says general manager for Sandwell Leisure Trust Chelle Jones. \u201cPeople are still gobsmacked when they ask for the manager and I appear.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Senior roles<\/strong><\/h3>\n

So why aren\u2019t there more women in senior management? It could be as practical as the unsociable hours required of a busy leisure club manager, which don\u2019t fit with family life. \u201cIt\u2019s difficult for women to do both,\u201d says Jane Waller, co-founder and director of FitPro. \u201cPeak hours in a gym tend to be peak hours at home.\u201d Dillon adds, \u201cWomen aren\u2019t necessarily bypassed; they just have to make choices when it comes to family.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a question Women in Fitness Empowerment (WIFE) founder Jacqueline Hooton posed when she created the first all-female fitness conference in March 2015 (wifeevents.com<\/a>). \u201cI wanted to know where all the female voices were in the industry,\u201d she says. Hooton felt women were massively under represented at industry events. WIFE was set up to create more female role models by giving them a platform and a network. The first conference was attended by over 80 female fitness professionals, with speakers like Katie Bulmer-Cooke, Charlotte Ord and Rachel Holmes. The idea has since grown to incorporate nationwide networking events, a second conference and online campaign #AWomansWord, which has featured on BBC news.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Moving on up<\/strong><\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There are notable exceptions to the male dominance trend: Jane Waller, co-founder and director of FitPro; Jennie Price, chief executive of Sport England; Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson, chair of the Women\u2019s Sport and Fitness Foundation Commission and chair of ukactive; and, of course, Tara Dillon, CEO of CIMSPA. Dillon came through the ranks of the industry from life as a gym instructor to her current position, which includes working to improve standards in the industry. \u201cWhen I was 26, I set myself massive goals and have stuck to them,\u201d she says. \u201cI just ignored the fact that everyone around me was a bloke.\u201d Waller\u2019s FitPro journey also began as a gym instructor, where she recognised the need for offering advanced education to instructors. \u201cI\u2019ve never felt like I wasn\u2019t taken seriously,\u201d she says, \u201cbut it did take time to build trust.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Group X heroes<\/strong><\/h3>\n

While at the top levels of gym management women are scarce, the picture is very different among fitness training providers and the group fitness sector is predominantly female. \u201cLook to events like the International Fitness Showcase in Blackpool and it\u2019s almost wall-to-wall women,\u201d says Jones. There are also women like Rachel Holmes, Katie Bulmer-Cooke, Jayne Nicholls and Charlotte Ord achieving great success carving out careers as fitness entrepreneurs. \u201cI\u2019ve never seen being female as holding me back,\u201d says Ord. \u201cI\u2019ve always thought that, if I can do something as well as my male counterparts, I\u2019m at an advantage.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

So, how could the fitness industry benefit from gender equality? According to the WEP, unleashing women\u2019s full potential could add 10% or over \u00a3150 billion to our GDP by 2030. Women in Sport (womeninsport.org<\/a>) and analysis from the Global Gender Gap<\/em> report say the same thing: gender equality correlates directly with economic success. It stands to reason: use your entire workforce effectively and it\u2019s win, win.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Business women<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Amanda Herbert, co-owner of marketing agency Syren, specialises in helping global corporations to market better to women. \u201cMany industries are beginning to benefit from embracing female values of collaboration, coaching and mentoring,\u201d she says.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

At 27, Jones became the youngest female general manager for the Sandwell Leisure Trust, a fact she puts down to doing things differently. \u201cI went to conferences and seminars. I found out what independent fitness professionals and business owners were doing and I started implementing it on the gym floor. No one else was doing it. It worked,\u201d she says. At a time when the fitness industry is being asked to respond to the public health agenda and when the media wants to know how to engage more young women in sport, are women the key? Surely the industry, its earning potential and arguably the health of the nation is only set to gain from gender equality? \u201cIf you want to increase the uptake of women in exercise, we need women in leadership who know how to engage young women,\u201d Hooton says, \u201cAnd we need more attainable role models.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe lines are beginning to blur,\u201d adds Herbert, \u201cbut women need more role models who they can aspire to be like.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s been a meteoric shift in the last 10 years and things are changing,\u201d concludes Dillon. \u201cWe\u2019re not there yet but we should be pleased with how far we\u2019ve come.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Take it to the top: So you want to be a successful woman in fitness?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jane Waller, co-founder and director\u00a0<\/strong>of FitPro<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cLearn from other people\u2019s mistakes and<\/em><\/p>\n

don\u2019t get involved in politics.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tara Dillon, CEO of CIMSPA<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cSet goals, see it and go for it. Let<\/em><\/p>\n

me be your example. Opportunities<\/em><\/p>\n

for women in senior management are<\/em><\/p>\n

genuinely there.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Chelle Jones, general manager for<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sandwell Leisure Trust<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cGo to industry events. Learn from<\/em><\/p>\n

people who are already successful and<\/em><\/p>\n

then implement what you see. Don\u2019t be<\/em><\/p>\n

afraid to do things differently.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Rachel Holmes, fitness presenter and<\/strong><\/p>\n

entrepreneur<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

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\u201cCarve out your own career path \u2013<\/em><\/p>\n

create your own job and your own role.<\/em><\/p>\n

The virtual world is a complete game<\/em><\/p>\n

changer. Decide who you want to be<\/em><\/p>\n

and who you want to attract, then go<\/em><\/p>\n

out and find them.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Charlotte Ord, fitness entrepreneur<\/strong><\/p>\n

and TV fitness expert<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cGetting to the top for me has been<\/em><\/p>\n

about being prepared to take big risks<\/em><\/p>\n

and having amazing mentors. Be hungry<\/em><\/p>\n

for knowledge and invest in your<\/em><\/p>\n

education. Who you know can really<\/em><\/p>\n

open doors for you too. Make connections<\/em><\/p>\n

and network.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Jacqueline Hooton, WIFE founder<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cSeek out role models and connect with<\/em><\/p>\n

a network of like-minded women.<\/em><\/p>\n

Women behave differently in an all-female<\/em><\/p>\n

group and are more likely to stick<\/em><\/p>\n

their hands up or step forwards, so seek<\/em><\/p>\n

out those women and have confidence<\/em><\/p>\n

in your abilities.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Katie Bulmer-Cooke, fitness<\/strong><\/p>\n

entrepreneur and TV fitness expert<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cHave positive influences around you.<\/em><\/p>\n

When someone else believes in you, you<\/em><\/p>\n

really feel you can take on the world. In<\/em><\/p>\n

my case, it\u2019s my mam, dad and husband<\/em><\/p>\n

saying, \u2018I know you can\/will\u2019 when I<\/em><\/p>\n

share with them my latest business idea.<\/em><\/p>\n

Positivity breeds success!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Biography<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Karen Lisa Laing is a writer and journalist specialising in fitness and women\u2019s health. Karen runs writing courses for fitness professionals. She also teaches Pilates and pre-\/postnatal fitness and co-directs the fitness business Fit School with her husband Chris in Essex.<\/strong><\/p>\n

karenlisalaing.com<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0Click here <\/a>to read <\/strong>Fitpro’s<\/em> \u00a0Q&A with Danielle Sellwood, visual director at Women\u2019s Sport Trust<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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