In the world of work, sisterhood matters now more than ever before. This year, AllBright is asking us to #StepForward for change at the Step Forward Summit 2023 - find out more here.

To celebrate sisterhood, I sat down with some of the UK’s leading women CEOs and mentorship experts to find out more about sisterhood in action, mentorship and how we can show up for each other better - we’re deep-diving into what it means to be a sister today.

What does sisterhood in action really mean?

Natalie Brierley is co-chair at The Equals Network at M&C Saatchi Group; she believes that sisterhood in action means rejecting the ‘Say-Do’ gap between people and business’s intentions and actions. With many industries, there is often a disparity in the ambition for diversity and equity, and the actionable changes that take place. Often, DEI policies are plastered with what companies ‘strive to do’.

M&C Saatchi is closing this gap with dedicated Employee-led Networks, these are communities of like-minded colleagues that drive real change that actually impact the workforce at the company. She believes that in order to create lasting meaningful change, it’s important that companies hear from all women AND allies within their organisation.

Laura Delgado, Business Development at Founders Factory, believes that transparency is at the heart of sisterhood. She says "for me, 'sisterhood in action' is first and foremost about being transparent about what it means to be a sister in this world. Cut the toxic 'we can have it all' narrative and celebrate choice. Cancel the 'behave like a bro to be a CEO' play so we can collectively step into our brilliant biology. And then share! Your learnings, your contacts, your stories, your missteps and your wins."

Amy Dick, UK President of SheSays, talks about the importance of holding space. She says "sisterhood in action means creating a very necessary space to hold the women in our lives. It’s a home for psycho-social safety and support. A place for open story sharing and knowledge exchange – the kind that allows for collective growth, joy, rest, and ease. A place to truly see and be seen, to listen and be heard. True sisterhood allows the collective to flourish by having each other's back and being each other's biggest cheerleader."

How can we show sisterhood in action in 2023?

Following this, Dick says that we can show sisterhood through seeking women within and outside of our existing networks to mentor and sponsor, offering our time, influence, and experiences generously, to lift them up to the next level. She says: "Why not also support communities and initiatives that are already doing the work to provide sisterhood – by participating and contributing resources – whether that be by voice, talents, networks or other, to make them more effective, relevant spaces for womxn to thrive?"

Delgado believes that sisterhood in action is shown by taking the active choice to reframe competition amongst sisters as progress. "Fear of another person's success keeps us all small. Celebrate the sisters that compel you to climb higher! And give them a hand up to join you. There is plenty of room!"

Helen Lewis, Founder of Literally PR, suggests that sisterhood in action is also about taking a pause; pause before making *that* comment on Twitter, or sharing that piece of content. "Reflecting on potential motivations before judging another woman for her decision, opinion or action. Embracing equality, which is the 'theme' for this year's International Women's Day. Sometimes it's the moments before the action that really make the biggest difference."

How important is mentorship for women in the workplace?

Therese Baggas, Head of Partnerships at OkMentor, says that "as of January this year, for the first time in history, women CEOs run just over 10% of Fortune 500 companies (Forbes 2023). Whilst any progress is good, this is still a terribly low percentage. And it’s not that women don’t want to be leaders or don’t make good leaders. But they often face a tougher path to leadership that can make reaching those top rungs feel out of reach."

Mentorship can give women the tools, support and confidence to navigate that challenging path, at every level, so imagine if every senior leader passed on their skills and advice, gained from real-life experiences, to the next generation of women leaders?

Delgado follows this by talking of the importance of women relationships. "Science tells us that we benefit on a physiological level when we spend time with other females and mentorship amongst women is incredibly valuable. We need to do more to facilitate cross-generational mentorship which means doing more to elevate the wisdom that comes from age. Most of us are aware of the maternity pay and progress gap, but there is too little attention on the impact menopause has on our careers. We need to create environments where everyone can thrive at all stages. And mentorship that connects women not just further up the career ladder, but further along in the ladder of life too."

Claire Crompton, commercial director at The Audit Lab, suggests mentorship as a way to combat sexism at work, saying "For women in the workplace, it can be easy to feel isolated and sometimes even ostracised, especially when surrounded by a majority of male management. With women starkly underrepresented in higher positions, it’s important that those few female leaders pave the way for others to join the ranks. When women take the time to mentor, not only do they pass on valuable advice and support, but they also diminish the sense of competition that’s been forced upon women for many years. This goes a long way towards improving the wellbeing of female workers, who will likely feel more inspired and less disheartened to aim for promotions."

She talks about the importance of mentorship in the context of D&I. "Some companies with men at the forefront may only open a position up for one woman - some sort of a ‘diversity hire’ in order to create a progressive brand image. With mentorship, women in managerial positions can improve the skills of other women and increase their chances of climbing the ladder, in instances where a male manager may not cater to a woman’s ambitions. Following on from insincere diversity in the workplace, mentorship is especially important for LGBTQ+ women and women of colour. Intersectionality is something that hiring processes often overlook, as straight, white women are most likely to make up the female portion of employees."

How do you find mentors? And what does a 'good' mentor look like?

Pippa Ruxton is a fully accredited Career and Leadership Coach at Polygon Coaching, who supports individuals to unlock their potential and fully contribute to their organisation. She says to "start by identifying the gaps in your experience or knowledge and then write down who could help you. It might be a 'reverse mentor' who is more junior or less experienced in your field but possesses knowledge that you do not have in another aspect. It might be someone who represents an individual you are trying to influence or engage, like an investor, or a customer, or a donor, who can help you to understand their mindset. Ultimately, we need to move from viewing mentoring as from just one person and towards a collective boardroom of mentors."

Eloise Skinner is a professional development author; she believes that good mentors can take many forms, but, in essence, it's likely to be a compassionate, empathetic listener, with deep professional expertise and a background in a particular field of interest. Good mentors will be ready to listen, to share, to advise and to support - and, of course, to encourage a mentee as they continue their professional journey.

What does the next generation of young women entering the workforce need from established leaders?

Anna Vainer is founder and global lead of #IamRemarkable, a Google initiative empowering women and underrepresented groups to celebrate their achievements in the workplace and beyond. She believes that established leaders must make time to listen and create spaces for young women to openly share their accomplishments and achievements without fear.

"They must do so with both curiosity and empathy to allow for true understanding of these individuals, therefore creating an open and safe space for young women to speak up, and most importantly, be heard. In today's world, accomplishments don't speak for themselves. Imposter Syndrome. Stereotypes. Toxic culture. For many reasons, lots of us feel uncomfortable sharing our achievements."

The ability to talk about personal contribution is critical, and many times, women specifically use team-based language; 'we' as opposed to 'I.' In the workplace, young women need to make sure that the people who make the decisions about their next promotion, about their next career move, about the next job that they might apply to, know about their personal accomplishments. And leaders need to be aware of, and supportive of this, making a conscious effort to make time to listen.

Women advocating for themselves and having allies amongst colleagues is essential, but creating long-lasting change also needs buy-in from leadership. Leaders must foster a culture of openness and communication to create a safe space for everyone to share accomplishments.

Claire Crompton furthers this, saying "for young women, entering the workforce is daunting not only as a new experience and chapter of their lives, but also because it opens up the door to potential discrimination, rejection, and belittlement. Young women are often not taken as seriously as their male counterparts, since many biases and stereotypes still remain. Because of this, many young women may lack confidence when entering the workforce from education. Established leaders should ensure that their hiring policies are fair and consider all applicants, with interviewers who don’t hold biases. For many young women entering the workforce, the most important step is simply getting their foot in the door, and leaders should consider this in their hiring decisions."

If you want to find out more about sisterhood in action, join us on 10 March for our International Women's Day Step Forward summit.