The Athena Doctrine: Is the Future of PR Feminine?
This article was first published in PR Week, 5 March 2015.
Two years ago, a book sparked global discussions by suggesting that ‘feminine’ values might solve many of humanity’s challenges. The Athena Doctrine: How Women (and the Men Who Think Like Them) Will Rule the Future was based on a worldwide study of 64,000 people. The research highlighted dissatisfaction with masculine values dominating global business and politics. The conclusion: if men adopted more feminine traits, the world might improve.
Other works, such as Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead, have also fueled the debate on leadership qualities.
Research on Leadership Traits
Ketchum’s Leadership Communication Monitor surveyed 6,500 people across 13 countries, finding that female leaders excelled in key leadership attributes: leading by example, transparent communication, admitting mistakes, bringing out the best in others, and handling controversial issues calmly. Despite this, 54% globally, and 60% in the UK, still preferred male leaders for navigating challenging times.
Feminine Traits in PR Leadership
The PR industry is predominantly female, except at the boardroom level. This raises the question of whether more feminine traits should be applied to PR leadership, and whether only women can embody these traits.
“There’s no denying men and women are fundamentally different. Most men are prone to be logical and objective, while women tend to be empathetic and subjective. Men appear to work well with facts. Women appear more relationally driven.” – Hope Bastine, Psychologist and Hypno-Psychotherapist
Research indicates that masculine traits can be learned by women and feminine traits by men. Neuroscientific studies suggest that IQ increases through group collaboration: “We are our best selves when we work together.”
Building Relationships
Heather Baker, CEO of TopLine Communications, emphasizes empathy and emotional intelligence as crucial for client relationships. She notes these traits are not exclusive to women: “Besides vaginas, nothing is exclusive to women. I know lots of men with great empathy and high EQs, but also many women who wouldn’t be able to identify another person’s emotions if published on the front page of the FT.”
Rebecca Oatley, MD of Cherish PR, observes that many women are drawn to PR due to its alignment with traditionally feminine traits but stresses that traits are not gender-exclusive. “We can’t choose people by gender; it’s more a question of what traits we should foster or nurture.”
Collaborative Working
Rachel Friend, MD of Weber Shandwick, highlights the importance of respecting others’ skills, embracing new talent, and fostering collaboration. Suppressing feminine values can be detrimental for women, while men often benefit from displaying traits traditionally seen as feminine.
Diversity in Corporate Comms Leadership
Julia Meighan, CEO of VMA GROUP, notes that despite female-dominated PR teams, 82% of organizations with revenues over £15bn had male leads in corporate communications. She emphasizes the importance of leveraging traits from both sexes for effective leadership.
Denise Kaufmann, CEO of Ketchum London, agrees: “Masculine and feminine traits are equally important in business leadership. Being empathetic and compassionate is important, but at times you have to be tough.”
“It’s about enabling everyone to be their best self, whether that happens to be a man or a woman.” – Denise Kaufmann, CEO Ketchum London
For more information, please contact Julia Meighan.
