23.07.2024

Because the Proportion of Women in Management Matters

Bringing Leadership into balance: The logo of the Fair Share of Women Leaders Association

“If we are serving humanity with the intention of reaching a just, free, developed and dignified life, then we need women”, Rev Felicité Ngnintedem says. She is Executive Secretary Training & Empowerment at the United Evangelical Mission (UEM) and member of the UEM Management Team. “We need women not only because of their background of being life givers, but also conductors and good guides”, she continues: “And that is in all spheres of life: In churches, organisations, and in the technical field.”

Organisations that are active in German civil society employ around 70% women in their workforce. However, only around 33% of the leadership positions in management and supervisory committees in the same organisations were held by women.

Adressing the imbalance

The "Fair Share of Women Leaders e.V." was founded to address this imbalance. The association works with interested organisations to develop potential approaches and solutions for improving gender equality. The goal is to achieve a "fair share" of managers of both genders within German civil society by 2030. The association understands this to mean that at least 50% of management positions should be held by women, or a higher proportion if the proportion of women in the workforce is higher.

As an international organisation, United Evangelical Mission is not only active in Germany, but also in Asia and Africa. Its member churches in all three continents have different proportions of women and  men in their governing bodies and work together with the UEM to achieve gender equality in churches and societies. For example, a women's pre assembly is held at every UEM General Assembly. This is where the women delegates from the UEM member churches exchange views on their topics and, if necessary, develop proposals for the General Assembly.

In line with UEM's feminist principles, the organisation aims to achieve a fair share of representation in its governing bodies by 2030. To support this goal in wider society, the UEM annually submits data on women and men in its workforce and governing bodies to the Fair Share Monitor. On the Fair Share Monitor scale, the UEM currently ranks 29th out of 196, with a 53% share of women in the workforce and 45% in management positions. The UEM Council is made up of eight men and six women, while the Management Team is made up of three men and two women.

A Matter of Competence

For Felicité Ngnintedem, employing women in leadership positions isn’t just a matter of justice, but of proficiency as well: “In my working experience, I have seen women capture details, be it emotionally, psychologically or technically, and even spiritually. They can be game changers and set organisations on higher levels of development and of culturally sensitive management. That is my working experience.

In my traditional background, we say that a woman will multiply everything you give them: You give a house to a woman, and she will create a home. You give joy to a woman, and she will create a harmonious world. But also, and this parents sometimes tell their sons before they marry: You give a problem to a woman, and she will create chaos. I am interpreting the current situation of our world in the view of this. We are giving women so many problems: They are discriminated, even raped in the field. And the world is in chaos. That is why we need more women in leadership positions so that they can make good, informed and powerful decisions. For a just, free, developed and dignified life, for all of us.”