Business Voice Coaching for Women
I specialise in coaching for women because, firstly, I believe better gender balance makes for better business so want to see more women in senior roles, and secondly because, having been a lone female voice in the boardroom myself, I know how challenging it can be for women to speak up and be heard.
Coaching for women
Voice coaching for women is vital for improving gender balance because, according to research:
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the sound of a woman's voice may hinder her professional advancement
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lower-pitched (male) voices tend to command more respect than higher-pitched (female) voices
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there is a long, sexist history of men telling women to 'hold their tongue'
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women often soften their language or say less because they fear being called bossy or over-confident'
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men tend to prefer higher-pitched voices - only not in the workplace​​.
Coaching aspiring and established female leaders
Skilful, professional business voice coaching can help women overcome these vocal inequalities. Despite the business case for women in leadership, according to the WEF, we are still 136 years away from closing the gender gap.
One powerful way of closing the gap, is to coach girls and young women to use their voice and non-verbal communication skills confidently and effectively. The sooner this starts the better as blockers kick in at an early age. Research shows that girls speak less than boys in the classroom. Perhaps this is one of the reasons for what a McKinsey/Lean In report calls the 'broken rung' on the corporate ladder: for every 100 men hired and promoted to manager only 87 women are promoted, dropping to only 82 for women of colour. Arguably, women can never catch up because there are just too few of them to promote to senior leadership positions.
To help mitigate this inequality, I gift time to young people, 30% Club, Future Asset, Women in Sanctions, National Association of Women in Construction, Bromley-by-Bow Centre and others.
Case Studies
Céline Delacroix - EY
To make partner, Céline had to give the presentation of a lifetime.
This success story is one woman’s journey to the top and how she worked with Susan ahead of that career-defining moment.
Blending voice and executive coaching, the pair worked on mindset, body language, voice and content.
“I can highly recommend Susan for her great interactive workshops - very useful, insight and fun to attend!”
Diana Brightmore-Armour, CEO
C. Hoare & Co and FTSE 100 NED
“Listen to Susan.
She's brilliant.”
Nadine Lagarmitte, Managing Director, Global Head Financial Institutions, Global Liquidity and Cash Management, HSBC
“Susan has this amazing ability to make people feel like they’ve just asked the most brilliant question or made the most insightful contribution.”
Patricia Galloway, Chief People Officer, UK Infrastructure Bank and NED, Association of Foreign Banks