Lauren Hindman Ph.D is an Assistant Professor in Sport Management & Organizational Behavior at Hofstra University in New York. Her work, which aims to reduce underrepresentation and discrimination, has been published in top journals including Journal of Sport Management.
In this episode, Lauren explains what golf organizations can do to balance gender diversity...
How can golf improve its gender diversity and inclusion?
From how to communicate and attract female talent into your business to the policies that should be in place to better support women in the workplace, Lauren reveals her best advice to the golf industry:
Communicate your brand and role clearly
Consider how you attract female talent - What language are using? What values are you communicating?
Set policies to support women so that you can respond quickly and appropriately to any concerns
"These are the changes you can make to make sure your not just increasing diversity as a quick fix, but your building diversity that is sustainable and effective for your organisation."
What Syngenta thinks...
Golf course businesses have traditionally been male-dominated environments, with women making up around 2-4% of the workforce in the US and Canada according to latest estimates.
But there are signs of change.
Many of these women were unaware of their female peers, until Canadian Superintendent Leasha Schwab came up with the idea to bring women together at a small networking event during the GCSAA Trade Show & Conference. This became Ladies Leading Turf (now Leading Turf Together), an event supported by Syngenta, which celebrates and showcases the stories of leading women in turf. This has spurred the creation of the Women in Turf Team, a collective of female turf professionals who, with the help of Syngenta, have prepared courses at elite major events including the US Women’s Open and US Open.
This visibility is critical in inspiring the next generation of female turf professionals, communicating the importance of the work, that other women exist and thrive in this industry, and showing the scale of what they can achieve.
There is still work to do at ground level as Lauren highlights, but the more women inspired to come into the industry, the stronger the argument to ensure the environment is one where they can develop and thrive.
Connect with Lauren
Useful links
- US Women’s Open: All-female Turf Team Excels Again
- New Docuseries Profiles Women Breaking The Grass Ceiling
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