Vic Motune, Voice Reporter
Baroness Amos
IF YOU asked the average person to name successful black British women, high-profile names from the world of politics and sports, such as athlete Denise Lewis, or MP Diane Abbott, would probably come to mind.
But it's unlikely that you'll hear names like Jean Tomlin, former director of human resources at Marks and Spencer, now heading the human resources team of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games; or Trudy Morgan, associate director of Turner and Townsend, international construction and management consultants.
Quietly making big strides
How about Vivian Hunt, a partner at global management consultants McKinsey and Company?
Despite a succession of reports, such as a recent one from the Equal Opportunities Commission about the barriers facing black women in the workplace, women such as Tomlin, Hunt and Morgan are quietly making big strides in British boardrooms. And many others like them are surviving and succeeding against formidable odds, such as racism, low pay and limited opportunities for training and promotion.
Now a new report claims to have identified the secret behind their success - a set of characteristics unique to successful black women called Factor 8.
"We wanted to look at what contributed to the success of black women in spite of what was seen as this double disadvantage of being black and female," said Caroline Harper Jantuah of the Diversity Practice, the organisation that produced the report.
"I was particularly interested in finding answers to this question, given that I know many successful thriving black women.
"When we interviewed these successful black women for the report we found that there were themes and attributes that were common to all of them, which was where the idea of Factor 8 comes in."
A glass ceiling
The groundbreaking report, called 'Different Women, Different Places', spoke to 300 high-flying black and minority ethnic women about their experiences of the workplace, and the factors that empowered them to keep going in the face of 'a glass ceiling reinforced by concrete'.
It found that all of the women displayed four or more of these eight key characteristics:
Bicultural competence - the ability of a person to function effectively in two or more cultures and switch roles when required
Cultural capital - a range of experience gained outside the workplace
Multiple perspectives - the ability to look at issues from a variety of different perspectives
Values driven leadership - a style of leadership that is rooted in a clear set of values and principles
Presence, passion and power - the ability to communicate with conviction and authority
Self-mastery - total belief in oneself
'Transformactional' leadership - a leadership style that seeks to transform situations while being highly effective within the status quo.
Spiritual belief - a deep conviction in a higher calling
"When we did the research, we weren't expecting such a strong commonality among all the women we interviewed," said Jantuah.
"Factor 8 is really about trying to understand the foundations that successful black and minority ethnic women draw upon when the going gets tough, or when there are barriers to their progress.
"For example, cultural capital is an interesting one. It refers to BME [Black and Minority Ethnic) women who are active in their communities, charitable organisations, voluntary work.
"They are leaders in their churches or running Saturday schools. So, in addition to their day jobs, they are linked into their communities.
"But, more important, the roles that they play in these organisations help hone their leadership skills. So, it could be that BME women are working in administrative roles where bosses don't see their leadership potential and train them accordingly.
"Yet, on Sundays they develop these skills as pastors of their church, speaking in front of hundreds of people."
She added: "The presence, passion and power characteristic is also an interesting one because it"s about the fact that when we walk into a room, because we are so visibly different, people know we're there. And successful black women are women who are very comfortable in their own skin and actually relish the fact that the spotlight is on them.
"They work with it and they make sure that when they show up, they show up with impact.
"For example, when you look at someone like Baroness Amos being interviewed, you can see that that woman knows what she's talking about."
Sarah Ebanja, group director of strategy, equality and performance at the London Development Agency, agrees.
"I view my visibility and difference as a strength," she said. "Because of my difference I bring an additional perspective, challenging the norm, even if it's about language or how people feel."
According to Colleen Harris, Prince Charles' former press secretary, being the only person of colour in a mainly white environment can be a big advantage.
Stand out
"The great thing about being a black woman is that you stand out and people want to be in your gang," she said.
However, Jantuah sounds a note of caution. "What we found with this particular attribute is that if you turn it up too much, you then come up against negative stereotypes of being an angry black woman, who comes across as too loud, too in-your-face and too direct," she said.
"Turn it down too low and you are seen as submissive, non-aggressive and timid, and not a candidate for leadership."
The report also found that black women had a strong preference for values-driven leadership.
Of the women surveyed, 70 per cent said career success for them meant making a difference, being of service or having an impact on others.
This could involve mentoring and a feeling that they had to act as positive role models to other BME women.
Concerning values-driven leadership, many of the women said they had achieved through working twice as hard as their white colleagues, by working long hours, or over-preparing.
They had to work twice as hard because the leadership styles of white women are perceived more positively.
This affected the women physically and mentally, through stress and other issues.
Many of the women interviewed were single. Some of the women who had families were the main breadwinners and faced issues due to the fact that, culturally, they were expected to look after the family.
But a lot of the women interviewed felt the work they were doing was their calling.
Values-driven leadership
Values-driven leadership was closely linked to self-mastery, a characteristic epitomised by the question: "Who says I can't?"
Jean Tomlin, one of the high achievers interviewed for the report, is cited as a good example of this.
Tomlin recalled her first day at Ford Motor Company in Dagenham, Essex, which she joined as a graduate recruit.
"When I arrived I looked around and wasn't quite sure what to do," she said.
But her mother, a key influence in her life, had always taught Tomlin that barriers were there to be overcome.
"It was at that point I decided to copy the guys, as there weren't many women around at that time. Some of my guiding principles are to learn fast, reflect on what works and adapt."
It's been the complaint of diversity campaigners for a number of years that corporate executives do not take the issue of diversity seriously enough.
But with many businesses having to compete in global markets, that is beginning to change.
In the course of giving presentations and talks on the issue to senior executives, Jantuah says she has seen signs of change.
"We've asked organisations to look at their recruitment processes and how they manage talent, and consider whether, if they continue to use the traditional approaches they've got, they will attract and catch this talent, which can be a huge asset to organisations.
"We are finding a lot of interest in programmes that we are now offering off the back of this report. We are using our presentations on the report to create an open dialogue on these issues," she said.
"At these events, which have included white and black professionals, it's got them asking questions like, 'What's going on in my organisation?' or 'How would I go about implementing this idea?'
"So, we are creating an open, positive climate in which these issues can be discussed, and that can only lead to change."
( L - R ) Caroline Harper, Sarah Ebanja, Jean Tomlin
