PwC, the leading firm in the provision of audit and advisory services, employing more than 1000 people - 50% of whom are women - has launched since the middle of the last decade, a systematic research study on the position of women in the Cypriot Economy.
During January/February 2011, the “Women in PwC” Committee, in cooperation with the PwC Chair in Business Research at the University of Nicosia, carried out the new round of survey of this initiative, which was presented at an event held on Tuesday, 29 March 2011.
Opening the event, Mrs Androulla Pitta noted: “At PwC we are committed to undertaking initiatives that link professional life with social developments. The systematic survey carried out by PwC shows an improvement in the position of women in the Cypriot economy. Even though a lot remains to be done, it seems that social stereotypes and mentalities which kept women at the margins of professional development are now subsiding”.
The survey results were presented by: Dr. Petros Lois (ΜSc, PhD, MIMarEST), Head of the Accounting Department and Holder of the PwC Chair in Business Research at the University of Nicosia and Mr. Yiannis Dimakis, Strategist, Strategic Communication Analyst, Executive Director of STR Ltd.
The Minister of Labour and Social Insurance, Mrs Soteroula Charalambous, honoured the event with her presence and addressed the audience.
Issues resulting from the survey were discussed by Mr. Manthos Mavrommatis, Chairman, Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mrs. Rea Georgiou, Accountant General of the Republic of Cyprus, Mrs. Demetra Karantoki, Managing Director of the Karantokis Group of Companies, Mrs. Kikoula Kotsapa, Chairperson of KEAN Group of Companies and Mrs. Rodoulla Hadjikyriakou, Director of Retail Banking, Marfin Laiki Bank. The discussion was moderated by Mr. Evgenios Evgeniou, Member of the Executive Board, Human Capital Leader at PwC, who noted: “It is important for the Cypriot economy itself to be enriched and renewed in a productive way with the know-how and professional ability that women executives can offer. Moreover, we must tap the potential of every available resource that contributes to the strengthening of the economy and the progress of our society. This research initiative by PwC will continue. Response has been very positive and I hope that the findings will contribute so that, despite objective difficulties, educated and working Cypriot women in contemporary society can combine the role of career professionals and competent mothers.”
Conclusions of the Qualitative Survey
The analysis of the results leads to a number of strategic conclusions:
• There is an improvement in the position of women in the Cypriot economy compared to the respective survey results of five years ago. Furthermore, women’s self-confidence in their professional role has been strengthened whilst they are more optimistic in respect of their future accession to higher management positions.
• Cypriot women executives no longer merely hope for professional development but rather claim such development in a powerful way in their working environment.
• Despite the above, a ceiling in development, which a woman executive in the private sector cannot easily exceed, is now being identified. As far as professional growth is concerned, women have moved to the middle ranks. The number of women executives in middle management positions has now increased. This, coupled with the conditions that have contributed to the change and improvement of the position of women, creates expectations for the future and the necessary prerequisites to enhance the accession of women to higher and senior positions as well as to corporate Boards of Directors.
• Women executives today view the concept of career as a “successful management of challenges”. These challenges may include a number of components, especially of qualitative nature: personal and professional growth, fulfillment, new duties and responsibilities, social and professional recognition.
• The reasons behind the strengthening of women’s position in the economy are:
o Equal opportunities in education
o Greater access to knowledge
o Change in the legislative framework
o Gradual change in the mentality of men who used to dominate the working environment
o Change of perceptions in the working environment thanks to technology and the fact that employees will be assessed based on their output and not the hours spent or their physical presence at work.
o Change of social perceptions and the concept of raising a “correct family” which kept mothers at home.
• Although this is only the beginning, a “social removal of guilt” caused by the career vs family dilemma is now being clearly identified. In this newly forming attitude of women who choose to play an active professional role, the concept of family takes on a different context. Husbands are asked to cooperate and show understanding. Time spent with children is shifting from quantity to more and more quality time. This attitude leaves no room for doubt or emotional hesitations on whether the decision taken by these women to follow a career is correct or not. One of the most significant conclusions of the survey analysis is that we have entered a phase of social transformation on how contemporary, educated and working Cypriot women perceive their parallel role as professionals and mothers. Each role now has its own distinct space of development and function, with its own independent features. Despite the objective difficulties of creating a family, this approach gives women the certainty and self-confidence to be both career professionals and competent mothers.
• Female sensitivity in the contemporary working environment is a myth about to fall apart. Sentimental approaches are being reduced and replaced by more logical standpoints. The creation of a mechanism of defense and survival in a broader male-dominated environment makes women sometimes act more harshly than men, in an attempt to convince about their managerial competence and effectiveness. Female sensitivity remains a strong personality trait in non professional moments and activities. It becomes, however, far less significant in the working environment. It is believed that this will become even more marked in the future as women will be called to undertake higher positions of responsibility and their accession to managerial posts will generally be broadened.
Conclusions of the Quantitative Survey
More than 50% of the organisations which have taken part in the survey do not have female members in their Board of Directors, whilst in those organisations that do have women on their Board, their presence is very limited.
As far as academic qualifications are concerned, there appears to be a balance amongst men, who seem to extend their studies (from a degree to a post-graduate degree and a professional qualification), whilst most women settle for a degree and in some cases a professional qualification (e.g. accountants/auditors).
Furthermore, it should be noted that the main reason for which Cypriot businesses do not prefer to have women in leading positions is their family responsibilities. However, the fact that some features, such as dedication and consistency at work, are more marked in women than in men, is considered positive. These two features, coupled with their qualifications and experience, can be a strong advantage in making organisations decide to include women in their Boards of Directors and place them in managerial positions.
The fact that only half of the organisations have in place an organised staff evaluation system is negative. This indicates that the other 50% of the organisations which do not have an evaluation system use criteria which may cause problems amongst the members of staff and could point towards lack of meritocracy, lack of transparency or arbitrary decisions when it comes to promoting women to managerial positions. The non existence of an organised assessment system gives many the right to interpret decisions as they wish and to their own benefit, an attitude which may create counter incentives at work, resulting in decreased performance. This is also concluded from the answers provided by interviewees, who said that men and women are not offered equal opportunities for career development.
During January/February 2011, the “Women in PwC” Committee, in cooperation with the PwC Chair in Business Research at the University of Nicosia, carried out the new round of survey of this initiative, which was presented at an event held on Tuesday, 29 March 2011.
Opening the event, Mrs Androulla Pitta noted: “At PwC we are committed to undertaking initiatives that link professional life with social developments. The systematic survey carried out by PwC shows an improvement in the position of women in the Cypriot economy. Even though a lot remains to be done, it seems that social stereotypes and mentalities which kept women at the margins of professional development are now subsiding”.
The survey results were presented by: Dr. Petros Lois (ΜSc, PhD, MIMarEST), Head of the Accounting Department and Holder of the PwC Chair in Business Research at the University of Nicosia and Mr. Yiannis Dimakis, Strategist, Strategic Communication Analyst, Executive Director of STR Ltd.
The Minister of Labour and Social Insurance, Mrs Soteroula Charalambous, honoured the event with her presence and addressed the audience.
Issues resulting from the survey were discussed by Mr. Manthos Mavrommatis, Chairman, Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mrs. Rea Georgiou, Accountant General of the Republic of Cyprus, Mrs. Demetra Karantoki, Managing Director of the Karantokis Group of Companies, Mrs. Kikoula Kotsapa, Chairperson of KEAN Group of Companies and Mrs. Rodoulla Hadjikyriakou, Director of Retail Banking, Marfin Laiki Bank. The discussion was moderated by Mr. Evgenios Evgeniou, Member of the Executive Board, Human Capital Leader at PwC, who noted: “It is important for the Cypriot economy itself to be enriched and renewed in a productive way with the know-how and professional ability that women executives can offer. Moreover, we must tap the potential of every available resource that contributes to the strengthening of the economy and the progress of our society. This research initiative by PwC will continue. Response has been very positive and I hope that the findings will contribute so that, despite objective difficulties, educated and working Cypriot women in contemporary society can combine the role of career professionals and competent mothers.”
Conclusions of the Qualitative Survey
The analysis of the results leads to a number of strategic conclusions:
• There is an improvement in the position of women in the Cypriot economy compared to the respective survey results of five years ago. Furthermore, women’s self-confidence in their professional role has been strengthened whilst they are more optimistic in respect of their future accession to higher management positions.
• Cypriot women executives no longer merely hope for professional development but rather claim such development in a powerful way in their working environment.
• Despite the above, a ceiling in development, which a woman executive in the private sector cannot easily exceed, is now being identified. As far as professional growth is concerned, women have moved to the middle ranks. The number of women executives in middle management positions has now increased. This, coupled with the conditions that have contributed to the change and improvement of the position of women, creates expectations for the future and the necessary prerequisites to enhance the accession of women to higher and senior positions as well as to corporate Boards of Directors.
• Women executives today view the concept of career as a “successful management of challenges”. These challenges may include a number of components, especially of qualitative nature: personal and professional growth, fulfillment, new duties and responsibilities, social and professional recognition.
• The reasons behind the strengthening of women’s position in the economy are:
o Equal opportunities in education
o Greater access to knowledge
o Change in the legislative framework
o Gradual change in the mentality of men who used to dominate the working environment
o Change of perceptions in the working environment thanks to technology and the fact that employees will be assessed based on their output and not the hours spent or their physical presence at work.
o Change of social perceptions and the concept of raising a “correct family” which kept mothers at home.
• Although this is only the beginning, a “social removal of guilt” caused by the career vs family dilemma is now being clearly identified. In this newly forming attitude of women who choose to play an active professional role, the concept of family takes on a different context. Husbands are asked to cooperate and show understanding. Time spent with children is shifting from quantity to more and more quality time. This attitude leaves no room for doubt or emotional hesitations on whether the decision taken by these women to follow a career is correct or not. One of the most significant conclusions of the survey analysis is that we have entered a phase of social transformation on how contemporary, educated and working Cypriot women perceive their parallel role as professionals and mothers. Each role now has its own distinct space of development and function, with its own independent features. Despite the objective difficulties of creating a family, this approach gives women the certainty and self-confidence to be both career professionals and competent mothers.
• Female sensitivity in the contemporary working environment is a myth about to fall apart. Sentimental approaches are being reduced and replaced by more logical standpoints. The creation of a mechanism of defense and survival in a broader male-dominated environment makes women sometimes act more harshly than men, in an attempt to convince about their managerial competence and effectiveness. Female sensitivity remains a strong personality trait in non professional moments and activities. It becomes, however, far less significant in the working environment. It is believed that this will become even more marked in the future as women will be called to undertake higher positions of responsibility and their accession to managerial posts will generally be broadened.
Conclusions of the Quantitative Survey
More than 50% of the organisations which have taken part in the survey do not have female members in their Board of Directors, whilst in those organisations that do have women on their Board, their presence is very limited.
As far as academic qualifications are concerned, there appears to be a balance amongst men, who seem to extend their studies (from a degree to a post-graduate degree and a professional qualification), whilst most women settle for a degree and in some cases a professional qualification (e.g. accountants/auditors).
Furthermore, it should be noted that the main reason for which Cypriot businesses do not prefer to have women in leading positions is their family responsibilities. However, the fact that some features, such as dedication and consistency at work, are more marked in women than in men, is considered positive. These two features, coupled with their qualifications and experience, can be a strong advantage in making organisations decide to include women in their Boards of Directors and place them in managerial positions.
The fact that only half of the organisations have in place an organised staff evaluation system is negative. This indicates that the other 50% of the organisations which do not have an evaluation system use criteria which may cause problems amongst the members of staff and could point towards lack of meritocracy, lack of transparency or arbitrary decisions when it comes to promoting women to managerial positions. The non existence of an organised assessment system gives many the right to interpret decisions as they wish and to their own benefit, an attitude which may create counter incentives at work, resulting in decreased performance. This is also concluded from the answers provided by interviewees, who said that men and women are not offered equal opportunities for career development.
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