GENDER AT WORK
SUHANA GORDHAN: Advertising needs to offer more seats to eager young women
‘The onus must be on industry leaders to pull up a chair next to them for a young woman to learn, grow and be inspired’
Speed dating is tortuous. It’s like having your molars scraped by what dentists call the "smile scraper". And it’s enough to make you feel like you’re more than happy to hang out on the proverbial shelf like an unclaimed vase. But, put 45 young women in a room with 18 women leaders from the advertising industry and you’ve got a whole new kind of speed dating that’s dynamic, intellectual and inspiring. This is Open Chair. Last week, I and two other women from the industry launched Open Chair, an event designed to bridge the gap between young women in advertising and senior leadership. The evening began with a talk by Nunu Ntshingila, head of Facebook Africa. At the 2016 Loeries — the advertising awards show for Africa and the Middle East — Ntshingila became the first woman to be inducted into the Loeries Hall of Fame.After the talk, guests were ushered into a restaurant where young women could ask questions of each of the mentors in a speed-dating format. A bell rang every nine minut...
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