International Women’s Day and the terrible judgement of The Hoff

Today, on International Women’s Day 2023, I’d like to reflect on a time I could have done much better, and suggest a way for we event organisers to improve our game.

Many ENTECHs ago, I was employed by the show organisers to organise panel discussions in each of the five cities it visited. There was a venue panel, a consultant and integrator panel, and a live production panel, each MCd by me, discussing the hot topics of the day in each sector. They attracted great panels in each city, and were all well-attended. But as we did the first couple, I slowly realised something, which was quickly changed into a sinking feeling when I discovered this social media account:

Congratulations! You Have An All Male Panel!

Yes, using a ‘thumbs up’ image of The Hoff himself, this ruthlessly satirical account playfully (but deadly seriously) pointed out the prevalence of all-male panel discussions in the world of conferences and events, and I was part of the problem. At this point, I would assume every female reader is thinking, “Well, durrr.”

I didn’t go out of my way to do this (consciously, anyway). When I did manage to arrange female voices on each panel, they were the only one. I put my head down, hoped no-one would notice, and got through the tour. They did notice though, especially the lone female voices on the panels. Invariably, at some point in the discussion, one of my guests would intone “As the only woman on this panel…” and look around with what we would now in 2023 call ‘The Grace Tame Side Eye’. And fair enough too.

I firmly embrace the concept ‘You can’t be what you can’t see’, especially in our industry. So what do we do about it? In that spirit, I’m sharing an example from WAVIT (Women in AV/IT) in the US. They have today announced the formation of a speaker’s bureau to help give women a greater share of voice in the ProAV and IT industries.

“A core part of our mission is empowering women through representation,” said Althea Ricketts, WAVIT vice president and vice president of corporate initiatives at Shure. “Creating the WAVIT Speakers Bureau will allow us to recommend women speakers—who are very underrepresented in the ProAV and IT industries—to our media partners, associations, and the like. Being able to see women represented in the media and on various stages creates a more inclusive environment and encourages more women to grab a seat at the proverbial table”

“I’ve had the mic passed to me many times, and it has helped my career immensely,” added Susan Wilhite, WAVIT board member and business development manager, commercial at Snap One. “At WAVIT, we’re excited to help women find places to share their voices—whether it’s through a blog, speaking on a panel, or simply being interviewed by industry media.”

There’s no reason we can’t copy their lead here in Australia and New Zealand.