The Women
Empowerment Index
- 31 May 2025
An inspiring and empowering event dedicated to women excelling in the boardroom.
This special event begins with a thought-provoking fireside chat featuring Tasneem Abdool-Samad, respected non-executive board member of ABSA Group. Tasneem shares candid reflections and valuable lessons from her leadership journey, offering practical insights into navigating board dynamics and driving meaningful impact at the highest levels of governance.
The event then continues with a powerful masterclass exploring The Women Empowerment Index, presented by Namhla Mniki, Dr Futhi Mtoba, and Tanya Vogt. This interactive session highlights critical measures for advancing gender equity, enhancing board effectiveness, and positioning women for lasting influence in corporate leadership.
Whether you are an experienced director or aspiring to join a board, this event will equip you with strategies and inspiration to thrive in today’s boardrooms.
Judith Chinkumbi interviews
Tasneem Abdool-Samad
Clarification: The reference to the board as a ‘stage’ is intended as a metaphorical expression and should not be interpreted to suggest that the board engages in performance or pretense.
Uncompromising adaptability is described as a seemingly paradoxical approach that combines agility and responsiveness to changing circumstances with an unwavering commitment to one’s core values and principles. In the context of a career, particularly serving on boards, it means being able to adjust and evolve along a non-linear path while remaining true to your personal “North Star”. It is not about compromising your aspirations or identity, but rather adapting and evolving to become better equipped for future steps or different outcomes.
Navigating a non-linear career path involves making choices and adaptations based on personal circumstances and aspirations, without sacrificing fundamental values. Tasneem Abdool-Samad’s experience, for example, involved taking a “sidestep” or “backstep” from her high-pressure role at Deloitte to lecture at a university while raising young children. This wasn’t seen as a compromise of her career, but an adaptation that allowed her to evolve academically and return better equipped, staying true to her profession and personal needs. It is about viewing these changes as opportunities for learning and growth, rather than setbacks.
Balancing professional ambition with a conservative background and societal expectations can be challenging. It requires being true to oneself in the workplace while understanding that different environments may necessitate different behaviours. The key is authenticity in the professional sphere, not needing to prove oneself in personal or family settings. It also involves accepting and navigating the differing expectations placed upon women in various aspects of their lives.
A significant misconception about serving on a board is that it is solely about status, showing up, and talking a lot. Some people mistakenly view it as a leisurely pursuit with minimal commitment. The reality is that serving on a board, particularly for a large listed company, involves a substantial amount of hard work, diligence, and preparation, including reading extensive documents and conducting research. It requires significant time investment and is driven by a love for the work, a desire to give back, continuous learning, and contributing meaningfully rather than seeking status or simply financial gain.
For aspiring board members, meaningful relationships and networking are crucial, and quality trumps quantity. It is not about attending numerous events or connecting with a large number of people, but about cultivating genuine connections with individuals who can become sponsors and mentors. These relationships, built on trust and mutual respect, are more likely to lead to opportunities and support throughout one’s career journey, far more effectively than superficial connections.
Effective contribution in a boardroom is about quality, not quantity. Instead of being the loudest voice, impact comes from making thoughtful, meaningful, and sticky comments. This requires listening attentively to others and strategically crafting your contributions to land effectively with both management and fellow board members, considering the desired outcome. Preparing thoroughly and understanding the context of discussions allows for targeted and impactful questioning or input.
Navigating patriarchal behaviours and red flags in boardrooms requires awareness and a strategic approach. Some men may be dismissive of women on boards, viewing them as token appointments. Identifying this during the interview process is crucial, as it is a two-way street where you assess the board’s culture. Developing emotional intelligence (EQ) and the ability to land messages effectively is important. While some behaviours may need to be addressed offline, fostering meaningful relationships, particularly with the chair or lead director, allows for calling out issues early.
Women can better support each other in male-dominated environments by being intentional in their efforts and challenging the mindset that competition or fear of being overshadowed hinders mutual support. It requires actively mentoring, sponsoring, and creating spaces for other women to learn and thrive. By shifting the focus from status and legacy to service and collective growth, women can overcome the tendency to not intentionally support each other and instead build a stronger network where contributions are recognized and amplified.
The Women Empowerment Index with
Namhla Mniki and Tanya Vogt
According to the sources, South Africa’s overall Gender Gap score in 2024 was 0.79, placing it 18th out of 146 countries globally. However, despite women making up the majority of the population, there is still a significant gap in women’s empowerment, particularly in economic participation and ownership of the means of production. The current economic structure is seen as systemically devaluing women’s contributions.
The Women’s Empowerment Index is a tool designed to measure and drive progress in women’s economic empowerment, particularly within industries. Its purpose is to move beyond superficial metrics and provide tangible criteria to assess the extent of gender transformation within companies and sectors. It aims to facilitate women’s access to real economic power, including business ownership, assets, and participation in supply chains and value chains.
The Women Economic Assembly (WECONA) is a private-public partnership established by President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2021. It brings together the public sector, women entrepreneurs, and industry stakeholders to negotiate specific targets for procurement from women-owned businesses. WECONA’s vision is to rebuild the South African economy in a gender-transformative way by intentionally identifying opportunities for women within various industries and ensuring they get procurement opportunities and sustainable access to the market.
The gender transformative lens, which informs the Women’s Empowerment Index, uses a six-point criteria. While the sources only explicitly detail a few, the key mentioned criteria include:
- The number of women actually participating in an industry as business owners.
- The extent to which women have access to supply opportunities (offtake agreements, supplier contracts) in those industries, measured by the proportion of spend on women-controlled or women-led businesses, the total amount spent, and the number of women being spent on. Other criteria briefly mentioned or implied relate to ecosystems of support (access to finance, information, and capacity), women leadership, women employment and representation, and women development. Women remuneration is also a planned metric, although currently voluntary for data submission.
The Index directly addresses challenges in accessing procurement by measuring the proportion of spend on women-controlled or women-led businesses within industries. By providing a quantifiable metric for procurement from women, it encourages companies to track and improve their performance in this area. The data collected through the index helps identify gaps and allows for the development of targeted solutions, such as connecting women-owned businesses with potential customers and implementing support programs for access to finance, information, and capacity building.
Measuring gender transformation is considered crucial because, as stated, “if you can’t measure something, you can’t manage it, and you can’t change it.” The index moves beyond statements of intent to provide tangible data that shows the actual impact of efforts to empower women. It allows companies and sectors to understand their current standing, track progress over time, identify areas for improvement, and be held accountable for achieving gender transformation targets.
Women in leadership positions and on boards can play a significant role in promoting gender transformation by “asking the right questions.” This involves looking beyond headline figures and delving into the nuances of the data presented by tools like the Women’s Empowerment Index. By using these metrics, they can challenge existing norms, advocate for specific targets for procurement from women, and drive strategic decisions that lead to tangible increases in women’s economic participation and empowerment. The example of women champions in the automotive sector demonstrates the impact of such leadership.
Individuals and entrepreneurs interested in getting involved can visit WECONA (see https://www.linkedin.com/company/weconaza/) , where they can find information about the 17 prioritised sectors and the gender transformative tools available. Participation in WECONA’s sector streams, which are led by women entrepreneurs, is free and offers an opportunity to contribute to shaping the agenda and advising on necessary actions. Regarding the Women’s Empowerment Index specifically, information can be shared directly, and the platform allows companies to input data and view their progress. Attending events and forums related to women’s empowerment also provides opportunities for networking and gaining insights.
