The Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (EMS) hosted Professor Hellicy Ngambi for a talk in celebration of Women’s Month, observed in August.

Prof Ngambi is the founder and director of Mutepa RARE (Responsible, Accountable, Relevant and Ethical) Solutions, which emanates from her personal principle-based values. She focused on these principles during her talk, daring EMS staff and students to be rare and break the glass ceiling to move to a higher level.

The glass ceiling, as she described, is often an impediment to the advancement of women in leadership and senior positions, which is created by a number of factors including gender bias and stereotypes, as well as perceptions of attributes such as being polite, accommodating and nurturing versus being competitive, aggressive and fearless.

According to Prof Ngambi, research has demonstrated that the masculine bias in people’s perceptions of leaders is strong, while there is no solid information to premise their perceptions on. “This bias raises doubts about a woman’s qualifications as a leader and can influence the way others behave toward her,” she said.

Prof Ngambi is one of many women in Africa who have managed to break the glass ceiling in her academic career. She served as Vice-Chancellor at two universities concurrently, Mulungushi University from 2012 to 2021 and Kwame Nkrumah University in Zambia from 2017 to 2019, both the apex of her career. Prof Ngambi made history when she was appointed as the first female Vice-Chancellor in the Republic of Zambia.

She explained that characteristics of women in leadership positions can be misconstrued due to existing biases in society. Women leaders with communal leadership styles are perceived as weak, and those who display assertiveness as being too masculine. These misconceptions present challenges for women to cement themselves in leadership skills. Prof Ngambi noted that, despite these, organisations can capitalise on employing more women in leadership positions.

“When there are more women in leadership positions, there is better problem-solving. Female leaders are trustworthy and are more collaborative. Women make terrific mentors and millennial women are increasingly becoming more educated, making them more competent and equipped for leadership roles,” said Prof Ngambi.

Aside from these benefits, the multiple roles women play in their lives bears psychological benefits as they are able to offer emotional advice and support, which hones their interpersonal skills and enhances their effectiveness in the management role.

Prof Ngambi, who served in various management positions for over 18 years at the University of South Africa prior to her appointments as Vice-Chancellor, stated that organisations need to be more intentional about demolishing barriers in a quest to achieve gender parity and advance women empowerment.

According to Prof Ngami, there are a number of barriers that organisations can remove to promote women empowerment. These include the lack of career and succession planning, mentoring and role models for women at the highest levels, exclusion from informal networks and channels of communication where important information on organisational politics and decision-making is shared, stereotyping and preconceptions of women’s roles and abilities, commitment and leadership style, and lack of flexibility in work schedules.

Breaking the glass ceiling requires effort and commitment from everyone, including men who often get first preference for leadership positions.

“As a man, step up and be active allies to women, even during this time of remote work both at home and at work. Advocate for women and ensure their voices are heard. Listen to them and don’t dismiss them,” said Prof Ngambi.

“As a woman, find your route and climb to the top. It’s not only a ladder but also a jungle gym to the top,” she said, appealing to women in the audience to own their success and be fearless in reaching greater heights.