Women in Architecture (WIA) will host a Roundtable Exchange on May 24 as part of its continuing mission to help women experience success in the profession.
The event, which starts at 10 a.m. and will be conducted online, is open to WIA members. If you are not a WIA member, you can join the community here – (https://bit.ly/join-WIA).
Architects Whynde Kuehn, Geeta Pyne and Linda Finley will oversee the event, which will rotate across three roundtable topics, addressing some of the key challenges that women face in their bid to be successful. “This will provide an opportunity for us to learn, explore each topic from different angles, and generate some ideas and solutions to help us all succeed in working together,” said Kuehn.
The topics include:
Roundtable Topic 1: Getting a Seat at the Table
Roundtable Facilitator: Geeta Pyne
Have you ever experienced (or have you witnessed a female colleague experience) challenges with getting a seat at the right tables? Or even a challenge getting your voice and perspectives heard in a conversation?
What might be contributing to these dynamics?
If a female architect experiences these challenges, how can she address them? How can male allies and advocates help? How can we prevent this from happening in the first place?
Roundtable Topic 2: The Assertive/Bossy Perception
Roundtable Facilitator: Whynde Kuehn
See the thought starter below from Adam Grant, organizational psychologist and author.
If you like, read his article with the evidence here: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/31/opinion/women-language-work.html
Have you ever experienced (or have you witnessed a female colleague experience) a negative reaction when speaking or acting assertively or with confidence?
What might be contributing to these dynamics?
If a female architect experiences this challenge, how can she address it? How can male allies and advocates help? How can we prevent this from happening in the first place? What would it look like to challenge the stereotypes?
Roundtable Topic 3: Navigating Male/Female Dynamics
Roundtable Facilitator: Linda Finley
See a few of the thought starter situations provided below by one of our seasoned female architecture leaders.
| Some of the behaviors I have experienced and have discussed with other female colleagues who have contacted me are related to the cultural side of career development. The dialogs were around handling the very real and negative impacts of Manterrupting, Mansplaining, Bropropriating, and other behaviors.
Based on my personal experiences, here is how I summarize them: ● Manterrupting – This occurs when a woman is speaking and male co-workers do not pay attention to her and interrupt or talk over the top of the conversation. ● Mansplaining – This occurs when a male co-worker interrupts a female to explain something – even if she knows as much or more about the topic than he does. ● Bropropriating – This occurs when a male co-worker takes a woman’s idea, and both he and the woman are praised/recognized for the idea, and he takes or is given the credit for it. |
Have you ever experienced (or have you witnessed a female colleague experience) any of these situations or any similar ones?
What might be contributing to these dynamics?
If a female architect experiences any of these challenges, how can she address them? How can male allies and advocates help? How can we prevent these situations from happening in the first place?
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