THE FEMALE FACTOR
Once a male only dominion today the managerial ranks of the printing and graphic arts industry are populated with highly intelligent and aspirational women who are not afraid of a challenge and ready to face whatever is around the corner with brains and chutzpah.
Three very sassy and smart women who fall into this category are Franca Balsamo, Senior Production and Graphic Arts Consultant, Business Imaging Solutions Group for Canon Australia; Kelly Bourke, Sales Manager for SOS Print & Media Group, and; Lisa Hanrahan, Publisher. All are advocates for the industry as a bona fide career option for women despite its “blokey-ness”. They are also advocates of further education having embarked on studies designed to hone their leadership skills. And all three are scholarship recipients of the GAMAA Leadership Programme.
Print 21 talked to the “gals” about the differences in the way women lead in management, how the industry offers exciting opportunities for those who thrive under pressure and why learning about yourself is a key ingredient to success.
Responsible for a staff of 14, Kelly Bourke has been in her current position at SOS Print & Media Group, a major print producer in Sydney, for two years and in the industry for more years than she cares to admit. It is an industry she says that “is a hard slog for a woman, but does offer a great career path for those who are savvy and can adapt.
In some ways printing is an ideal environment for a woman – we are good at multi-tasking, customer relations, diplomacy, we are generally quick to adapt to new techniques and systems. There is no limit to what a woman can do in this industry at any level despite the fact that it is so heavily male dominated.”
Whereas the vast majority of women working in the industry are in roles of customer service and marketing, Bourke says “women have the opportunity to diversify into so many different avenues. It is one of those industries where you can work your way around a company and move into various roles gaining a multiple skill set along the way.”
Bourke didn’t always think so favourably of the industry. “When I first started working in print I held that stereotypical image of dirty, dingy factories and relatively dull work. It was more exciting than I anticipated and that really surprised me. I found myself enjoying the challenge of finding solutions for customers, meeting deadlines, working under pressure; all these elements suit my personality, I like the fast pace.”
Even though she is already in a management role, Bourke is keen to hone her leadership skills in order to provide a greater range of career options going forward. “Traditionally managers in this industry have learned on the job and worked their way up the ladder. As a consequence there are not a lot of people with tertiary qualifications at senior managerial levels and I think this may impact in the future on the industry’s ability to diversify and grow. The industry has changed rapidly in the past decade and it continues to evolve. We are now working in an environment in which you need a sound range of management skills and leadership styles to move forward and be competitive into the future. If I want to move past my present position I need to extend my thought, increase my knowledge.”
Bourke believes she is a fairly open leader. “I like to lead by example and be disciplined in what I do. I conduct a lot of one on one meetings with my staff. I like people to be self-directed and I strongly believe in empowering people so they can take responsibility and enjoy the satisfaction of having achieved individually and as a team.” The only woman in the company’s management team, Bourke says she “doesn’t like to win at any cost. I am prepared to negotiate, to find the best solution. I think women in general are better relaters, we’re not so into playing politics or needing to have status. We are better at collaborating, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make decisions.”
“I’ve learned a lot from attending the GAMAA workshops, gained greater self confidence and improved my skills at interacting with a range of people. The workshops have really challenged me and pushed me out of my comfort zone and that’s something that every good leader needs to experience.”
Lisa Hanrahan says she literally fell into the industry. "I was an accountant for a small publishing house and wound up looking after the production side as well. Later I moved to Random House, set up the production department and thrived. I loved it, it was competitive and fun, there was always variety and that invigorating buzz you get when working under pressure."
“This industry is quite unique because if you have get up and go you can really turn your hand to anything. Whereas the trade side of the industry is still heavily male dominated there are great opportunities for women particularly in management and I think we should encourage women to come into the industry at this level.”
After ten years as Production Manager at Random House, Hanrahan felt it was time for a change, but wasn’t certain of the direction. She applied for the GAMAA Leadership Programme and then embarked on further education. “Study was a great thing for my confidence and to get into new headspace, however it was the GAMAA programme that literally transformed me,” she enthuses. “The turning point for me was the branding workshop we did last year. The focus was an exercise where you had to define your own personal brand, to look at who you are, what your passion is and where you want to be, to brand yourself. A year ago I branded myself and now I am living it.”
Hanrahan’s brand “Passionately mentoring new ideas and talent into new avenues of expression”, led her to set up her own publishing company, Rockpool Publishing and literary company, Lisa Hanrahan & Mark Byrne Literary Management, a move she says was largely made possible by the motivation and inspiration she has gained through the GAMAA workshops; “the workshops have been so powerful and in many ways more powerful than doing my post grad subjects. I’ve learned a lot more about myself, how I operate and what’s important to me.”
Feeling transformed after attending a GAMAA workshop is not an uncommon sentiment from workshop participants says Hanrahan adding that many who have participated in the Leadership Programme have identified “a true moving on, a real progression in themselves, their jobs, across their entire lives.”
“I think your personality drives your leadership style, dictates it rather than male female gender. I am very intuitive in the way I lead, and that is perhaps a female bias.”
Starting in the industry as a compositor and graphic designer, today Franca Balsamo is a Senior Production and Graphic Arts Consultant, Business Imaging Solutions Group for Canon Australia. “Career paths in our industry have never been really clear for either sex. I was never discouraged when I was the only female in my classes, I didn't see my gender as a disadvantage then and I certainly don’t now.”
“Opportunities to see different aspects of the industry have always been attractive to me,” she continues. “After ten years working in production, I decided to experience the supplier/manufacturer side. I’ve worked in technical/marketing support, pre-sales and sales roles. The industry offers variety and I think that’s exciting; it is certainly one of the reasons I am still here after twenty years.”
Moving into management roles at an early age, Balsamo developed her leadership skills on the go. “That’s why I’m doing an MBA and the GAMAA Leadership workshops because I want to put the theory to the experience and knowledge I have already gained. The GAMAA Leadership Programme has assisted me by creating an environment which enables me to explore leadership concepts without inhibitions. Being around similar minded people and listening to their experiences only makes you more confident.”
“My philosophy on leadership is to lead by example and have strong ethics, to be a true leader by being visionary and inspirational. Women do lead differently because they are used to multi-tasking and they have more empathy when looking at situations. I also believe women have stronger intuition, a sixth sense. Men tend to focus on a particular issues and sometimes cannot see the bigger picture. They just want to get it done and may not consider the alternatives or implications of their actions whereas I think women do think about the ramifications.”
“At the end of the day it’s not about what role title you have, but about what impact you have in the overall scheme of things. Making positive change and a difference is always rewarding.”
The next GAMAA Leadership Programme workshop “Creative Leadership & Innovation” will be held in Sydney 31 August – 2 September. Places are limited. For more information please email enquire@gamaa.net.au or visit www.gamaa.net.au