Reality check on International Day of Women and Girls in Science

In this blog, Jane Wall, Managing Director of the BioIndustry Association (BIA), reflects on a roundtable with the Milken Institute and Jill Biden. She notes the discussion on a lack of emphasis  on women's health and alludes to BIA data on the inclusion of women within biotech.

I was very privileged this week to be part of a roundtable with the Milken Institute and Jill Biden, discussing their new Women’s Health Network, and to extend the invite to some of the incredible CEOs and investors in the BIA community. The conversation was interesting with inspirational stories from entrepreneurs in this space, Lea Wenger, CEO and Founder at Cyclana Bio, and true leader and advocate Dame Lesley Regan – asking the question – why are the 51% so under-researched and under-served when statistically, this is the 51% that is responsible for 80% of household decisions and carries the vast majority of societal weight? Why do women live 25% more of their lives in poor health?

Progress celebrated, but leadership stagnates

It’s a discussion that I’ve heard many times, and yes, we need more investment in women’s health (kudos to the Milken for recognising the role that philanthropy can play here) but the conversation quite quickly turned to the role of female leadership in the space and this is the crux of the issue and the thing that will propel women’s health forward. As I listened to the discussions, my heart was also sinking – because at BIA we are measuring female leadership and the latest numbers are a big reality check.

Whilst the many LinkedIn posts this week have celebrated the ‘dedication’, ‘input’, ‘impact’ of women throughout the sector, and we know that there has been progress since the 80s (we’re also grateful for the vote guys…), female leadership is now officially stuck and the trend is stasis at best, at worst it is downward – we’ll be sharing the latest numbers for the UK next month. The problem is not women coming into biotech (our DEI report showed actually more than half of early stage biotech employees are women), it is women not progressing to the rooms where decisions are made.

Why women aren’t reaching decision‑making spaces

I sit in a privileged position – leading WIB over the past 10 years I have spoken to hundreds of women at all stages of their careers – there is much that is unsaid openly – and that is why our Women in biotech leadership report was so important. As well as the stats, we talked to women in leadership positions about their experiences to try and understand more profoundly.

What do I hear and see ALL the time but you won’t see on Linkedin?

• Female leadership is recognised, but it’s used to get things done well – not rewarded with positions and titles of power.
• Women continue to carry huge burdens of care – this does not seem to be improving – so they are exhausted and conflicted.
• As a result, women are not in the rooms where decisions are made.
• Globally, we now exist in a culture where equity and inclusion is no longer valued and misogyny has been granted a free pass.

There are many consequences of this stasis. Yes we need men on board as allies, and yes absolutely we need men to recognise the investment opportunities in women’s health and get on board with the ENORMOUS opportunity there (wake up guys, women’s health is not NICHE – it’s a huge investment opportunity, a GDP game changer). But I can’t help but feel that without women in positions of real power pushing for certain conditions to be recognised, and the way in which broader conditions impact women differently, the dial will not move.

Naming reality - and changing it

Another consequence? As a nation and as a planet we will not reach anywhere near our full potential or levels of economic productivity needed with 51% of the population still not given the opportunity to influence. And when we look at diversity more broadly that % is much, much bigger.

And if the trend continues and the existing algorithms prevail and gather pace, the next generation will see no progress either.

I am an optimist and I see so much incredible progress in science and so many inspirational, mind-blowing women in the sector, but right now I have the words of my new personal hero post-Davos, Mark Carney ringing in my ears. It is time to name reality and take the signs down. And yes, I’m re-purposing the analogy slightly, but it works on many levels.

In the room

At Women in Biotech in Cambridge on 5 March, we’ll be discussing the impact of US policy on D&I, how we lead through periods of change and disruption, and how we build foundational models of biology and data for women’s health.

We’ll also be bringing together our incredible WIB mentoring community – and officially launching our NED programme She Steers, developed with AZ, Murray Edwards and Deloitte – which will bring together a incredible cohort of female leaders and put them in rooms where decisions are made (applications close tomorrow 13 February!).

Come on 5 March to commiserate, to share, to learn, to celebrate and be inspired.  As always, allies are needed and very much welcome.