Women Leaders as Change Agents in My Organization

Women play a vital role in promoting change in society and organizations. According to Olayanju (2020), women can drive change by supporting one another (p. 2). Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) is among the organizations where women are limited from accessing higher positions. For example, a limited number of women are in various positions, including my Customer Advocate II position in the pre-authorization and inventory department. Therefore, women leaders in the organization should take the initiative to be change agents and create more opportunities for women.

Women Leaders as Change Agents in My Organization

Dahmen-Adkins & Peterson (2021) define change agents as individuals who coordinate, promote, facilitate, implement, and champion organizational change (p. 2). Women in my organization can be change agents by advocating for better pay for women and introducing organizational policies that promote equal pay for men and women completing the same roles. Women leaders can influence women’s earnings by supporting policies that enhance gender equality in an organization (van Hek & van der Lippe, 2019, p. 2). Promoting equal pay can encourage women at BCBS to apply for the job positions that men dominate because they will be assured of equal pay.

Women leaders at BCBS can also be change agents by promoting gender diversity and inclusion. Women can use an inclusion strategy to solve the issues facing women by introducing training programs to equip them with knowledge and skills to help them overcome their weaknesses (Barragan et al., 2017, p. 323). For example, BCBS can train women in customer advocate management, quality management, inventory management, and provider/member service management to equip them with knowledge and skills to leverage to apply for positions in those areas. Notably, vocational and life skills training are essential in enabling women to secure jobs (Ceretti & Bertini, 2020, p. 3). Therefore, women at BCBS can focus on acquiring skills for career advancement within their area of interest. Women leaders at BCBS can also empower other women to encourage them to apply for top positions. Organizations and communities support women’s empowerment because, according to Yadav & Kumar (2021), it contributes to the growth of societies (p. 36). Therefore, women leaders at BCBS can encourage women to apply for male-dominated positions to empower them.

I identify myself as a change agent because I always focus on helping women break the stereotypes that limit access to equal opportunities as men. For example, I encourage women in my team to pursue opportunities to help them climb the leadership ladder in the organization. According to Hobbins et al. (2022), encouraging women to look for advancement opportunities within the organization is vital in promoting equal opportunities for women in organizations. Therefore, I act as a change agent by helping women in our organization identify and pursue advancement opportunities.

Conclusion

Women play a vital role in creating change by empowering one another, advocating for policies that promote gender equality, and advising each other to seek advancement opportunities. Women can also make change by advocating for women’s training in organizations to equip them with the knowledge, competencies, and skills needed to fill a specific position. Women leaders at Blue Cross Blue Shield can be change agents by advocating for better pay for women and introducing organizational policies that promote equal pay for men and women completing the same role, promoting gender diversity and inclusion, and empowering women to encourage them to apply for top positions in the organization.

References

Barragan, S., Paludi, M. I., & Mills, A. (2017). Top women managers as change agents in the MACHISTA context of Mexico. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 36(4), 321–339. https://doi.org/10.1108/edi-08-2016-0065

Ceretti, A., & Bertini, C. (2020, January 6). Women and girls as change agents. Chicago Council on Global Affairs. https://globalaffairs.org/research/report/women-and-girls-change-agents

Dahmen-Adkins, J., & Peterson, H. (2021). Micro change agents for gender equality: Transforming European research performing organizations. Frontiers in Sociology, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2021.741886

Hobbins, J., Kristiansen, E., & Carlström, E. (2022). Women, leadership, and change – navigating between contradictory cultures. NORA – Nordic Journal of Feminist and Gender Research, 31(3), 209–221. https://doi.org/10.1080/08038740.2022.2098377

Olayanju, J. B. (2020, January 12). Women in leadership: Practical strategies to drive change in 2020 & beyond. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/juliabolayanju/2020/12/31/women-in-leadership-practical-strategies-to-drive-change-in-2020–beyond/#18774cc26add

van Hek, M., & van der Lippe, T. (2019). Are female managers agents of change or cogs in the machine? An assessment with three-level manager-employee linked data. European Sociological Review. https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jcz008

Yadav, A., & Kumar, N. (2021). The role of women in today’s society: A review Akshatha. Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Science, 9(6). https://doi.org/chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.questjournals.org/jrhss/papers/vol9-issue6/Ser-1/

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