Why Women Coaches Matter
The information shared below is modified from the work on Dr. Nicole M. LaVoi, director of the Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport at the University of Minnesota. The Tucker Center is the first research center of its kind solely dedicated to research, education and outreach which makes a difference in the lives of girls and women in sport, their families and communities. For more information visit TuckerCenter.org.
WOMEN ARE GOOD FOR BUSINESS OR “EXCELLENCE” IN SKIING.
“Invaluable information about the contribution of women in leadership positions has been firmly established in other sectors. LaVoi draws on research from the business sector and notes that international companies who have more women on their corporate boards far outperformed the average company return on financial and organizational performance. This evidence points to the fact that women offer a different perspective and impact the bottom line.”
SEEING WOMEN IN POSITIONS OF POWER IN SPORT MATTERS.
Sport is highly visible and one of the most powerful social institutions in society. People who are seen and known in sport, particularly those in coaching positions, challenges outdated gender stereotypes about women in leadership, and sends a strong message as to who and what is relevant and valued, along with who and what isn’t. As statistics show, in the world of coaching, Coaches are by a vast majority, men. Research conducted in 2013 and again in 2015, which found that when males experience women as competent athletes or players within the sporting sphere, they’re more likely to respect them in the other areas of their lives, at work, as friends and in intimate relationships.
WOMEN DECISION MAKERS ADVOCATE FOR OTHER WOMEN.
LaVoi draws on Clark’s 2012 research which shows that women Coaches advocate for other women, when women are ‘out of sight’ they’re ‘out of mind’, their needs don’t get prioritized. On the flipside, when there are enough women decision-makers, women’s issues get prioritized.
WOMEN SUPPORT EACH OTHER AND HELP NAVIGATE THE MALE-DOMINATED INDUSTRY.
LaVoi found that women Coaches matter to other women Coaches because they can provide support and advice to colleagues about navigating what has traditionally been a male dominated workplace. The ‘network’ is just as relevant and useful for women as it is for men, it can help them in their career and women Coaches need to see and interact with other women Coaches for friendship, networking, support, career advice and mentorship.
SEEING WOMEN COACHES HELPS GIRLS AND YOUNG WOMEN SEE COACHING AS A VIABLE CAREER PATH.
LaVoi identified that women coaches help grow the number of women in the Coaching profession. Quite simply, if women see other women Coaching they may think about Coaching as a legitimate and viable career. Just by being more visible in their role they may inspire other women to pursue and emulate their achievements. Seeing women Coaching greatly increases the likelihood of a woman considering a career in Coaching.
Having women in athletic leadership and sport coaching matters. Women coaches matter because they provide diversity in the workplace. Women coaches matter because they provide a visible career pathway for young women to enter the coaching profession. Women coaches matter because they can relate differently to young women than men because they are a same-sex role model. Women coaches also provide role models for boys as well as girls. Young men and women should have the opportunity to have a variety of role models and gender is one component of that. Women coaches matter.
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