EQUALITY GUIdE - KU Leuven

236 Equality Guide
change of experiences. The networking process continues over a long-term period,
exchanging information and tips and can finally result in a coaching or career development
process among colleagues. These processes are les accessible to women.
Until now, female managers are a minority. There is no experienced generation of
women managers or tradition of women networks. In addition, it is not easy for
women to enter the ! mostly informal ! male networks.
Research has also shown that women network differently from men. We see that
the needs for networking are more focused on results. Women are more motivated
in learning, giving and receiving instead of ‘socializing’. The network process is
more target-oriented with less time investment.
Networking is the topic of the first training session of the SOFIA programme and
aims at improving women’s networking skills and insights. In the course of five sessions,
functional networks are created among the women managers. Within the
group of participants, cross-departmental networks are created. This group process
is of great importance for the discussions and exchange of experiences during the
sessions.
The network provides a platform for colleagues who are active women managers. It
is a stimulating forum for the empowerment of women. Together with the trainers/coaches,
the women support and challenge each other and provide vision. SO-
FIA acts as a ‘sounding board’ where women who are willing to pursue their ambitions
recognize their challenges and experiences. Within the platform they can look
for best practices and solutions.
The participatory and personal development is very important with the programme
offering an interactive, experimental and reflexive learning method. So the SOFIA
programme is an interactive, training programme of five sessions, combined with
networking and personal coaching.
1.2.2. Sofia: women in academic institutions
At universities, women in top positions are still rare. In almost all disciplines, the number
of female PhD-students is much higher than the number of female professors.
When moving up to the level of associate professor or full professor the number of
women systematically decreases. This issue has been the reason for SEIN (UHasselt)
and the Diversity Policy Office (K.U.Leuven) to develop the project ‘Women in Academics’.
The aim of the project is to 1) support female PhD-students and female PhDs in developing
their professional careers and to 2) find answers for questions such as:
! Do I stay in the academic world or switch to the private sector?
! How do I find a balance between work and private life?
! How do I cope with the academic culture as a starting PhD?
In four interactive coaching sessions the participants improve their insights in their own
job wishes and the actions needed to realize those wishes. The participants learn from