Since then, several female groups have adopted the motto and its basic principle. Challenging the immortal words of the Greek fabulist Aesop “after all is said and done – more is said than done”. 

The recent growth of Women’s networks around the world has sent out the message that once again, it is clearly time to act!

Not just speaking, but acting, requires an acceptance of responsibility and that includes Men.

Recent research shows that executive recruitment head-hunters have put a premium on the attributes of personal and organisational responsibility and hold them right at the top of their candidate shopping list, making those who actively demonstrate responsibility, hot property!

I remember speaking to a prominent businessman earlier this year, who told me that he had been involved with the development of women in business for the last ten years, though he had yet to see the dial move within his large corporation.

Sounds like a lot of words have been said at his ‘Diversity and Inclusion’ council meetings throughout the last decade. 

My sense was that it appeared to be someone else’s fault for the lack of movement. I suspect that the same words have been repeated for the benefit of different audiences, but where’s the action? Fault is past tense. Responsibility is present tense. Instead of fault, we would all be wiser to accept responsibility and act.

Bridging the responsibility between words and actions can often be tricky. Taking embryonic actions can sometimes mean working through lots of painful early development and getting things wrong until we think we have got them right.

Mark Manson, the American blogger and author, suggests that we are always wrong, but tomorrow we will be less wrong and the day after that, even less wrong. It is arguable that we never achieve total perfection, so why not act anyway by being courageous and applying small consistent changes that eventually create a much bigger change overall.

There is another way of course, by adopting the pioneers’ version of events, who have already taken the appropriate action and paved the way with sustainable results.

Clients who have implemented the ACCELERATE Programme have experienced great results with 63% of women being promoted into higher positions or developing wider roles and responsibilities within their existing positions.

1) Purpose - be clear around the principles of why your organisation exists.

2) Identity - understand what your business wants to achieve and its brand value.

3) Values and Beliefs - create a strategic plan as to what the operating future looks like and at what point in time.

4) Capabilities - take the agreed steps and actions to assist this plan via a budgeted learning, development and change programme that will guide, embed and oversee the required skills, behavioural and cultural changes across the business.

5) Behaviours - select the right delegates and appoint a custodian or steering group to drive, govern and monitor behavioural and developmental change according to your plan.

6) Environment – measure your desired outcomes and cultural effect of your progress, look at productivity levels, risk assessments, together with the quality of the overall judgement and decision -making efforts of your senior people.

There are still lots of words being said about the Lord Davies report and whether one approves of female quotas or not, the fact remains…

That after all is said and done... it is deeds, not words, that truly matter!