There I was in bed last night, trying to work out where my 9.30am in-person meeting tomorrow was supposed to be, so I could set my alarm. The invitee hadn’t put the location in the calendar invite so there I was on my phone trawling back through emails, and then LinkedIn messages to work it out.

I then sent a LinkedIn message to said person confirming I would see them at the agreed location and time.  Two things I knew from this:

1.        The meeting would be cancelled even though the other person reached out to ask for the meeting, and

2.        It would likely be a meeting to “pick my brain” and “get some ideas” but not actually give me any work.

Earlier this week I discovered that the heated towel rail in our bathroom had decided not to work. Now for those of you not living in New Zealand a heated towel rail sounds very bougie but let me tell you it’s essential!

 We are moving into the very wet and mostly cold part of the year, and bath towels don’t dry in this weather. So heated towel rails are essential.

She told me her job is very busy and she was working ALL the hours. Getting to the office first. Still there while everyone has left. Takes work home every night, and works on the weekend. And guess what? She’s exhausted. And her husband ain’t happy.  

Who is asking you to do all the work, I said. She thought hard on that one, but couldn’t come up with a good answer. Well…..no one as it turns out. In fact her manager is telling her to stop working all the hours.

Do you need a more junior person, I asked. No she said. It’s work she has to do. A more junior person couldn’t do it.

What else have you tried, I asked. Just working more hours was the answer.

I have been here myself, and maybe in reading this you see yourself too? I have also had lots of experience coaching women in this situation, and here’s what I have learnt….

This week I have been delivering Respect at Work training in regional Australia for a logistics organisation. Respect at work is essentially an upgrade to the training I used to deliver around anti-discrimination, bullying and sexual harassment training. It focuses on organisations creating a culture that’s respectful of all, and prevents and eliminates as much as possible, discrimination, sexual harassment, and workplace environments that are hostile. The main focus is on the positive duty placed on organisations to present and eliminate as much as possible sexual harassment, based on the fifth national survey on sexual harassment in Australian workplaces, which showed at 33% of workers have experienced workplace sexual harassment, with

What I’ve noticed is that the attitudes and values of the audience for this training has shifted, and for the better. I have also noticed that perhaps my maturity and approach to delivering this training has also shifted, for the better.

Today the conversations in the room are heartening, and collaborative. They are open, and people are willing to share about their experiences. Not only is behaviour changing, but people are seeing the impact of behaviour that’s not respectful, and hearts and minds are shifting.

This is what happening now with AI. Some organisations have a clear strategy and are thinking about how to support leaders and their people with using these new tools. They are communicating their plans and being honest. They are providing the right training at the right time, and are ensuring it's equitable.

Others are throwing AI tools at their people, along with some online training and hoping for the best. For their people it feels like change is being done to them, and they are invisible in any decisions.