The theme for International Women’s Day (IWD) 2025 is “accelerate action,” urging swift steps toward gender equality. The theme calls for increased momentum and urgency in addressing the systemic barriers and biases that women face, both in personal and professional spheres. At the current rate of progress, it will take until 2158, which is roughly five generations from now, to reach full gender parity, according to data from the World Economic Forum.
Conference News spoke to Laura Tavernor, marketing consultant and board member at Women in Exhibitions (WIE) UK chapter, Gabby Austen Browne, founder of The Diversity Alliance, Neil Hudson Basing, community and events director at WE CREATE SPACE, Cat Kevern director at Electric Cat and NOWIE, Sarah Yeats managing director at Sledge, Felicia Asiedu, marketing director at Cvent and Harriet Bullen, senior talent manager at TRO.
about gender equality in the events industry and where action needs to be accelerated.
State of gender equality in the events industry
A 2022 IBTM study found that while 77% of the events industry workforce is female. Despite this, there are still issues with gender equality. Those who we spoke to explained that whilst progress is being made when it comes to gender parity within the industry the progress is still too slow. Laura Tavernor highlights a workforce divide, with women running the shows, whilst men run the businesses.
Felicia Asiedu acknowledges progress but says: “Progress isn’t the same as arrival. Too often, leadership tables remain dominated by men making the big calls.” She urges the industry to move beyond performative gestures toward real action—equal pay, equal opportunities, and more women in executive roles. She says: “If gender equality were an event, it feels like the industry sent the ‘Save the Date’ but forgot to book the venue. Progress is happening, but it’s far too slow.” Neil Hudson-Basing adds that panel diversity remains an issue, with men making up at least half of most panels, despite long-standing calls for change. He says: “People want to see themselves represented within speakers and panels. Sometimes we need to dig a bit deeper to see who else is out there.”
Barriers to progress
Despite women making up 77% of the events industry workforce, only 16% hold leadership roles. It is important to note that progress has been slower in certain sectors of the industry, such as technical roles and roles where there’s less flexibility, like touring, live events and production. Gabby Austen Browne highlights structural barriers, particularly for women of colour. She explains that through her work with countless organisations through the Diversity Alliance she sees multiple compounding barriers that require urgent action. The most insidious barrier is something that she calls ‘prove it again syndrome’ where women, especially Black women must continuously demonstrate competence while male colleagues receive the benefit of the doubt. Felicia echoes this, pointing to an ‘unspoken rulebook’ that forces women to justify their place in ways men don’t. Gabby says: “Factor in that women still shoulder disproportionate caring responsibilities with minimal structural support for returning mothers, and you see why progress stalls. And we can’t ignore the global context – in many regions, women’s rights are actively being rolled back. As events professionals operating internationally, we must recognise these realities and use our platforms to counteract rather than inadvertently reinforce these harmful trends.”
Sarah Yeats stresses that the industry lacks much-needed flexibility, clinging to the mindset of “this is how it’s always been done.” She says: “The work of an event professional is not your typical 9-5 and can involve long hours, so it’s important we champion flexibility, practice sensitivity, and evolve roles in ways that complement lifestyle changes so women have the freedom to adapt and grow – whether that’s having team members lead local projects so they aren’t away from their families for extended periods, allowing them to adjust their working hours so they can do school pick-ups and drop offs, or supporting them as they navigate life stages such as perimenopause and menopause.” Harriet Bullen says that she thinks this is one of the biggest barriers. She says: “Our industry is fast paced and often always on – making it difficult for many women to truly balance work and family commitments. Many businesses fully support flexible working requests, even without always having colleagues on hand to support.”
Laura expands on this, explaining that often, the point where people choose to have a family is around the same time they may reach a head of department role. She says: “Having a family can be a barrier to career progression. However, since the pandemic, companies are more flexible, which allows for women to have both a career and a family. Women should feel empowered that whatever decisions they make should not impact their careers”.
Industry responsibility
Cat Kevern says that she doesn’t think the industry is doing enough to support and promote women into senior leadership positions: “Often women in senior leadership have almost had to “become a man” and lean into masculine traits, losing touch with the more traditional female attributes such as kindness, empathy and flexibility. This only amplifies the issues for women further down the career ladder as they’re expected to behave the same and often can feel there isn’t space for them in senior positions as they don’t see adequate representation there.”
Gabby says: “The industry has improved in recognising challenges exist, but there’s still a disconnect between rhetoric and the lived experience of women in our industry. I see companies proudly promote diversity statements while failing to create conditions where women, particularly women of colour, can truly thrive.”
Role of allies
Gender equality isn’t just a women’s issue—it requires active allyship.Neil stresses that men must educate themselves on the challenges women face, call out sexism, and set clear workplace behavior standards, especially in social settings where alcohol is involved. He says: “Men should actively amplify women’s voices, ensuring they aren’t interrupted or talked over—something that happens far too often.” He also highlights the need for workplace policies supporting women, such as menopause policies or White Ribbon accreditation to combat gender-based violence. Cat emphasises the power of mentorship, urging male leaders to establish internal mentoring programs. She says: “Men need to put their unconscious bias aside and really listen. We also need to see more men attending panels on women’s issues and DEI.” Laura Tavernor adds that real change requires collective effort. “We can talk about gender disparity and non-bias, but true equality takes action from everyone. Men can support women by listening and consciously challenging their biases in decision-making.”
Felicia puts it simply: “Hire the right women, pay them fairly, and promote them based on merit, not familiarity. Also, let’s normalise things like men taking parental leave and flexible working, so these things stop being seen as ‘women’s issues’ and just become ‘people issues.’”
Accelerating action beyond International Women’s Day:
IWD is an opportunity to celebrate women, to discuss the progress made in reaching gender parity and to remember how far we still need to go when it comes to equality for all. It is clear that the events industry still has a long way to go and it is important that this discussion continues beyond just marking IWD. Felicia says: “If your commitment to gender equality is just an IWD social media post, then congratulations—you’ve done marketing, not progress. Real change means setting measurable targets, reviewing hiring policies, ensuring equal pay audits, and creating leadership pipelines. Companies need to back up their words with data, funding, and structural change.” Cat adds to this, saying that IWD is a great way to kick start these conversations, but it should be just that, a starting point: “Leaders should take this opportunity to revisit and revise internal policies, do annual temperature checks with their female staff, implement internal DEI policies, and try to give flexible working where possible.”
Laura adds: “Businesses should be transparent in their gender disparity and share their objectives and plans with employees so there are very clear shared goals. It is a challenge due to the name, but IWD is not just for women, it has to be something all employees are involved in, with clear communication on why, so everyone buys in to accelerating change, and be willing to influence behaviours and challenge stereotype.”
Support the supporters:
The international Women’s Day website explains how one of the best ways to accelerate action is to ‘Support the Supporters’. Within the events industry there are amazing people, groups and organisations doing incredible work on DEI initiatives. Felicia says: “Support the people doing the work, not just the work itself. Invest in training, mentoring, and sponsorship schemes. Celebrate and promote those pushing for equity—not just on IWD, but in boardrooms, hiring meetings, and annual performance reviews.”
WIE and NOWIE are both amazing organisations that aim to support women in the industry. WIE supports women in their career journey, with regular networking, training sessions and a mentoring programme specifically helping women and NOWIE are working hard to improve the landscape for women in events. They offer career support and opportunities and foster professional growth, champion diversity, and inclusivity, providing a safe and empowering community built by women, for women. Laura says: “By sharing ideas, success stories, and having open conversation the industry can collectively accelerate action and become a more appealing place to work for all.”
While International Women’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate progress, it also serves as a reminder that true change requires continuous, meaningful action.
