The challenge of being a female manager on television

The Television Academy organizes a debate on the role of women in management positions in the audiovisual sector with the participation of Elena Sánchez, Sonia Martínez, Almudena Ledo, Macarena Rey, Gema R. Neira and María José Rodríguez Pérez.

The Academy of Television and Audiovisual Sciences and Arts organized last Monday, March 3, the day Female leadership: the challenge of being a television manager in it Telefónica Foundation Space. The event has been a meeting point with the aim of discussing the role of women in management positions within the audiovisual sector: current situation, problems, how to break the glass ceiling and future challenges, among other topics. The Television Academy thus shows its commitment to equality within the framework of the events that are being held on the occasion of International Women's Day.

Maria Casado, president of the Academy and moderator of the meeting, began by stating that “it doesn't matter what we do because a good part of the concerns we have are shared by everyone.” "The women who accompany us in this meeting have been the creators of a good part of the programs and series that appear on television. They are projects that have passed through their offices, but, above all, through their minds and hearts. They are responsible for the television that we watch and, surely, the one we will see."

Elena Sanchez, general secretary of the RTVE Corporation and president of the RTVE Equality Observatory, expressed the importance of these types of meetings to reflect on the role of women and the entire path that remains to be followed to "achieve real equality. Generally, if they offer us improvements in our job, we always have the doubt of whether we will be able to do it. Therefore, we have to stop putting obstacles in our way." "In general, I think that women tend to limit themselves, we do not seek visibility. We have been more reactive than proactive. I would like and hope that this is changing with the new generations," she stated. As far as conciliation is concerned, Sánchez stated that “mandatory maternity and paternity leaves are going to help a lot to change the situation.”

The Editorial Director of Atresmedia Studios, Sonia Martinez, highlighted that the challenge is "to feel the other as an equal. In 2014, when Atresmedia's last Equality plan was made, the area management positions were occupied by women, but not on the Board of Directors. And that is where the big decisions are made. That is the difference." But he goes further and sees it as a problem of education: “we have been educated that when you are a mother everything ends and we have to believe and re-educate ourselves that that is not the case.” As far as team management is concerned, Sonia Martínez highlighted that "we are especially empathetic but, at the same time, we are capable of imposing a certain degree of notoriety. Another challenge that remains for us to meet is occupying the technical areas."

To Macarena Rey, CEO of Shine Iberia, "consistency and perfection are values ​​that women have. The obsession we have with meeting objectives and doing them well makes us forget to demand things for ourselves." As a content generator, she states that “when women are the ones who create them, it has an impact on having greater responsibility and, therefore, getting more women in positions of responsibility.” Along these lines, she continued by stating that "women have a lot to contribute in managing teams. I'm talking about empathy. Women often know how to understand others better and put ourselves in their place." But for Macarena Rey the biggest challenge is the salary issue. "It must cost the company the same to hire a man as it does a woman. At Shine we are very clear about it, but it is an issue of awareness. We must not stop raising our voices, saying it, fighting and protesting."

“We must believe and get it into our heads that we have the same right as men to have a professional career,” said María Jose Rodriguez, content manager of #0 and own production. “One of the struggles I still have is having my opinions in a meeting taken into account without needing the support of a man.” Regarding gender quotas to combat inequality, María José Rodríguez sees them "as essential and necessary. One of the main problems for women is visibility." Furthermore, “sorority is something that we have to practice a lot on a daily basis, we have to support each other.”

Gema R. Neira, development director of Bambú Producciones and screenwriter of fiction hits such as Velvet, Gran Hotel, The Cabl Girlsand the flour, entre otras muchas, afirma que “a nivel personal, todas somos conscientes y buscamos abrir la puerta a otros talentos como lo hicieron con nosotras. El problema es que no tenemos tantas puertas”. De ahí, la necesidad de “contarles a nuestros compañeros las cosas que nos pasan porque al no vivirlo ni verlo, creen que no ocurren”. “Creo que todas mis compañeras hemos sentido que cuando se hablaba de determinado tipo de proyecto no se nos trataba por igual. Se consideraba que las series más femeninas o de historias de amor estaban más destinadas a escribirlas las mujeres y el resto de proyectos más de thriller o investigación era una cuestión masculina”. Entre los retos que quedan por alcanzar para conseguir una igualdad real, afirma que “por un lado, las mujeres lleguemos a los primeros puestos porque el porcentaje es mucho menor y, por otro, que no se nos encasille en un tipo de producto, sino que haya libertad absoluta y se nos elija por ser las mejores dirigentes, guionistas o productoras y no por nuestro género”.

Almudena Ledo, directora general de COSMO (CosmopolitanTV) y presidenta de Conecta destacó que “más que un perfil de mujer líder existe una actitud ante el trabajo, ante la vida y mucha organización para conciliar”.

El encuentro, que contó con la participación activa de todos los asistentes, se pudo seguir en streaming y fue interpretado a lengua de signos española LSE.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FF3SkA3NJ0s