Sexual harassment is not going away: Maureen Kyne

“If we haven't talked about inclusivity, in the context of what it really means, I think we need a lot more education around it,” is what Maureen Kyne said while elaborating on the aspects of inclusivity along with the mindsets triggering the behaviour of being non-inclusive. 

Maureen is the Managing Director of Maureen Kyne & Associates and a subject matter expert in the management of workplace crisis and bullying including sexual harassments and inclusivity.

In a PMPodcast episode, Maureen cast lights on the global picture of workplace bullying. Though this is a matter of serious concern globally, are the employers doing enough to address it? Several studies have found that employee wellbeing and mental health have been two of the major reasons causing the talent crisis and attrition. According to Maureen, despite this fact, education about these acts is still lacking in both employees and employers.

As a subject matter expert, Maureen also counsels several employees complaining about acts of sexual harassments at offices along with other offensive behaviour. According to Maureen, “Sexual harassment is not going away. And that's really quite dangerous from the perspective of a psychological aspect. So, people who do walk away from an organization or a business because sexual harassment is taking place, are left with traumatised mental state. And therefore, they're less likely to even speak up about such happenings. So, one of the models that I have been working on to counsel employees is the speaker model.”

As we close the 2021 chapter and enter 2022, Maureen suggests that the vow should not just be to be respectful but also to communicate when any such instance is being faced. Concluding the interaction she adds, “Respect and trust are the two fundamental values that will drive change and will drive out inappropriate behavior around bullying, sexual harassment, racism and inclusivity.”