Think of the most capable women in your network. The ones whose judgement you trust, whose leadership you’ve watched up close, whose contributions to their fields or communities are, frankly, remarkable.
Have they ever been nominated for a major award? Put forward for a board position worthy of their talent? Recommended for an honour?
If the answer is no – or if you’re not sure – read on.
The evidence suggests we overlook women more than we realise. Not because they aren’t there, but because we’ve absorbed a narrow template of what achievement looks like, and recognition tends to follow whoever is loudest in the room. What makes this particularly confronting is that women are as likely as men to perpetuate that pattern, a bias so embedded that even those committed to advancing women’s leadership can fall into it.
The 2026 Australia Day Honours brought this into sharp relief. After reaching gender parity in 2024, women fell to just 27 per cent of recipients – a direct reflection of the nominations submitted. The council can only assess what lands on their desk. If we continue nominating men at twice the rate of women, we forfeit the right to be disappointed by the results.
Since joining IWF, one thing has struck me above all else: the calibre of women this network knows and champions. That visibility – across industries, sectors and communities – is an extraordinary asset.
So let’s use it. IWF has an opportunity to establish a standing nominating committee – a dedicated group that actively identifies worthy candidates and drives nominations for honours, awards and leadership positions throughout the year. Not as a one-off gesture, but as something that could become a lasting and proudly held part of what this network does.
The women are there. We see them. Now let’s make sure the rest of Australia does too.
Words by IWFA Member, Carol Schwartz AO, Chair of the Trawalla Foundation and Women’s Leadership Institute Australia.
About Carol Schwartz AO
A prominant public voice, Carol is a passionate advocate for women’s leadership in politics, media, policymaking and allocation of capital.
Carol has been recognised via accolades including an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2019, Honorary Doctorates from Monash University and Queensland University of Technology, induction into the Australian Property Hall of Fame, and a Centenary Medal. She has also been named one of Australia’s most influential women by the Australian Financial Review and Westpac’s 100 Women of Influence Awards and is a member of the Victorian Women’s Honour Roll. In 2020, she received the nation’s highest philanthropic honour, the Leading Philanthropist Award by Philanthropy Australia.
Carol’s current board roles include Deputy Chair of the Governance Board, Reserve Bank of Australia, Chair of EQT Holdings Limited and the Climate Council, and Director Trawalla Group.
As Chair of the Trawalla Foundation and Women’s Leadership Institute Australia she has championed transformative gender equality initiatives such as Pathways to Politics for Women, WLIA Fellows and Women for Media research series. She is also the Founding Chair of Our Community, a member of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Women’s Leadership Board, and the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership Advisory Board at King’s College.
Carol has been a longstanding investor and supporter of female entrepreneurs, and in 2022 established the Female-Led Ventures investment portfolio focused on female fund managers and female founders for strong commercial returns. Carol is the Australian Lead and Global Advisory Board Member for Beyond the Billion, and was a Co-Founder of Scale Investors.
