With women accounting for only 21 per cent of sources directly quoted in news articles, The Edge is the first agency of its kind to focus on supporting women to become media sources, subject matter experts and thought leaders.
Launched today, the agency is focussed on accelerating female subject matter experts and wants to take them from ‘hidden gems’ to ‘highly visible’ leaders through a unique mix of psychology, leadership, public relations and communication strategies.
Amy Chandler, a public relations manager with Zoos SA and a former political media adviser said the media are always looking for subject matter experts and contributors.
Chandler said: “We know there’s no shortage of female talent, but the problem is, sometimes they’re reluctant to put themselves out there.
“We want to change that by helping women own their expertise and put their hand up – whether it’s for media interviews or leadership positions – our goal is to level the playing field and help professional women get their voices heard.
“Beyond helping women land media interviews and grow their personal brand, we’ll help them deal with the mindset factors that commonly hold women back from leadership and media — giving them the skills and mindset to become industry leaders, change-agents and thought leaders.”
Inspiration to launch The Edge came after Chandler worked with Elaine Bensted, the chief executive of Zoos SA.
Chandler commented: “Elaine is a highly competent leader, whether she’s addressing a room of people or speaking to the media, and it got me thinking about how we could support more women to become impactful leaders like Elaine — this is really important work and we’re really excited about it.”
Tamsin Simounds, a leadership strategist and modern psychology practitioner said self-doubt is the number one issue facing the women she works with.
Simounds said: “When women come to work with me, they’re often suffering imposter syndrome, trying to ‘fix’ themselves or want to become more confident, and the first thing I do is let them know that none of that is required.
“It’s like they’re hoping for an injection of this ‘confidence gene’ but it doesn’t exist.
“Confidence isn’t a stable trait that someone has or doesn’t have.”
She added: “The problem is, most women haven’t taken the time to get clear on what their unique strengths are, and because of this we keep searching for the next thing to improve.
“The Edge is about helping women embrace what they uniquely bring to the table and giving them the tools to speak up and own their voice.”
