Across The Pond Talk

Assertive? You’re labelled aggressive. Reserved? You lack presence. Passionate? You’re too emotional. Leadership frameworks still reward one dominant style and it’s rarely one shaped by the lived experience of women of colour. The workplace may preach diversity, but too often it still promotes conformity.

Most mainstream leadership programmes are designed through a Eurocentric lens, prioritising traits like executive presence, charisma and linear communication. But these markers of “effectiveness” can clash with cultural ways of speaking, leading, or resolving conflict. As a result, women of colour are often forced to choose between authenticity and acceptance.

The COVID-19 pandemic didn’t just disrupt education it exposed every crack in the system. From infrastructure gaps to digital exclusion, millions of students were left behind while teachers scrambled to adapt. And now, AI is being positioned as the solution to everything.  Personalised learning, automated grading, real-time feedback, but we must ask who is steering this transformation and what values are guiding it?

AI in education promises scale and efficiency, but without diverse leadership and inclusive design, it risks reproducing the same inequities that have always existed this time at lightning speed. Post-pandemic, learners and educators alike are seeking not just technology, but trust, connection and support.

The legal profession has long been synonymous with tradition, precedent and slow-moving change. But AI isn’t waiting. It’s already reshaping the field automating research, scanning contracts in seconds and even predicting case outcomes. What does this mean for the legal profession and for women over 40 trying to lead with integrity in an increasingly digitised world?

While AI claims to offer efficiency and access, it also introduces serious risks. Legal AI tools are often trained on flawed datasets perpetuating biases that have long plagued marginalised communities. Without proper oversight, the systems meant to accelerate justice can deepen inequality.