LeadHerShip

Leadership workshops for women 40+

Women over 40 bring decades of experience and competence. Yet many of them face stagnation, burnout or difficulty asserting their rights at work. They usually know exactly what they bring to the table, but lack the tools to make it visible and act on it.

Most leadership programmes do not speak to them. They follow a corporate model of leadership shaped by men’s career paths and focus on what women supposedly lack. These programmes typically assume a business career: they prepare future managers or support women who already lead but rarely address what shapes the lives of women 40+: social pressure linked to age, patterns of behaviour learned in organisational cultures that were not built for women, and the emotional and psychological challenges that come with both. A woman who doesn’t see herself as a CEO or a board member will rarely find anything for her in this offer. Women who are looking for work, working below their qualifications or building a life in a new country are left out altogether.

Research points to the same gap. Women are perceived as too young and then too old, rarely as the right age. Age bias is frequently overlooked in diversity and equity initiatives and in intersectional research. Middle-aged professional women have been described as a consequential yet often overlooked group. Most workforce programmes are not designed for women who face sexism and ageism at the same time. For migrant women, origin adds a third layer.

This is why AFRIW, together with Port Szczecin Association and with support from the Foundation for Polish-German Cooperation, is launching LeadHerShip: workshops for women 40+. Grounded in feminist leadership and an empowerment approach, the workshops start from participants’ own resources. They aim to strengthen self-worth and agency, offer practical tools for leading and for handling difficult situations, and create space for exchange between women from Poland and Germany. A toolkit in Polish, German and English will remain openly available to women across Europe and beyond.

The workshops are for women 40+ who feel stuck or are facing change, who are looking for work or working below their qualifications, or who want to use their strength more consciously.

LeadHerShip is a pilot. We are testing the approach, the tools and the format with a real group, and collecting participants’ recommendations along the way. Their feedback will shape the next stage: a longer programme with time to put changes into practice between sessions, mentoring or group coaching.

The workshops will take place in November/December – one in Germany (Berlin), the other in Poland (Szczecin). All details below.