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The Founder and Chief Executive Officer of L’AINE HR, Dr Ellen Hagan, has urged women to rise above social and cultural barriers to embrace leadership roles in a rapidly evolving world dominated by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robotics.
Speaking at a two-day Women in Leadership Masterclass recently, she addressed the unique challenges that prevent women from stepping into leadership positions.
She encouraged them to be bold and innovative to ensure they are not left behind in the global shift towards technology-driven workplaces.
“For many women, especially in their early careers, the burden of managing family, young children and work leaves little room for leadership roles.
Then, when the children are grown, imposter syndrome creeps in because we’ve been boxed in for so long that we start to believe we don’t belong in those spaces,” she said.
Dr Hagan encouraged women to understand that leadership was not defined by positions or titles, particularly in an era of technology reshaping industries and redefining the workplace.
“In this disruptive world of technology and robotics, you don’t need a title to lead.
The world still needs human connection, emotional intelligence and inspiration, qualities that robots can’t provide,” she added.
The masterclass, the maiden edition organised by L’AINE HR, is part of a series of leadership development programmes intended to equip women with the skills and confidence to take up leadership roles in an evolving world of work.
Participants were engaged in intensive sessions exploring key areas shaping leadership today.
These include executive presence and influence, corporate governance, adaptive leadership and the role of AI in shaping the future of work and leadership.
Addressing concerns about AI and automation taking over jobs, Dr Hagan acknowledged the fears, but called for a proactive and strategic approach and opportunity for innovation and growth.
“It’s not about being afraid; it’s about being aware and prepared. Robots don’t have hearts or souls.
They can’t inspire or lead.
That’s where we, as humans, have the upper hand,” she added.
She shared her experience of seeing AI drastically change how some professional tasks were performed, saying, “work that used to take weeks, like writing speeches or taking minutes at meetings, is now being done in seconds.
The future of work is here. If we don’t adapt and sharpen our skills, we risk being left behind,” she said.
Dr Hagan urged individuals and organisations to re-evaluate how they viewed work and leadership in the AI era.
She said while some industries in the country were beginning to explore the potential of AI, other parts of the world are far ahead.
“In other jurisdictions, robots drive cars, work as chefs and handle repetitive tasks for major companies such as Amazon.
These changes will reach Ghana sooner than we think. Just like we moved from fax and telex machines to SMS, WhatsApp and instant email, we will have to evolve again,” she added.
The Managing Director of L’AINE HR, James Laar, stated that the programme was created to empower women across various sectors and to promote a forward-thinking conversation on leadership beyond titles, focusing on vision, impact and adaptability.
He emphasised that authentic leadership was no longer about people's positions but about the influence and impact they created in their spheres.
