Episode 190: Wendy McCarthy on feminist activism in the boardroom and aiming for 50/50

Today on the Take on Board podcast, I’m speaking with Wendy McCarthy about her journey to the boardroom.

Wendy McCarthy AO – an Australian businesswoman, activist and former university administrator – joined her first board of directors almost 50 years ago.

It was 1974. Feminism’s second wave was in full swing. Members of the Women’s Electoral Lobby, (WEL) were encouraged to join the Family Planning Association of Australia (FPA) to vote for a new board, to drive reform and change, such as accessible contraception. Wendy was WEL’s Sydney chapter co-deputy convenor. She joined FPA and was elected to the board. WEL gained control of the association. “To my surprise, I was elected, albeit at the bottom of the bottom of the ticket,” she wrote in her 2022 memoir, Don’t Be Too Polite, Girls. “It was my first board appointment and I was excited and apprehensive about the task.

Then, in 1983, she joined the ABC board. The 50-year-old ABC had just turned into a corporation “to become more innovative and competitive”. The secretary of the Department of Communications called Wendy to ask if she’d be deputy or chairman of the board. She was appointed, without an interview. As said in the Don’t Be Too Polite, Girls extract “advocacy had to be for the advancement of women in the corporation.”

Today Wendy is on the board of For Purpose Investment Partners.

She was previously on the boards of ABC, Circus Oz, IMF Bentham, Goodstart Early Learning and many others – we’ll hear more about that today.

Wendy is a feminist activist who believes 50/50 is a good framework for board participation and engagement in community life.