I had an interesting conversation the other night with an entrepreneur who works in a very male-dominated industry.

He was wondering how to encourage more women to achieve greater success in his company.

He made the point that the skills required to achieve board level are those possessed by both men and women and that he himself had entered the industry because of his financial and management skills.

We both agreed that not enough companies had sufficient understanding of how to mentor and develop many of their most talented female employees.

I made the point that it is particularly important in all businesses that women are given the opportunity to develop their abilities with interesting and challenging projects.

Many employers, both men and women, often assume that because a project – it might involve travel or longer hours spent at the office – will take a woman, particularly if she is a mother, out of her comfort zone, that she will not want to do this more challenging task.

The job is then given to a man.

And if this happens over and over, the woman is not seen as a potential candidate for valued promotion.

But this is not the way to equip women with the skills to reach the top of their careers or for their companies to benefit from their abilities.

And women who know that they will be having a 9 – 5 working life, either because they need to, or simply because they want to, are often just as ambitious as any man.

What’s important for the woman is to ask to be given interesting projects and challenges and to network within their companies so that they can see what opportunities may be out there for them.

Many women take a more passive role in regard to their career, waiting to be asked to do more interesting work.

If the exciting opportunities are always given to men, who often do ask for them, the women then feel they are overlooked for promotion and frequently drop out of the workplace to start their own businesses as consultants.

We came to the conclusion that it was important for the people at the top of every organisation to recognise the differences between how men and women respond to the demands of the workplace.

Women often benefit from great mentors and if there is a chance to have one, she should take it.

As always, the culture of an organisation comes from the top.

There is huge wasted talent in the workplace if women are not given the opportunitiy to use their skills and develop their potential.

Companies must ensure that both men and women take the time to understand their differences in style so that both can work together to achieve the highest potential of the organisation.