Think Laura Kane is poor at her job? Nope, that's just your unconscious bias

[ptrg]

The AFL’s female footy boss is a victim of unconscious bias from clubs dominated by men

Some of the criticism of Laura Kane is difficult to fathom.

www.theage.com.au

Can't get my head around this article by Carro - any criticism of Laura Kane is simply just an unconscious bias against her.

It couldn't possibly be that she is too inexperienced and out of her depth, nor a poor communicator.

Carro argues that Andrew Demetriou "was (also) in his 30s" when he became CEO (wasn't he 41 or something?) but age and experience are not the same thing.

I'm genuinely curious to hear if anyone thinks she is doing a decent or even adequate job in her role as GM?

 

[Former Decathlete]

It's 2025.
All women are perfect, amazing people, amazing employees, hard workers , highly ethical and intelligent.
They can do no wrong
Any doubting any individual is because you are a misogynist dinosaur pig sex pest sleaze ball basher bias caveman violent arseh*le.

 

[Cyclops]

The AFL’s female footy boss is a victim of unconscious bias from clubs dominated by men

Some of the criticism of Laura Kane is difficult to fathom.

www.theage.com.au

Can't get my head around this article by Carro - any criticism of Laura Kane is simply just an unconscious bias against her.

It couldn't possibly be that she is too inexperienced and out of her depth, nor a poor communicator.

Carro argues that Andrew Demetriou "was (also) in his 30s" when he became CEO (wasn't he 41 or something?) but age and experience are not the same thing.

I'm genuinely curious to hear if anyone thinks she is doing a decent or even adequate job in her role as GM?

You're worried about something Caro wrote? LOL harden up.

AFL is pretty sexist it's true, but that doesn't make this woman good.

Demetriou was a slime, McLachlan knifed him and covered up Bomber Thompsongate ("Hird did it, and don't look at Geelong"), we've had that private scholl git in charge until he got so sick his 2nd in command (hand picked because he was no threat to Gil) fell into the job after an "exhaustive process".

Kane is the candidate who was no threat to the guy who was no threat to the slimebags apprentice. It would be bizarre if she was any good.

 

[SC_Power]

The AFL’s female footy boss is a victim of unconscious bias from clubs dominated by men

Some of the criticism of Laura Kane is difficult to fathom.

www.theage.com.au

Can't get my head around this article by Carro - any criticism of Laura Kane is simply just an unconscious bias against her.

It couldn't possibly be that she is too inexperienced and out of her depth, nor a poor communicator.

Carro argues that Andrew Demetriou "was (also) in his 30s" when he became CEO (wasn't he 41 or something?) but age and experience are not the same thing.

I'm genuinely curious to hear if anyone thinks she is doing a decent or even adequate job in her role as GM?

I personally believe the main difference between hiring women and men in the workplace is that men are often judged on their potential, and women mostly on their achievements.

But that’s probably just me, and I’m usually wrong I’m told.

 

[makethat2]

So when she criticises a male. Is that exist?

What a miserable soul she is. She's had a hand picked life and still looks like she hates everything and anything that moves.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Lol what a rubbish article.

 

[HairyO]

Caro just earned herself 10 tickets to the Grand Final she can sell for $$$ tax free. Well played Caro. Well played.

Kane is useless and so is her boss. They literally have no idea what they are doing. And we suckers hand over our money ensuring nothing changes.

 

[Tas]

The AFL’s female footy boss is a victim of unconscious bias from clubs dominated by men

Some of the criticism of Laura Kane is difficult to fathom.

www.theage.com.au

Can't get my head around this article by Carro - any criticism of Laura Kane is simply just an unconscious bias against her.

It couldn't possibly be that she is too inexperienced and out of her depth, nor a poor communicator.

Carro argues that Andrew Demetriou "was (also) in his 30s" when he became CEO (wasn't he 41 or something?) but age and experience are not the same thing.

I'm genuinely curious to hear if anyone thinks she is doing a decent or even adequate job in her role as GM?

Wilson hates North and takes any opportunity to pot us, implies we had unconscious bias because we didn't give Kane the CEO role in 2019, even though Sonja Hood was the president and was the one who was making the call. Despite not getting the role, she was promoted to a senior manager role which would have given her experience at an executive level and help to develop her for a future CEO role. She left to take the AFL job in 2021 and we appointed Jen Watt in 2022 as our new CEO, but I guess it was still unconscious bias against women...

Laura was really good at the roles she was involved in at North, her current role at the AFL isn't an easy one and to be fair, I can't think of anyone that has done a good job in that role, there seems to be a lot of shitty things introduced to AFL which makes it less enjoyable to watch.

I don't know if she would be better suited for a commercial role or not, I think she is talented, but it comes down to how you sell yourself for executive roles.

 

[Yippy Yi Yeo]

I personally believe the main difference between hiring women and men in the workplace is that men are often judged on their potential, and women mostly on their achievements.

But that’s probably just me, and I’m usually wrong I’m told.

Hope she sees this bro

 

[g_TRAIN]

I checked myself for unconcious bias the first few times I thought she made bad decisions.

But now I'm convinced shes just bad at her job.

Especially after trying to shove opening round down our throats.

 

[epistemology]

Was that piece ghost written by Kane? Wilson's article is not journalism, or opinion, it's advocacy and is as biased as the bias she argues against.

Kane does lack experience, she is not a good public speaker, and given Kane's inclination is to shut down difficult questions and revert to lawyer speak she doesn't come across as genuine or authentic. She's more Demetriou and less Gillon. It's not unfair or biased to make these observations.

With the exception of entrepreneurs who start their own businesses, no 33 yr old gets appointed 2IC or CEO of a billion dollar organisation. It just doesn't happen.

 

[PonsfordMagpie]

Carro argues that Andrew Demetriou "was (also) in his 30s" when he became CEO (wasn't he 41 or something?) but age and experience are not the same thing.

Demetriou was 42. Gillon was 41.

 

[joe444]

The facts speak for themselves.
2015: President of Melbourne University Women's Football Club
2017: Amongst the leadership team for North Melbourne's application for a women's team, with a role "educating staff and the male playing group on the differences between men's and women's football"
2021: The General Manager of the AFL, at the age of 31.

I have a conscious bias against incompetence and non merit-based appointments.

 

[Underarm]

The AFL’s female footy boss is a victim of unconscious bias from clubs dominated by men

Some of the criticism of Laura Kane is difficult to fathom.

www.theage.com.au

Can't get my head around this article by Carro - any criticism of Laura Kane is simply just an unconscious bias against her.

It couldn't possibly be that she is too inexperienced and out of her depth, nor a poor communicator.

Carro argues that Andrew Demetriou "was (also) in his 30s" when he became CEO (wasn't he 41 or something?) but age and experience are not the same thing.

I'm genuinely curious to hear if anyone thinks she is doing a decent or even adequate job in her role as GM?

I think she's doing an equally mediocre job as the previous person.

The difference is, the Previous guy was able to stay more anonymous because he was just another white guy in a suit. So no one noticed how mediocre he is because he didn't stand out.

 

[MisterB]

Wrong Caro. Kane is tishhouse at her job. Promoted way above her level of competence.

 

[Outtatym]

I think she's doing an equally mediocre job as the previous person.

The difference is, the Previous guy was able to stay more anonymous because he was just another white guy in a suit. So no one noticed how mediocre he is because he didn't stand out.

Brad Scott was not anonymous...

 

[joe444]

I think she's doing an equally mediocre job as the previous person.

The difference is, the Previous guy was able to stay more anonymous because he was just another white guy in a suit. So no one noticed how mediocre he is because he didn't stand out.

I really have to push back on this.
1. Her bizarre explanation of the Collinwood-North umpiring last year, where she appeared to invent rules that didn't exist
2. In the aftermath, despite her commitment to be "open" and have a "weekly" media segment because it was "important", she stopped them completely.
3. Her last-minute demand that all AFL clubs have a woman on screen during footage of the national draft, even if it meant including a "ring-in" and pretending she was part of the club.
4. Seemingly completely lying/misremembering in relation to whether clubs had been informed of last-minute changes to draft points allocations.
5. The constant misremembering/deception that rule changes are because previous rule changes have worked better than expected. (e.g. reworking holding the ball midseason last year because the sling tackle rule was working so well)
6. And in case you think this gendered, the appalling treatment of the AFLW fixture.

 

[Delisted]

Caro is the problem with the world.

 

[powerrrrrrrrrrrr]

Didn’t they literally just employ a 2IC as the role wasn’t being fulfilled adequately?

 

[Bunk Moreland]

The notable thing about Kane’s appointment isn’t that she’s a woman, it’s that’s she’s just another one off the production line.

A lawyer who comes out of the VAFA. They’re all the same, one after the other, it’s a production line.

 

[joe444]

Sam Harris put it well recently:
If you can't form an opinion without knowing the "identity" of the people involved, you're the one with the bias.

It's Caro who has the bias "because she's a woman", not most of Kane's critics.

 

[Lavender Bushranger]

The AFL’s female footy boss is a victim of unconscious bias from clubs dominated by men

Some of the criticism of Laura Kane is difficult to fathom.

www.theage.com.au

Can't get my head around this article by Carro - any criticism of Laura Kane is simply just an unconscious bias against her.

It couldn't possibly be that she is too inexperienced and out of her depth, nor a poor communicator.

Carro argues that Andrew Demetriou "was (also) in his 30s" when he became CEO (wasn't he 41 or something?) but age and experience are not the same thing.

I'm genuinely curious to hear if anyone thinks she is doing a decent or even adequate job in her role as GM?

I think it's both.

She's no worse than the other duds that have held that post. She's pretty much awful, as they all have been.

There's no doubt she gets judged differently by many because she's a woman. Absolutely no doubt. Some consciously, some unconsciously.

 

[MarcMaverick]

I mean if they wanted a woman to take on the role, there were far better candidates than Laura. Like Daisy Peirce, Erin Phillips, Kylie Watston-Wheeler, Peggy O'neil, Debbie Lee etc...

This isn't a gender problem. Its a competence problem.

 

[Outtatym]

I mean if they wanted a woman to take on the role, there were far better candidates than Laura. Like Daisy Peirce, Erin Phillips, Kylie Watston-Wheeler, Peggy O'neil, Debbie Lee etc...

This isn't a gender problem. Its a competence problem.

Piss take surely, at least kane has some sort of legal/business training as opposed to a couple of footballers

 

[MarcMaverick]

Piss take surely, at least kane has some sort of legal/business training as opposed to a couple of footballers

Do you then think she's better than Peggy O'neil or Kylie Watson-Wheeler?