The Asian Golf Industry Federation (AGIF) could begin to push for more women in golfing roles after it has welcomed its first female office bearer.

‘Textron Specialised Vehicles’ APAC regional sales director, Karen Proctor, has been inducted into AGIF’s secretary role after the federation’s annual general meeting earlier this month.

Proctor has been part of AGIF’s board for the past two years however she also has 14 years of golf industry knowledge.

During her time on the board, she has heavily advocated for the organisation’s initiatives focusing on education and women in sports.

AGIF President, Chris Gray, said Proctor’s presence on the board has been influential.

“…She’s [Proctor] been a tremendous advocate for our Certificate in Greenkeeping program and was also influential in launching a new AGIF Women in Sports initiative that shines the spotlight on females in the sporting world,” Gray said.

“In this position as secretary, I have no doubt she’ll play an increasingly important role in the federation in the years ahead,” he added.

Last year, the AGIF partnered with the R&A’s Women in Golf Charter, to increase the region’s gender balance and to create a more inclusive culture.

Gray said he is confident Proctor’s dedication to driving female participation will help the organisation achieve their inclusion goals.

“I’ve been proud to have served on the board at the AGIF for the past two years and I’m honoured to now take on the position as secretary,” Proctor said.

Proctor said she wants to use her new role to continue to break down the barriers in a perceivably male dominated industry and to help grow women’s interest in golfing careers from a young age.

She further added she believes the sport will benefit from women within it asserting themselves into its business segments.

“There are clear and demonstrated benefits to growing the sport through increased engagement of women in participation, on committees, in management and leadership positions,” she said.

Proctor said a career in golf needs to be advocated to women, especially to women at a younger age so they can grow with the industry.

“A lot of women I meet that are working in the golf sector have started their careers in an alternative industry and then transitioned, rather than making a conscious decision at a school age to pursue a career in golf.”

“As an industry, we need to be more active in schools and colleges to let people know of the options that are available to then and what skill sets are required.”

Diversifying an organisation’s gender balance within its leadership roles has been proven to increase profitability, performance and productivity.

AGIF’s push to increase women in golfing roles will help improve the sport’s longevity and its brand perception over the long term.

Other signatories to ‘The R&A Women in Golf Charter’ are the PGA of Great Britain and Ireland, Sports Marketing Surveys and Syngenta.

The AGIF is not acting alone in its push for women to enter sports roles with golfing competitions increasing their prize pools for female competitions and many organisations also creating their own women in sport initiatives.