How to Be a Better Male Ally at Work: A Checklist to Help You Start
- Pinar Koyuncu Oktar
- Mar 31
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 3
In the conversations we lead with women across industries, one recurring theme always comes up: the power of male allies.
It’s the manager who advocates for equal pay.
The colleague who interrupts interruptions.
The mentor who opens doors, not just talks about opening them.
And yet, we still hear from many men: “I want to help, but I don’t always know how.”
That’s why we created the HLP Male Ally Checklist: a practical, printable guide for men who want to support women more actively in the workplace.
Allyship isn’t about grand gestures. It’s about the consistent, everyday actions that signal: “I see you, I hear you, and I’ve got your back.”
Too often, we hear phrases like “I support gender equality” or “I treat everyone the same” or “I enjoy working with women“. But allyship isn’t about what we think. It’s about what we do. And for men who want to be part of the solution, it starts with one question: Are you showing up when it counts?
With the collaboration of the Her Leadership Playbook community, we created the Male Ally Checklist to help men move from intention to action.
Whether you’re a colleague, a manager, or a friend, this checklist offers practical, real-world ways to be a better ally to the women in your life.
Here’s a quick preview:
Do you speak up when women are interrupted?
Are you mentoring women with the same energy you mentor men?
Do you share invisible labor—like note-taking, organizing, emotional support?
Are you learning proactively without expecting women to do the emotional labor of teaching you?
Allyship is a muscle. The more we practice, the stronger it gets. And the impact? It’s powerful and it is not just for the women you support, but for the culture you help create.
Ready to check yourself?
👉 Download the Male Ally Checklist for free.
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