The numbers speak for themselves. Results of Women in the Workplace 2015, part of a five-year study by McKinsey & Company and LeanIn.Org, showed corporate North America is not on the path to gender equality. Not by a long shot. In fact, based on the rate of progress over the last three years, it will take more than a century to get there. Unless, of course, we take action now to correct this.
“The only way we’re going to solve this for society is if every company tries to tackle it together,” said Marie-Claude Nadeau, a Partner with McKinsey & Company in San Francisco and co-author of the study.
At an Ivey Idea Forum on March 24, Nadeau shared insights on why women are still underrepresented at every level in the corporate pipeline. She also gave advice for breaking the barriers. Here are some ways to take action:
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1. Demonstrate that gender diversity is a top priority
Companies that have made progress in creating a level playing field have CEOs that are committed to tackling the issues, and employees that believe that dedication is sincere. Nadeau said there are plenty of ways CEOs can show their support, such as by personally sponsoring some senior women at the company to ensure they have opportunities to advance, or committing resources or money to issues such as pay gaps.
“The first step is you need to take action, not just talk about it, which seems obvious, but isn’t always done,” she said. “You need to commit meaningful resources to this problem, not just ask women to do extra time on the side in a diversity committee. You need to do something bold to ensure people believe you.”
2. Track key metrics so you understand the problem – and set targets for change
You can’t address a problem if you don’t know exactly what the problem is. Tracking data is a medium for understanding problems so you can target your interventions, said Nadeau.
“Companies are surprised by what they find,” she said. “Sometimes they find they are trying to address the wrong problem. They might think they have a hiring problem, when really they have a promotion problem.”
Then, once you know your problem, it can help to set a target. When a company sets a specific target – for example, to be 50/50 in hiring within 25 years, rather than the general goal to hire more women – Nadeau said there can be immediate progress.
“It shifts the thinking from just a little more to this is what we want to get to,” she said. “It sends a signal and gives people an indication of what you’re shooting for.”
3. Identify and interrupt gender bias
Don’t just prove to people that biases exist. In fact, often when you prove to people that everyone has biases, they’ll think there is nothing they can do about it. Instead, Nadeau suggests people point out a specific bias as they see it unfold to interrupt it before further damage can occur. In addition, companies might plan targeted interventions to help prevent biases from occurring in certain processes. For example, one company used analytics to screen résumés to make sure there were no biases. As a result, they had a quality pool of interviewees and more women went through the interview process.
“There are critical moments in women’s careers, such as when they’re getting hired or when they’re up for promotion, when biases can really hurt them,” said Nadeau.
4. Rethink work
It’s not enough just to have programs, such as reduced schedules or leaves of absence, you also have to make sure your work environment enables these programs to work. That might mean creating a culture where every employee must participate in a program so women won’t feel singled out, or taking a closer look at reduced schedule programs to ensure they truly reduce the hours worked.
“One company was so upset that people weren’t taking advantage of their programs that they forced everybody to take one of the options. That way, there was no cultural bias around whether or not you’re copping out because everybody had to do it,” said Nadeau. “This automatically created some rethinking of the work.”
5. Create a level playing field
Companies need to make sure women have equal access to opportunities, and mentorship and sponsorship programs that might help them to advance, said Nadeau. Some companies are creating tools like a sponsorship app so managers can track how many women they sponsor and how many opportunities they’ve created and awarded to women.
“Put a focus on this problem of opportunity creation and try to create a more even playing field for women who don’t have the same network that men do,” she said.
As the study progresses, Nadeau said it will delve deeper into what solutions can be implemented.
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