According to a recent report by McKinsey & Company, women hold about 25 per cent of C-suite positions globally, 8.2 per cent of Fortune 500 CEOs are women, and 23 per cent hold executive positions.
Research has shown that organisations with more women in senior positions are more profitable, more socially responsible, and provide safer, higher-quality customer experiences — among many other benefits.
Yet it is lonely at the top. The underrepresentation of women in leadership positions remains a widely recognised issue and despite some progress in recent years, the glass ceiling continues to be the formidable barrier.
What's keeping them back
The broken rung in the ladder
When one takes a pause and looks down the corporate ladder, there is a noticeable gap at the first rung to management positions. For every 100 men promoted from entry level to manager, only 87 women are promoted. Hence there are more men at the manager level and it is difficult for women to catch up. This gap continues and as a result there is a limited number of women who can be promoted to senior leadership roles.
Second Generation Gender Bias
It refers to practices that may appear neutral or non-sexist, in that they apply to everyone, but which discriminate against women because they reflect the values of the men who created or developed the setting, usually a workplace. It is contrasted with first-generation bias, which is deliberate, usually involving intentional exclusion.
This bias erects powerful but subtle and often invisible barriers for women that arise from cultural assumptions and organisational structures, practices, and patterns of interaction that inadvertently benefit men while putting women at a disadvantage.
Some examples of this bias include:
Less role models
There are only a few women leaders at the senior positions which results in lesser role models for the women who are aspiring to be a leader one day. This paucity results in creating assumptions which are misleading and result in further discouragement to aspiring women leaders who then hesitate to reach out for career advice to senior women as they begin to question the organisation's intent to invest in women leader.
Women’s lack of access to informal networks & sponsors
Professional informal networks are important for career development and mentoring. Absence of Senior women leaders result in weaker professional networks at work for women. They inadvertently lose access to influential leaders and sponsors which impacts their career development. This results in them being often overlooked for critical projects crucial for reaching top organisational positions.
Gender Stereotypes
Men have traditionally been associated with characteristics describing them as aggressive, ambitious, dominant, forceful, independent, self-sufficient, self-confident, and inclined to act as a leader whereas stereotypes regarding women portray them as affectionate, helpful, kind, sympathetic, interpersonally sensitive, nurturant, and gentle. The male gender characteristics are congruent with characteristics of successful leaders, whereas communal characteristics of female gender are incongruent with characteristics of successful leaders.
Hence, men are assumed to be more eligible than women for leadership positions making it easier for them to move up companies’ hierarchies compared to women.
A role congruity theory of prejudice toward female leaders proposes that the aforementioned perceived incongruity between the female gender role and leadership roles leads to 2 forms of prejudice:
(a) perceiving women less favourably than men as potential occupants of leadership roles and
(b) evaluating behaviour that fulfils the prescriptions of a leader role less favourably when it is enacted by a woman
What can be done
DEI is top driven
Visible commitment from top leadership and middle management advocacy is essential. This involves setting clear diversity goals, implementing policies that promote gender equality, and fostering a culture that values and respects all employees.
Monitor the funnels
Organisations must mitigate bias across critical employee lifecycle stages like recruitment, performance reviews and promotions. Right from the sourcing stage, the hiring funnel should be monitored and adjusted to ensure that there is a fair input metric . Initiatives like blind resumes ensure a degree of transparency in screening: Companies should ensure regular pay audits and address any identified gender pay gaps
Implementing fair and unbiased promotion practices, such as standardised criteria and objective performance evaluations, and monitoring these processes from a DEI lens can ensure sustained career advancement opportunities for women.
Educate
Conducting bias awareness and nonconscious bias training programmes can help employees recognise and challenge their own biases. These sessions raise awareness about common biases against women and provide strategies to mitigate them. It is important to educate both women and men about second-generation gender bias. Women leaders should be encouraged to embrace their authentic selves and not conform to the masculine gender leader stereotype.
Career Development Support
Companies should create employee resource groups, mentorship programmes and leadership development initiatives specifically tailored to support women in their career progression.
Men as allies
Engaging men as allies in the fight against biases is important for a meaningful change in the corporate ecosystem. Encouraging male leaders and employees to actively support gender equality initiatives, challenge biases and promote inclusive behaviours helps create a sustainable inclusive culture within the organisation.
The author is Mitalee Dabral, Country HR Leader - Wayfair India TDC.
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