Saturday, March 5, 2016

Women's Views on News

Women's Views on News

Looking closely at the critical years at work

Posted: 04 Mar 2016 09:30 AM PST

Project 28-40, women at work, promotion, survey, reportThis report is a reality check for UK employers.

28-40 is a critical age for career development – the danger zone where women are not promoted at the same rate as men.

This is a problem not just for women but for companies too.

A survey, the largest ever undertaken, and part of Project 28-40, set up to listen to women aged 28-40, has given invaluable insights into how to tackle this.

A total of 25,199 people responded to the survey, but for the purposes of the report on the results, analysis has been focused on women aged 28-40, with men aged 28-40 as a control group.

It was organised into the following thematic areas: Attraction and ambition of women; The importance of career development opportunities and support; Reality of workplace culture and barriers; Role models in the workplace; and Leaving: why and where do they go?

Key findings:

1. This report is a reality check for UK employers – there is a gap between organisational policies and the actual experiences of 28-40 women at work, including real challenges on bullying and harassment.

2. Women want excellent line management and basics at work – this is far more important than creating more female-only programmes.

3. There is plenty of good news – women are ambitious and confident, and are actively seeking opportunities to advance their careers. Companies are also trying hard – but their efforts are often off-target.

4. Not all women are the same. It is important for employers to recognise several phases and different evolution of women's careers and ambition, and to recognise that women of different backgrounds and identities may face particular challenges.

5. Flexible working is essential to women in balancing their commitments, yet the stigma attached can be an obstacle to progression. If companies get this right employee engagement and productivity can be enhanced – for everyone.

6. Women returners – an opportunity for employers. Many mothers feel their employer is not doing enough to back them up in balancing their responsibilities at work and home – they want to work hard, but to be measured for outputs, not hours worked.

Before they have children women are nervous about the impact of parenthood on their career. Role models and honest conversations with managers can help.

7. The lives of senior executives appear unappealing – despite women's ambition, their perception of lifestyle at the top is putting them off. We need senior women and men to speak about what they enjoy about their jobs, and how they make it work.

8. A perceptions gap between men and women is creating an obstacle to solving the gender imbalance.

Women see unfairness in pay and in access to career progression opportunities and feel that their organisational culture is male-dominated. Men do not recognise these barriers. When men, who hold the majority of senior leadership positions, can start to see the challenges women face, we will make progress.

9. Whilst the emphasis is on employers to change, women can contribute to creating their own opportunities by speaking up and strategically planning their careers.

10. Project 28-40 is about making work better for everyone – our survey found that many workplace priorities are shared by women and men. This is a chance to radically reassess and to create modern working practices and more highly engaged employees.

So, the report concludes that CEOs and senior leaders serious about change need to take the lead on women's progression, moving it from 'a diversity initiative' to 'a core business priority'.

They need to:

Set aspirational targets for the numbers of women you want to see at each level in their organisation;

Prioritise the development of excellent managers at every level of their organisation;

Create a truly agile organisation, with women and men able to work in a way that makes them productive and engaged;

Look at job design, technology, agile teams, and defeat the flexible working stigma that holds women back;

Allow for non-linear careers – the top talent will have times in their lives they need to take a step back; and

Recognise that harassment and bullying still occur, despite well-meaning policies. Call it out, deal with perpetuators, and make it simple and straightforward to report.

And the 28-40 year-old women themselves need to build their networks to be in a position to know about opportunities as they come up, and get real on sponsorship for example by identifying senior people who will advocate for them. Or if they want a mentor, they must ask the one they would like.

Opportunity Now is the campaign on gender diversity run by Business in the Community.

Business in the Community is the only membership organisation representing employers who want to transform the workplace by ensuring inclusiveness for women. It works to build and communicate the business case for this, to share and inspire best practice and to give employers and their people the tools to drive change.

Opportunity Now shows employers how to accelerate change for women in the workplace, working with a membership of employers, from private, public and education sectors, to offer tailored, practical and pragmatic advice on workplace issues.

Founded in 1991, the original aim of Opportunity Now was to maximise the potential of female employees and improve their recruitment and retention prior to the start of the new millennium. Over 20 years later the need for the work of Opportunity Now is just as strong.

To read the full report, click here.