McKinsey: Gender-gap still huge

“More than 75 per cent of CEOs include gender equality in their top ten business priorities, but gender outcomes across the largest companies are not changing. Women are less likely to receive the first critical promotion to manager - so far fewer end up on the path to leadership - and they are less likely to be hired into more senior positions. As a result, the higher you look in companies, the fewer women you see,” is the conclusion McKinsey draws in regards to the study “Women in the Workplace 2016.”

Conducted by LeanIn.org and McKinsey suggests priorities for leaders seeking to speed the rate of progress. Key findings, based on data from more than 130 companies and over 34,000 men and women, include the following:

Women remain under-represented at every level in the corporate pipeline. Corporate America promotes men at 30 per cent higher rates than women during their early career stages, and entry-level women are significantly more likely than men to have spent five or more years in the same role.
Women negotiate for promotions and raises as often as men but face more pushback when they do. Women also receive informal feedback less frequently than men - despite asking for it as often - and have less access to senior-level sponsors. Not surprisingly, women are almost three times more likely than men to think their gender will make it harder to get a raise, promotion, or chance to get ahead.
Even though more than 70 per cent of companies say they are committed to diversity, less than a third of their workers see senior leaders held accountable for improving gender outcomes. “Faced with these challenges, it’s time to rewrite the gender playbooks so that they do more to change the fabric of everyday work life by encouraging relentless execution, fresh ideas, and courageous personal actions,” comment the consultants.

Read more at McKinsey.com