WUNRN
GENDER DIVERSITY – WHEN
WOMEN THRIVE, BUSINESSES THRIVE – MERCER STUDY REVEALS WELL-INTENDED
EFFORTS ON GENDER
DIVERSITY ARE NOT IMPROVING WORKFORCE PROGRESSION OF WOMEN
NEW YORK, Nov 06,
2014 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Women, who continue to be underrepresented at most
levels in the workforce, are not progressing in their careers despite the past
two decades of organizational efforts to achieve gender diversity and equality,
according to new global research from Mercer, When Women Thrive, Businesses
Thrive. Among survey participants, if current approaches continue unchanged,
only one-third of executive positions will be held by women over the next 10
years. In the mature economies of the US and Canada, however, just one-fourth
of women will hold executive positions by 2024, while female representation in
developing countries is expected to grow more rapidly.
“While the
diversity efforts of the past several decades have resulted in some
improvements in women’s participation rates and career trajectories, our
research shows that we’re still decades away from true gender equality – if we
keep doing what we’re doing,” said Pat Milligan, President of Mercer’s North
America Region. “It’s time to act differently to realize the benefit of their
full participation and address the unique needs of female employees.”
“We were pleased to
collaborate with Mercer on this ground-breaking research that assesses the
actual patterns of gender representation to uncover what really drives gender
diversity in organizations,” said Aniela Unguresan, Co-founder of EDGE
Certified Foundation that has established the only global business
certification in workplace gender equality. “It is clear that incremental
change does not significantly move the needle. Disruptive change does.”
According to
Mercer’s research, which broadly assesses the impact of organizational
practices and policies on the representation and advancement of women in the
workforce, organizations are still far from achieving gender equality. Despite
making up 41% of the workforce globally, women’s highest representation among
all career levels is in support staff roles. Women make up 40% of the workforce
at the professional level and 36% at the managerial level, but only 26% of
senior managers and 19% of executives.
“Our research shows
employers that are focused on holistic solutions to build diversity are most
successful – and organizations applying predictive analytics to link specific
programs and talent strategies to the advancement, engagement, and retention of
women are most effective,” said Brian Levine, Innovation Leader for Mercer’s
North America Workforce Strategy & Analytics consulting business.
Key drivers of
gender diversity
A key finding of
Mercer’s research shows that the active involvement of senior leaders in gender
diversity leads to greater, accelerated representation of women in executive
roles more so than accountability alone. Yet, just more than half (56%) of
organizations indicate that their senior executives are actively involved in
diversity and inclusion programs.
Furthermore, a
dedicated team responsible for pay equity leads to more women in senior roles
while common policies – those intended to ensure equity through flexible work
schedules and leave programs – are, in the absence of management, associated
with slower improvement in the number of women in leadership positions.
Mercer’s research
also shows that non-traditional solutions to gender diversity positively impact
an organization’s long-term ability to engage and retain female talent. For
instance, more diverse retirement programs, including monitoring savings by
gender, providing investment training customized to different gender realities,
and gender-specific health education campaigns correlate with greater
representation of women at senior levels. Yet, fewer than 15% of organizations
monitor savings and offer retirement programs customized to different gender
behaviors.
“Clearly, companies
can do better in addressing and progressing gender equality in the workplace
and leveraging the capabilities of a diverse workforce,” said Ms. Milligan. “Given
the size of the untapped female workforce, greater participation of women has
major implications for the economic and social development of communities and
nations as well as business outcomes and performance.”
Priorities vary by
region
With women making
up just 41% of the workforce globally, with higher representation in the US and
Canada (48%) and significantly lower in Europe/Oceania and Latin America (37%
and 33%, respectively), organizations worldwide are far from achieving gender
equality.
In terms of hiring,
women in the US and Canada lag behind their male counterparts at every career
level except the professional and executive levels, while women in
Europe/Oceania lag behind in all but the manager level. Organizations in Latin
America are the most aggressive in hiring women at entry-levels, but female
hires begin to lag behind male hires above the manager level.
While current
efforts to move more women into top roles over the next decade will impact
representation of women in the future, it will vary greatly by region. In US
and Canada, the number of women at the highest ranks is on track to remain
essentially flat over the next 10 years, with 26% of executive roles held by
women in 2024 compared to 24% today. However, organizations in Europe/Oceania
could make substantial gains in gender equality at the top of the house over
the next 10 years as organizations in this region are expected to increase the
number of women in executive roles from 18% to 47%. Latin American
organizations could also show significant growth in female representation at
the executive level over the next decade with growth expected to advance from
12% today to 39% by 2024.
Importantly, how
well organizations make use of female talent is a function of how well they
attract, develop, and retain them. Mercer’s research indicates that
organizations confident in their ability to attract, develop, and retain female
talent – after considering the broad set of programs covered – have more favorable
representation of women in senior positions in the long-term.
From a talent
management perspective, optimal strategies vary across regions. In the US and
Canada, companies should focus on improved equity in promotions since women are
hired at lower rates. In Europe/Oceania, companies need to improve hiring of
women. Organizations in Latin America should focus on retaining women at better
rates. Consistent across all regions is the need to focus on retention of women
in executive roles.
About the analysis
Mercer’s proprietary research, When Women
Thrive, Businesses Thrive, developed with advisory support from EDGE Certified
Foundation, used a statistical approach to uncover the fundamental drivers of
current and future female representation and to identify the tangible
opportunities organizations can pursue for accelerating progress towards their
D&I goals. The research, which analyzed workforce data for more than 1.7
million employees in 28 countries, including more than 680,000 women, identifies
what organizations can do to fully engage women in the workplace, ensure
diversity thrives, and achieve business success. To learn more about the
findings of this research and download the report, visit http://www.mercer.com/services/talent/forecast/gender-diversity.html.
About Mercer
Mercer is a global leader in talent,
health, retirement, and investments.