The challenge is to help women climb the corporate ladder with leadership development programs, flexible work arrangements and other practices that recognize their unique talents and needs.
Women and Leadership
Women make up 46% of the U.S. labor force but represent a smaller share of executive ranks. According to Catalyst, a New York nonprofit that researches working women, they comprise:
51% of managerial and specialty positions
16% of Fortune 500 corporate officers
8% of Fortune 500 highest titles
5% of Fortune 500 top earners
2% of Fortune 500 chief executive officers
The Center for Work-Life Policy's Hidden Brain Task Force produced a report, "Off-Ramps and On-Ramps: Keeping Talented Women on the Road to Success," that was published in the Harvard Business Review (HBR) in March 2005. The article notes that "pull" factors, such as the demands of young children and aging parents, often combine with "push" factors, such as a lack of opportunity at work, to make women head for the door.
"In focus groups, we heard the disappointment and discouragement of women who had reached senior levels in corporations only to find the glass ceiling still in place, despite years of diversity initiatives," the HBR article reported.
Most employers don't realize they're pushing some women out of their jobs, diversity experts say. The main problem is that the prevalent notion of a committed employee---one who can work long hours, travel and be accessible 24/7---doesn't match many women's lives, says Lisa Levey, senior director of advisory services at Catalyst. The HBR article says, "The trick is to help them maintain connections that will allow them to come back....without being marginalized for the rest of their careers."
Source: Human Resource Executive, November 2006