Written by Micaela Smith, Blue Sky Graduate Assistant and MBA Candidate
Women are gaining ground in traditionally male-dominated fields. For example, in 2018 the United States saw more women than men entering into medical school (1). Yet despite some success, women are still fighting hard to earn their place, most notably in management positions.
In 2018, women in the United States were “three times more likely than men to think that their gender played a role in their missing out on a raise, promotion, or other chance to get ahead” (2). In fact, 97% of the United States senior leadership teams’ members do not fully represent the US’ labor force in either ethnicity or gender (3).
Women experience barriers to not only getting top management positions, but also with negative perceptions of their performance after they get there. A 2010 study from the Journal of Applied Psychology identified that double standards increased the higher a woman rose in an organization. Female CEOs were perceived as good leaders only when they were seen as the reason for an organization’s success, while perception of men’s leadership remained constant regardless of whether their actions were attributed to organizational success (4). At the same time, women are increasingly seen as exemplifying positive leadership traits, including flexibility, diversified skill sets, collaboration, and enhanced propensity for innovation (5, 6).
So how can we use business to advance women in management positions?
1. Create formal opportunities to support women in your organization.
Utilize Business Network and Affinity Groups.
The power of women supporting women cannot be understated. In a West Point study, first-year women supporting other women caused significant differences in advancement rates to the next year. A woman within a group of first-years with one other woman in the group had an advancement rate of 55%, while a woman in a group with 6-9 other women had an advancement rate of 83% (8).
Connecting women with other women allows for a transfer of knowledge and an opportunity for advice on challenges experienced by women in a male-dominated work environment. Creating a more formal environment for women to bond, socialize, and ask for help can drive women toward success in their jobs and move up in the organization.
Create Mentorship Programs.
All four Treasure Valley leaders at Boise State’s October Women of the Workplace event recommended mentorship as a major asset to success in the workplace. Panelists included Marissa Crab, VP of Corporate Procurement at the Albertsons Companies; Dallis Fontenot, VP of Corporate Development at Engineered Structures, Inc; Jesse McKinnley, CEO of Red Aspen and Trina Finley Ponce, HP Diversity and Inclusion Program Manager.
Each credited the expertise and support of someone in their life for helping them attain success. Also, building mentor relationships with people with different areas of expertise were seen as invaluable.
2. Assess your inclusion levels during meetings.
Look around at your typical meeting attendees; if everyone is basically the same age, gender, or race, make sure to extend the meeting invitations to others. Varied perspectives make more innovative solutions, and will ensure that different opinions are in the room.
“Ask yourself, is there anyone who is missing from this table?” said Finley Ponce.
But having women in the room does not mean that their opinions are being given equal value. “I can’t tell you the number of times where I’ve been in a meeting and I’ve been asked to take notes or clean out the refrigerator,” said McKinnley.
According to an article from the Harvard Business Review, women are statistically much more likely to be interrupted or have their ideas seen as unimportant. Ensuring everyone’s voice is heard is everyone’s issue. Without all opinions, performance suffers (9).
The research recommends pulling aside people who are chronic interrupters to set the expectation to change their habits, setting ground rules like “no interrupting” and taking turns talking by going around the table. This not only benefits women, but also more introverted team members.
Above all, trust that your woman employees will rise to the occasion and have valuable input. Then let her and the rest of the team know she’s appreciated, and reward her success. Or as McKinnley stated, “Take us seriously, because at the end of the day we want to do a kick-butt job. So let us do it.”
1. Chandler, M. A. (2018). Women are now a majority of entering medical students nationwide. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com.
2. Thomas, R. et. al. (2018). Women in the workplace 2018. McKinsey & Company. Retrieved from https://womenintheworkplace.com.
3. Hunt, V., Prince, S., Dixon-Fyle, S. & Yee, L. (2018). Delivering through diversity. McKinsey & Company. Retrieved from https://www.mckinsey.com.
4. Rosette, A. S., & Tost, L. P. (2010). Agentic women and communal leadership: How role prescriptions confer advantage to top women leaders. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(2), 221–235.
5. Skibola, N. (2010). The immeasurable value of retaining women in the workplace. Forbes.com. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com.
6. Rosette, A. S., & Tost, L. P. (2010). Agentic women and communal leadership: How role prescriptions confer advantage to top women leaders. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(2), 221–235.
7. Hunt, V., Prince, S., Dixon-Fyle, S. & Yee, L. (2018). Delivering through diversity. McKinsey & Company.Retrieved from https://www.mckinsey.com .
8. Huntington-Klein, N. & Rose, E. (2018). Gender peer effects in a predominantly male environment. AEA Papers and Proceedings 108, 392-395. Retrieved from https://pubs.aeaweb.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1257/pandp.20181114.
9. Cullinan, R. (2016). Run meetings that are fair to introverts, women, and remote workers. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org.