By prioritising inclusion, businesses can create a more welcoming environment for women – and that’s good for everyone, says Sophia Ambrono
We are experiencing unprecedented economic uncertainty. Not only are countries battling to resuscitate their GDPs following the pandemic, but other disruptive forces continue to impact everything from supply chains to the cost of living.
The good news is that there could be a relatively simple route back to recovery: narrowing the gender gap.
This isn’t a new idea in itself. “The economic gains from gender inclusion are even greater than you thought,” wrote the former Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde back in 2018 in this co-authored piece for the IMF. She based her statement on then-new research that showed closing the ‘gender gap’ (that which exists between the number of men versus women in the workforce) could increase GDP by an average of 35 percent.
The benefits of a more diverse workforce included different skills, a diversity of thinking and an increase in workforce productivity. Interestingly, Lagarde pointed out, adding more women to the workforce specifically (as opposed to just more people) was infinitely more valuable. “The evidence – from macroeconomic, sectoral, and firm-level data – shows that women and men complement each other in the production process, creating an additional benefit from increasing women’s employment on growth,” she wrote.
Change is needed
Yet, four years later and we have fewer women in the workforce – not more. In addition to the pre-pandemic barriers – tax distortions, discrimination, and social and cultural factors – we also have the impact of COVID-19, which has seen women disproportionately affected by job losses, extended periods of furlough, and difficulty re-entering the job market while juggling childcare.
“Another generation of women will have to wait for gender parity,” according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2021, which showed closing the global gender gap has increased by a generation from 99.5 years to 135.6 years.
So, How do we get more women into work? While governmental and societal changes could include reforming taxes, tackling gender inequality in education and health care, and improving access to infrastructure, we believe that businesses can – and should – play a role in accelerating the narrowing of the gender gap.
The way to do it is by prioritising inclusion for women in the workplace. Inclusion means that an organisation implements the policies and procedures to integrate everyone in the workforce. The goal of inclusivity is to make each member of the team feel accepted, comfortable, and valued.
Taking a human-centred approach to your employee experience is key to attracting and retaining talent, and to getting the best from them while they are at work. Demonstrating empathy, trust and understanding and treating your employees with the same respect as you treat your customers, investors, and advisors – is a fundamental shift in mentality that businesses must have if they’re looking to thrive with the next generation.
So, here are five ways businesses can be more inclusive:
1. Champion diversity
“If we want a dynamic future economy, it is vital for women to be represented in the jobs of tomorrow,” says Saadia Zahidi, Managing Director, World Economic Forum. “Now, more than ever, it is crucial to focus leadership attention, commit to firm targets and mobilise resources. This is the moment to embed gender parity by design into the recovery,”
Leaders in diversity recognise that one size doesn’t fit all – and adapt their business operations to fit individuals, rather than the masses. Creativity and innovation are what puts businesses ahead of others, so there should be no surprise that businesses committing to hiring people with different experiences and backgrounds are more profitable.
Diverse businesses provide an environment where people’s voices are heard and individualities are treasured, allowing people to thrive for themselves and for their employer – making for a better, more sustainable relationship. With companies facing incredible retention challenges today, championing diversity is a key factor in making your employees feel that they belong and building a long-term relationship of trust.
2. Provide opportunities to work flexibly
There is already a growing trend, driven in large part by Millennials and Gen Z, who – even though they strive for ambitious careers – want to balance working life with their personal life. Working from home for an extended period during the pandemic lockdowns made people realise the benefits remote working. For women, this is particularly important, as it creates an environment where they can more easily switch between their work and home life – not having to contend with a long commute, for example. Re_Set is a great example of this, where we choose to work both in the office and at home, to enjoy the benefits of both scenarios.
“The rise of flexible working as a consequence of the pandemic presents an interesting crossroads, offering a chance for parents to rebalance caring responsibility,” says Romi Savova, CEO of PensionBee, who we interviewed for this story. “This can in turn allow women to progress in their careers at a similar rate to men.”
Remember that ‘flexible working’ doesn’t just mean ‘remote working’. In terms of flexibility, working nine-to-six isn’t always convenient for women who are juggling childcare. Moving towards flexible working hours could be the solution. This may see your workforce doing ‘core’ hours, between 10and 4pm, for example, with flexibility to work the additional hours at a time convenient to the individual – before children are awake for the day, or after they are in bed. For child-free women, flexible hours enable a better work-life balance, allowing for time to be spent on hobbies and exercise. During the winter months, for example, when early mornings and evenings are darker earlier, flexible hours mean women can go for a jog outside more safely during daylight hours.
3. Focus on people and purpose
With Millennials representing 75 per cent of the workforce by 2025, it’s critical that businesses of today rise to the expectations of this generation, by providing a fulfilling career. By understanding their people better, businesses can have a greater appreciation of what drives and motivates their employees and can create those opportunities that really matter.
Research shows that happy employees drive a positive culture and increased retention, with figures showing that 54 per cent are more likely to stay at a company for more than five years, with 30 per cent more likely to be high performers.
In the time of rapid change and overwhelming choice, businesses that continue to improve their retention figures are those that understand that salary and benefits can only go so far to keeping employees happy. A sense of fulfilment, the opportunity for development, the human factor – needs to be part of the mix, for employers to hold on to their talent.
4. Support whole families
“I have always believed that the biggest obstacle to working women is access to affordable childcare,” says Romi Savova. “We know this is one of the main reasons women take a career gap after having a child and are in some cases, not able to return to the workplace in full capacity.”
The best companies to work for as an aspiring parent have generous paid parental leave, that significantly exceed traditional expectations – so support women and their families by offering gender-neutral policies around parental leave and childcare.
In the UK, the government recommends between up to two weeks or paid paternity leave and up to 39 weeks of paid maternity leave. Insurance firm Aviva became one of the first UK employers to launch an equal parental leave policy, offering new parents in its UK business 12 months’ parental leave, with six months at full basic pay. Since then, figures from Aviva show the number of men and women now taking leave is almost equal.
Recent research also shows that gender neutral policies are a win-win for employee and for the company, allowing parents to take leave equitably and improving the company’s retention rates.
5. Become a B Corp
B Corps consider employees one of their main stakeholder groups – and they should be treated as such. There really is a shift in dynamics between how we have viewed employers in the past, where the relationship was very much one-sided, to how B Corps approach this relationship, where it’s the opposite.
Becoming a B Corp is not a straightforward process, but it will fundamentally shift how your business operates – for the better. The Great Resignation showed that employees need more purpose in their jobs. By building trust within their business, B Corps create an environment where employees trust their leaders more and feel more empowered and passionate about working for an organisation that uses business as a force for good.
Sophia is a Consultant at Re_Set. To speak to her about translating your strategy across your business model, email her. Or read more of her thinking here
Meet the rest of the team here
