Women at work are making gains in leadership roles, but catching up to men could take decades, new report estimates
CNN
When it comes to women’s advancement in corporate America, there have been gains made since 2015, according to the 10th annual analysis by women-at-work advocacy group LeanIn.org and consulting firm McKinsey & Company.
When it comes to women’s advancement in corporate America, there have been gains made since 2015, according to the 10th annual analysis by women-at-work advocacy group LeanIn.org and consulting firm McKinsey & Company. But their report, released Tuesday, notes that women still face plenty of headwinds in getting ahead. As a result, the authors estimate that achieving true parity with men at work is still many years away. They define parity as women holding leadership roles (from the senior vice president level up to the C-suite) in numbers that better approximate their share of the US population. The 2024 analysis was based on multiple information sources, including interviews with HR leaders and women employees; materials on programs, benefits and priorities from 281 corporations that employ 10 million people; and a non-scientific, non-statistically representative survey of 15,000 employees from 27 companies. Companies opted in to the study in response to invitations from McKinsey & Company and LeanIn.Org or by indicating interest through a public website. The report found that women now hold 29% of C-suite positions, up from 17% in 2015, although the increases were primarily in “staff” roles that support the non-revenue-generating sides of the organization (e.g., chief HR officer) rather than “line” roles directly tied to profits and loss and the core business operations (e.g., CEO). Women also made gains since 2018 in becoming vice president and senior vice president, but again in staff roles. More employers have also improved their hiring practices and performance reviews to make them fairer, according to the researchers. For instance, 69% now offer bias training for evaluators, up from 53% in 2015. In addition, given the outsized role of direct managers in women’s advancement, the report notes that the vast majority of companies now offer more manager training and stress the importance of managers focusing on employees’ well-being, fostering greater inclusion on their teams and taking an interest in their employees’ career advancement.
