7 Ways leaders can improve their company's retention of women
/International Women’s Day is March 8, 2023. There are seven primary missions of IWD, as shown in the photo. The one we at Voyage work with most often is:
IWD MISSION 2023: To forge inclusive work cultures where women's careers thrive and their achievements are celebrated
Recent data from two different reports shows room for improvement remains. Let’s discuss them briefly, then identify action items for your consideration.
1) 'It's a huge concern': Senior-level women are calling it quits after decades climbing the career ladder
CNBC’s article shared data from LeanIn.org and McKinsey & Company. Their newest data exposes a trend that women leaders are leaving their top roles at the highest rate ever.
For every women who steps into a director-level role, two step out of that level role or one higher.
It’s no wonder women would exit after climbing the ladder to the highest rungs. Once they reach those high levels, women still face headwinds and are expected to do more than the men.
Alexis Krivkovich, McKinsey senior partner and an author of the joint Lean In and McKinsey "Women in the Workplace" report explained, "They are doing more in their roles than men are typically doing across a whole gamut of things that support their office culture and community. They do twice as much sponsorship support, spend more time on diversity work, and spend more time mentoring and sponsoring" colleagues within the organization.
Women increasingly want to work for companies that prioritize career advancement, flexibility, employee well-being and more, and are quitting when their needs aren't being met, according to Lean In and McKinsey's report.
2) The Tallest Poppy™, an international study led by Women of Influence+, unveils the high price ambitious women pay for their success
Last week, a leading global organization released its groundbreaking findings in a report called The Tallest Poppy 2023 Study, which reveals the impact on women when they are “attacked, resented, disliked, criticized, or cut down because of their achievements and/or success.”
The international study revealed that nearly 90% of women worldwide are penalized and undermined because of their achievements at work.
You might assume it’s women cutting down each other, but the data says otherwise. The study found that it was men in leadership positions who penalized and undermined women who succeeded. The top drivers for the behavior were jealousy, sexism, and insecurity.
Specific actions of cutting the tall poppies the article included:
77% of respondents had their achievements downplayed
72.4% of respondents were left out of meetings and discussions or were ignored
70.7% said they were undermined because of their achievement(s)
68.3% had their achievement(s) dismissed
66.1% said others took credit for their work
When women have been cut down in those ways, they feel more stressed, less self-confident, and notice a negative impact on their health.
The impact on companies when Tall Poppy Syndrome is accepted includes losing top talent, reducing productivity of the top talent, and creating a culture of distrust.
What can you do? 7 Actions to Take
1. Take a few minutes to read the reports shared here. Take however deep of a dive you need to in order to believe Tall Poppy Syndrome is happening, and that it is causing women to under-perform and leave.
2. Identify the women in your organization who may be experiencing Tall Poppy Syndrome. Commit right now to modulating your own behavior, as necessary, and to calling out behaviors like those listed.
3. Speak up when a woman is being ignored or when a man is taking credit for her ideas. In fact, speak up when anyone is treating anyone as described in the report. Words like belittling, being silenced, disparaging comments, and microaggressions were used to describe experiences. Speak up when you see that happening.
o You don’t have to be a jerk about it but can simply say, “Jerry, that idea sounds like what Elaine brought up in the last meeting. Elaine, could you remind us of where you were going with the new product line?”
4. Build a culture of trust. Start by reding The Speed of Trust but Steven M. R. Covey. It’s not related to either study or genders but is a great foundation for a culture of trust.
5. Encourage transparency and equity for decisions like promotions and opportunities. Often these are secretive and questions are discouraged. In fact, women reported being sabotaged if they were seen as too ambitious. Being transparent about opportunities can clarify skills to develop and ways to do so.
6. Hold people accountable for their behaviors when they belittle, silence, or disparage coworkers at any level in the organization. Treating colleagues that way should be unacceptable and when there is a pattern, the perpetrator should be spoken with directly. Once the expectation has been clarified, if the pattern continues, an exit conversation may be needed; however, it should probably not be with the top performer but with the person who undermines the top performers.
The leaders who tolerate Tall Poppy Syndrome and those who perpetuate it are probably well known in your company. The women probably could name them. Those same leaders cut down men too.
7. The last action is to ask yourself this question: Do your core values mean anything? On a personal note, be sure your behavior aligns with your personal core values. From an organization standpoint, you represent the company’s core values. Does tolerating Tall Poppy Syndrome align with what you espouse as the company’s values? Get your confidence in alignment with your core values, and be a leader.
Be a leader.
How you treat women and how you tolerate others treating women impacts your company. In this time when it’s hard to retain top talent, most companies can no longer afford to turn a blind eye to how women are undermined or outright sabotaged.
Be a leader.
The women at the top of the career ladder notice your actions. So do the women on the way up. And, so do the men.
