Released by McKinsey & Company and LeanIn.Org, Women in the Workplace 2016 is a comprehensive annual study that analyzes the state of women in corporate America. Per the study, women fall behind fairly early and face great challenges the more senior they become. Additionally, women are far less likely than men to receive an initial promotion which is critical to growth. Due to these core issues the higher you look in a company’s hierarchy, typically the less women you will find.
Women in the Workplace 2016 is part of an ongoing partnership between McKinsey & Company and LeanIn.Org that helps give companies the information they need to promote female leadership and generate more equality in the workplace between men and women.
The data for the report is based on information regarding HR practices from 132 companies that employ over four million people. Companies like Visa, Facebook and General Motors are just examples of companies included in the study. Over 34,000 employees completed a survey for the study created to analyze their experiences surrounding gender, opportunity, career and work/life issues.
Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO and founder of LeanIn.Org, stated that diverse teams tend to perform better overall proving there is a huge incentive to fix this issue of gender inequality in the workplace.
Global managing partner of McKinsey & Company, Dominic Barton, explains that in order to accelerate any progress there must be a thorough understanding of what is actually holding women back.
Contrary to popular belief the report did show that women negotiate for promotions and raises just as often as men do, however they face far more pushback. The study also found women who negotiate are more likely than men to get feedback that they’re “intimidating” or “too aggressive.”
Overall, company commitment to gender diversity is reportedly at an all-time high, but companies are finding it difficult to make this commitment actionable. Luckily, the 2016 report outlines steps companies can take to progress their efforts in gender diversity.
