In today’s ‘The week that was…’ – gender diversity initiatives need to focus on driving promotions for women, Lloyds commits to women filling 40% senior leadership roles by 2020, report on lack of women in science expresses concern about the pace of change and understanding gender diverse language.
A study has revealed that gender diversity is hampered by focussing on initiatives that make women feel satisfied in the workplace rather than initiatives to progress women’s careers. The report author Ines Wichert said the difference between satisfaction and actual promotion could “account to some extent for the slower progress in getting women to the top”. She also added: “Employers need to take this on board when planning initiatives to support gender diversity, to make sure that women not only stay in the company but also move up the career ladder.” Opportunity Now director Kathryn Nawrockyi responded to the findings, suggesting that companies with more women in leadership roles were twice as likely to have gender-focussed objectives in their diversity strategies.
While on the subject of women in leadership positions, the bank Lloyds has committed to women filling 40% of the top 5,000 roles by 2020. The current proportion of women in Lloyds’ senior positions is 28%. Llloyds is the first FTSE 100 company to take such a step. Helena Morrissey, chief executive of Newton fund managers and a campaigner for more women in boardrooms through the 30% Club, said: “The 30% Club experience shows how a numeric, measurable goal can provide a useful focal point…” Fiona Cannon OBE, director of diversity and inclusion at Lloyds, has explained in a post on the Guardian how Lloyds plans to make this work.
The Commons Science and Technology Committee has released a report on the specific issue of lack of female talent in science, drawing out both the systemic and the cultural factors. The lack of women in senior positions in science is often attributed to the ‘leaky pipeline’, suggesting that women fall off the career ladder at some stage. However, lack of female role models and male dominated leadership further exacerbates the problem, dissuading young women scientists. Although the National Institute for Health Research has linked Athena SWAN accreditation to eligibility for grants, the research councils have not followed suit. The report expresses concern that without compulsion, it “will take 50 or 80 years before we get gender equality if we just keep doing the same thing, hoping that the pipeline will produce more women scientists.”
Finally, the Guardian has published a very useful guide on language related to gender diversity. It explains the difference between trans and cis people and advises not to use the following offensive terms unless in direct quotation: “tranny” (whether as a contraction of transsexual or transvestite), “shim”, “he-she”, “she-male”, “gender-bender”.
