A new study from McKinsey and LeanIn.org shows that female leaders were more likely than their male counterparts to switch jobs in 2021. Quoting Axios.
10.5% of women leaders — from senior managers up to the C-suite — quit their jobs over the past year, the highest rate in the five years that McKinsey/LeanIn.org has surveyed companies about attrition rates. The rate for men was 9%.
- Typically, attrition rates for men and women run closer together, with a spread of only around half a point.
The report draws attention to the “broken rung” concept as a problem area for companies —the gap in the share of women elevated into management relative to men.
- For every 100 men promoted out of entry-level positions, only 87 women and 82 women of color got the same lift up the ladder.
The report finds that women’s authority at work is undermined in various ways — so they leave. For example:
- 37% of women leaders said they’ve had a co-worker get credit for their idea, compared to 27% of men.
- Women leaders are twice as likely to be mistaken for someone more junior.
- Asian women and Black women said they’re less likely to have strong allies on their teams.
- Women are also more likely to do work to support co-workers and promote diversity, equity, and inclusion — but that type of work doesn’t typically get recognized when it comes time to evaluate performance.
- Black women leaders are 1.5 times as likely as women overall to have colleagues question their judgment or imply they’re unqualified for their jobs.
And, per coverage of the survey in Protocol, it’s even worse in tech. These talent gaps between men and women are wider in tech. In hardware, women make up 32% of entry-level positions and 26% of the C-suite. In software, women represent 41% of entry-level jobs and 27% of the C-suite. This includes tech roles at non-tech companies. The difference between men and women holding tech roles is two-and-a-half times more men than women. In 2018, it was 1.9 times.
One solution may be embracing flexible work styles. According to the report, only around 10% of women surveyed wanted to work primarily on-site. Though working from home is often helpful for women with families, many reported that it’s about more than just time constraints. While working from home, many said they experience less discrimination and fewer microaggressions, especially women of marginalized groups.
Plus, remote work works as a hiring tool: More than 70% of HR leaders surveyed said remote work has helped their company hire more talent from diverse backgrounds.
Let’s note two other details on remote working.
Three economists released a working paper last week indicating that remote work also likely caused a mini-baby boom in 2021. The increase in birth rates was more pronounced for first-time mothers and college-educated women. It’s slight – but reverses a years-long decline in the birth rate.
And, Only ⅓ of women in tech, media, and telecom industries with hybrid work schedules report satisfaction with their work-life balance, says a new Deloitte report. Unsurprisingly, 86% of the women with children report that they bear most of the childcare responsibilities, which can be complicated by varied work schedules that require similarly changing childcare needs.
Why do we care?
I believe that finding solutions within companies is a competitive edge. As the data continues to show, flexible companies with their work environments appear to outperform.
Plus, let’s note that major factors impacting employees are outside of the scope of the office. This continues to be a key factor. Too often, employers assume job satisfaction is entirely about in-office conditions when people are people in totality, and their experiences outside of the office matter.