broken rung

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Women in the Workplace 2022

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The 2022 Women in the Workplace report was released in mid-October and many of us have seen the big findings from the report hitting the headlines. While the talent pipeline has been suffering from a “broken rung” for a while, and the representation of women took a hit during the pandemic as women left the workforce, we’re now seeing more senior-level women leave their current organizations for companies that are more supportive.

When they leave, they take not only their talent but also much of the drive and effort behind creating those supportive work environments which are also increasingly more important to younger talent.

What do we do about it? My short answer is, let’s structure our organizations in a way that empowers managers to make a difference. Let’s set our managers up for success so they can set their direct reports up for success.

Women in the Workplace 2020: Spotlight on COVID-19

In years past, when the Women in the Workplace study by LeanIn and McKinsey and Company was released, I had been excited. Excited to see progress being made (even slowly) and new insights uncovered on how women can be better supported by their organizations.

The 2020 Women in the Workplace report was released last week, and like many other 2020 headlines, it did not bring with it this sense of excitement or hope. Despite my awareness that women are being disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, I did not anticipate some of these jarring data points.

Training for Mid-Level Managers to Mend the Broken Rung

The Broken Rung identifies the initial move from entry-level to manager as “the biggest obstacle women face on the path to senior leadership.” There are five suggestions to fix the broken rung in organizations that see this drop in representation of women moving up to managerial levels. All of these elements work together to interrupt bias in the hiring and promotion process, and it is clear how they can ensure that all diverse candidates are given the appropriate consideration for advancement.

The recommendation I want to focus on today is putting evaluators through bias training. While it is critical for organizations to focus on eliminating bias in all of their processes, it can be especially important for entry-level employees.

What I'm Reading: Women in the Workplace 2019

Each year, we eagerly anticipate the release of the annual Women in the Workplace study conducted by LeanIn.org and McKinsey and Company. This year, the report’s fifth year, was no different. There are often new themes and new lenses on the topics of representation, bias, and how to mitigate unequal treatment in the workplace. Our big takeaway this year is a concept coined The Broken Rung.