When Rohini Anand took over diversity programmes at multinational catering company Sodexo in 2002, she had one goal: To prove that it pays for a company to have equal numbers of male and female managers.
Sodexo says she’s done just that. A company-wide study last year found that units with equal numbers of men and women in management roles delivered more profits more consistently than those dominated by men.
“It has become embedded now. It’s not just me talking about it anymore,” Ms. Anand says with “I told you so” satisfaction.
Evidence is growing that gender equity is not just politically correct window-dressing, but good business. Yet, while companies are trying to increase the number of women in executive positions, many are struggling because of a failure to adapt workplace conditions in a way that ensures qualified women do not drop off the corporate ladder.
The case for companies to act is compelling.
In a survey last year of 366 companies, consultancy McKinsey & Co. found that those whose leadership roles were most balanced between men and women were more likely to report financial returns above their national industry median.
Apple CEO Tim Cook, who came out as gay last year, told PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) it was important to hire people who “complement you, because you want to build a puzzle.”
“You don’t want to stack Chiclets up and have everyone be the same,” he said.
In France, Norway, Spain and most recently Germany, governments have sought to mandate progress by imposing quotas for women on boards.
Norway had the highest percentage of women on boards: 35 per cent in Western Europe and North America last year, according to data compiled by Catalyst, which researches gender equity. The U.S. ranked ninth among the 16 countries listed at 19 per cent.
Board quotas alone won’t close the gender gap because they only address the final step in the career ladder, researchers say. The real challenge for employers is to hire, train and promote talented women so they have a pipeline of qualified female candidates when they need to fill senior roles.
“We’re on the cusp of a revolution,” says Cary Cooper, a professor at Lancaster University Management School in Britain. “If organisations don’t allow more flexibility, more autonomy, they’re just going to keep losing (women).”
The average workplace remains locked in a post-war factory mentality with structured hours and a requirement to be at the office and the expectation to keep working from home even when not physically present, researchers say. It’s not just about hours. Women often struggle with a male-dominated culture at executive levels, surveys show. Some have accused such a culture for the aggressive risk-taking that led to the global financial crisis. IMF chief Christine Lagarde quipped that if collapsed investment bank Lehman Brothers had been Lehman Sisters, the crisis would look different.
While governments have focused on the boardroom, companies like Sodexo decided they had to start by building a pipeline to get them there.
Ms. Anand, the company’s global chief diversity officer, said Sodexo’s goal is for women to make up 25 per cent of its top 300 managers this year. Women already make up 42 per cent of the board of directors and 38 per cent of the executive board.
“The current workplaces were made by and for baby boomers,” Ms. Anand said. “If we are to retain the best and brightest, we need to look at workplaces differently.”
