With the gender pay gap legislation in full swing, now is the time to invest and empower women in the workplace. Dawn Leane explains how
There are numerous ways in which organisations can support the development of female talent. In approaching this piece, I asked myself, 'what is the main challenge that female coaching clients report?'
The answer appears deceptively simple, so simple that it is often overlooked: communication—specifically, communication in two areas: articulating expectations and delivering unequivocal feedback.
As advice goes, it's not particularly innovative or exciting, but it is fundamental. After all, how can anyone live up to expectations if they don't know what they are?
Early promotions are usually based on the ability to perform tasks to a high standard, manage a function, coordinate and plan. Frequently, a promotion is preceded by the 'tap on the shoulder' indicating that an application is actively encouraged.
However, at a senior level, there is a whole set of essential behaviours, attitudes and competencies that are not explicitly stated anywhere.
Of course, this also applies to men. However, they have a more significant advantage when understanding many of these behavioural norms and unwritten rules.
Accordingly, professional women are far more likely to find themselves disadvantaged when navigating the corporate environment.
I often share the example of a client who was identified as having high potential, yet her career had stalled. She was performing well and getting all the right signals, but nobody had discussed her next move with her.
Ultimately, she initiated the conversation with her manager, who asked what took her so long. She was being judged for her lack of self-advocacy – yet, nobody had told her this was an expectation.
The double-bind—a set of double-standards women are subjected to in the workplace—is a significant factor in communication. To succeed, women must display the traits commonly associated with effective leadership, such as assertiveness. However, when women behave assertively, they often suffer consequences that their male counterparts don't experience.
A significant long-term impact is associated with the double bind – it can prevent women from receiving the crucial feedback they need to progress. According to research conducted by McKinsey and LeanIn.Org in 2016, managers (men and women) are more likely to be concerned about appearing harsh or provoking an emotional response when delivering developmental feedback to women and so dilute the feedback or talk around the issue. The consequence of this hesitancy is that women are less likely to receive the critical feedback needed to succeed.
Year after year, the McKinsey and LeanIn.Org Women in the Workplace report illustrates how women lose ground at every step on the corporate ladder. As a result, there are too few women to promote to senior leadership positions in representative numbers.
In addition, women are increasingly leaving organisations that make it difficult for them to advance.
When discussing career development with female employees, managers should consider the following:
- Don't assume that the organisation's culture is understood equally by all;
- Clearly articulate the behaviours that the organisation values and rewards;
- Don't be afraid to set performance objectives that may be difficult to quantify, such as networking;
- Create space for dialogue, asking questions such as 'what information would be helpful right now?'; and
- If tempted to dilute difficult feedback, ask yourself, 'what would I value if I were in this person's position?'
Information is power. Presenting female employees with clear rules of engagement and detailed feedback levels the playing field. Once that is achieved, women will do the rest!
Dawn Leane is Founder of Leane Empower.
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