For decades organizations have been trying to improve workplace diversity, however with little success. Although studies and business cases show that the presence of women in the top places of organizations is desirable and beneficial, in Portugal, as well as around the world, there still is a marked under-representation of women in decision-making and leadership positions in organizations.
Article by Filipa Castanheira | Reading time 2 minutes
When we look at the numbers, we find out that women work longer hours than men, receive salaries that are on average 18% lower and have fewer opportunities for career progression. According to the 2017 Global Gender GAP Report of the World Economic Forum, Portugal ranks 33rd for gender (in) equality in a total of 144 countries. This report also reveals that it will take 217 years before gender equality is a reality in the world.
We then ask ourselves, "Why are there so few women in leadership positions?"
A simplistic way of 'tidying up' this issue would be saying that there are probably not enough qualified women to perform such duties. However, such an argument falls apart when we find out that most of the people who finish their undergraduate or postgraduate studies are precisely women.
Not being an existential question of qualified female candidates, it is probably posed that they are perceived as qualified or not.
Research on female leadership has shown that this issue is related to biases that go far beyond sexism or prejudice, and that have implications for organizational practices and one's experiences in their work.
When analyzing the processes of selection, development or performance evaluation in organizations, studies point to the fact that “homogeneity” in companies is due to an implicit cognitive bias that, even in the absence of economic incentive, seems to condition our decisions and lead to male favoritism.
Hence, it is crucial to instruct people about these biases so that fairer organizational processes are created and, at the same time, to empower women with strategies that enable them to recognize and deal with these biases.
Much has been said and written about women's leadership but, in my opinion, not always with the most proper tone or emotions. Indeed, in many speeches, the facts and arguments are lost in an interlocked of anger, bitterness, and resentment. I would say that we cannot, and should not, substitute one extreme for another and that taking a stand against prejudice cannot in itself be prejudiced. However, it must be recognized that gender inequality persists (is it getting worse?) and it is an economic imperative, and above all moral, to take concrete, serious and consistent measures so that we don't have to wait two centuries for men and women to be treated fairly in the world of work.
