International Women’s Day on March 8th was a chance to celebrate the critical roles women play in every aspect of every person’s life. However, in workplaces, statistics show that gender disparity not only prevents women from achieving their full potential but also deprives organizations of the full benefits of their contributions.
Women are often overlooked for many jobs, even though severe talent shortages plague many industries because they can’t find ‘appropriate’ candidates. This can change with the help of technology.
Gender gap data
An indisputable gender gap still exists according to the recent Women in the Workplace study. The result shows that one in every 5 C-suite positions is held by a woman, male managers outnumber female managers because for every 100 men promoted there are only 79 women promoted. In addition, only 38% of organizations have set targets for gender parity in hiring.
Benefits of Inclusion & Diversity
Studies show undeniable benefits of an inclusive and diverse workforce as companies that occupy the top 25% for racial, ethnic and gender diversity around the nation are more likely to earn profits above their industry’s national average.
Diverse and inclusive teams are also more creative problem-solvers due to their unique perspectives. Studies show that creativity drives innovation and creates momentum.
Conquering obstacles
Most organizations understand that inclusion and diversity – including gender parity – are good for business but there are some obstacles that have to be overcome. Some of the obstacles include outdated thinking, like believing that a four-year degree is a must have.
Other obstacles such as unconscious bias, a natural human trait and the tendency to choose people that are perceived to be ‘like them” are also part of natural human traits that affect hiring and promotion decisions as well as who to mentor.
This is why objective and real-time reporting and analytics are so important to conquer the major obstacles to diversity and inclusion.
Technology to Support Inclusion & Diversity
Human capital management (HCM) solutions help organizations address the many obstacles to achieve inclusion and diversity by providing accessible workplace metrics that the organization can use to keep track of their progress and to know which new programs are working.
Some software can help leaders make an objective assessment of resumes, behavior and to focus on definable skills. Artificial intelligence can help organizations single out not only the best matches for the job requirements but also which individuals have the potential to excel in the future and are most likely to remain with the company longer.
Predictive analytics can also help managers identify employees that are worth their time to mentor, provide performance feedback, and so on.
Technology can help organizations streamline routine administrative tasks to allow their managers to have time for mentoring team members and make employees feel secure and welcomed.
Concluding thoughts
The best way to celebrate International Women’s Day is to recommit to make inclusion and gender parity a reality. Companies that are struggling to get their diversity and inclusion programs started, can turn to Talent Science solutions for help.
