Debunking 4 Outdated Myths that Hold Women Back

Women in the Workplace 2023

For the 9th year of the Women in the Workplace report, we’re debunking 4 myths holding women back at work using the largest data source of its kind – this year alone, 276 companies employing 10M+ people and over 27K employees participated in the study.

But first, a few observations on “the pipeline,” which offers a bird’s-eye view of the state of women in corporate America:

• The good news: Women now hold 28% of C-suite jobs – up from 17% in 2015 – and there are bright spots at the VP and SVP levels, too.
• The bad news: Progress is lagging for women in the middle of the pipeline, which effectively means it’s lagging for most women.
• The worse news: From the entry-level to the C-suite, women of color lose 2/3rds of their representation – the biggest drop off of any group of employees. And as a result, only 1 in 16 C-suite leaders is a woman of color.
• The big takeaway: Despite progress at the top, true parity remains painfully out of reach.

Myth 1: Women are becoming less ambitious. This is simply not true. Women are more ambitious than before the pandemic – and flexibility is fueling that ambition.

By the numbers:

• Women are as committed to their careers and as interested in being promoted as men.
• The pandemic did not dampen women’s ambitions: roughly 8 in 10 women want to be promoted to the next level, compared to 7 in 10 in 2019. The same holds true for men.
• Young women are especially ambitious: 9 in 10 women 30 and under want to be promoted to the next level, and 3 in 4 aspire to be senior leaders.?
• Women who work hybrid or remotely are just as ambitious as women and men who work on-site, and a majority of women report having more focused time to get their work done when they work remotely.?

Myth 2: The “glass ceiling” is the largest obstacle to women’s advancement. For the 9th consecutive year, women’s biggest hurdle to advancement is the “broken rung” at the first critical step up to manager. Until the broken rung is fixed, gender parity in senior leadership remains out of reach.?

By the numbers:

• This year, for every 100 men promoted from entry level to manager, only 87 women – and 73 women of color – were promoted. (And it’s trending the wrong way for women of color, -down from 82 women of color last year.)
• The broken rung numbers for Black women are particularly concerning. After rising in 2020 and 2021 – to a peak of 96 Black women for every 100 men – this year a mere 54 Black women were promoted for every 100 men.?
• Entry-level women ask for promotions and leave their companies at the same rates as entry-level men. (Read: companies, the broken rung is a “you” problem.)
• As a result of the broken rung, men outnumber women at the manager level – 60% men versus 40% women – and women can never catch up.?

Myth 3: Microaggressions have a “micro” impact. In reality, microaggressions have a large and lasting impact on women’s careers and well-being. And by leaving microaggressions unchecked, companies miss out on everything women have to offer and risk losing talented employees.

By the numbers:

• Years of data show that women experience microaggressions at a significantly higher rate than men: they are twice as likely to be interrupted and to hear comments on their emotional state.
• For women with traditionally marginalized identities, these slights happen more often and are more demeaning – as one of many examples, Asian women are 7x more likely than white coworkers to be mistaken for someone of the same race and ethnicity.
• Women who experience microaggressions often “self-shield” by not speaking up to share an opinion, or toning themselves down, to avoid seeming difficult or aggressive.
• This mental minefield takes a toll. Women who experience microaggressions – and self-shield to deflect them – are 4x more likely to almost always feel burned out and 3x more likely to think about?leaving their companies.

Myth 4: It’s mostly women who want – and benefit from – flexibility and remote work. Our data tell a different story. Men and women see flexibility as a “top 3” employee benefit and critical to their company’s success.

By the numbers:?

• A majority of women and men point to “opportunities to work remotely” and “have control over their schedules” as top benefits – second only to healthcare.
• A majority of women and men work more flexibly than they did before the pandemic, and relatively few feel judged or worry it will negatively impact their careers. Most notably, women are 3X more likely to feel “set up to succeed” when they work flexibly than they did two years ago.
• For women, working remotely is about more than flexibility: when women work remotely, they face fewer microaggressions and have higher levels of psychological safety.?
• Half of women and a third of men point to “offering significant flexibility in when and where employees work” as a top-three factor in their company’s future success. (Notably, less than 1 in 10 companies agree this is a top factor in their future success.)

We hope highlighting these myths will help companies cast aside outdated thinking once and for all and accelerate progress for women. In addition, you’ll find specific recommendations for fixing the broken rung, addressing microaggressions, and ensuring employees have equal opportunity to advance regardless of where and when they work. You can read the full report here .

And finally, huge thanks to the joint Lean In/McKinsey team for their tireless work on this year’s report: Alexis Krivkovich , Caroline Fairchild , Lareina Yee , Gina Cardazone , Emily Field , Marianne Cooper , Priya Fielding-Singh , Nicole Hardy Robinson , Mary Noble-Tolla , Amber Burton , Sandra Kuegele , Briana Edwards , Thamara J. , Lizbeth M. Kim, PhD , Ryan Hutson , Emma S. , and Jemma York .