Will a post-pandemic workplace rewind women leaders to 1989?

Note: Gender parity in the workplace is near and dear to my heart. This piece is focused mainly on partnered women who are parents. I realize that for single parents, the challenges are even greater, and I acknowledge that not all people become or want to become parents.

Due to the increased burdens placed on women navigating the pandemic, the next five to 10 years could see severe regression on gender parity for women in business leadership roles. It matters because it will directly affect companies’ potential for growth.

The Wall Street Journal and others have reported what many of us have come to know, which is that “growing body of research links greater gender diversity on teams and in corporate management to more innovation and better financial performance. That business case is a big reason more senior leaders at companies—73%—say achieving equality for women in the workplace is a priority, up from 56% four years ago.”

Back to the future

Before the start of the pandemic, women were progressively representing different levels of business achievement. In fact, year after year since 2015, the percentage of women holding senior leadership and C-suite roles was increasing, albeit slowly.

Research from McKinsey showed that “Between January 2015 and December 2019, the number of women in senior-vice-president positions increased from 23 to 28 percent, and in the C-suite from 17 to 21 percent. Though the numbers were progressing slightly upward, women remain dramatically underrepresented, especially women of color.” While these numbers may not blow you away, the continuous progress they were showing was something to be proud of. (In a future blog, I’ll tackle the issue of compensation.)

Enter March of 2020. As the pandemic waned on, women disproportionately took on more child care, home schooling, and domestic duties in dual-income heterosexual households, which led many to either downshift career responsibilities or opt out of the workforce altogether. This means that more women than ever have been missing their critical first management roles.

First management roles are often essential to women climbing the proverbial ladder. Without these first leaps into leadership roles, we know that women are less likely to get promotions (their male counterparts start outpacing them 2:1) or get stuck in middle management down the line.

Flash back to 1989, when this Harvard Business Review piece appealed to business leaders to invest in talented women—a notable jumpstart for gender parity for women in the workforce. According to a pre-pandemic McKinsey report, women “had never shown women opt out of the workforce at higher rates than men.” But the past 18 months have taken a toll on working women.

Between burnout and stagnation, will Covid-19 set women back to 1989?

The first step up the ladder

For women (or anyone) who want to pursue an upper management or executive track, it’s critical to start advancing early—climbing up from that bottom rung in the first five to eight years of your career. This timeline is on par with most men’s leadership trajectories, allowing women to gain parity with them at an early stage.

In 2019, The Wall Street Journal reported “Though women and men enter the workforce in roughly equal numbers, men outnumber women nearly 2 to 1 when they reach that first step up—the manager jobs that are the bridge to more senior leadership roles. In real numbers, that will translate to more than one million women across the U.S. corporate landscape getting left behind at the entry level over the next five years as their male peers move on and upward, perpetuating a shortage of women in leadership positions.”

So less than three years ago, we already had grave concerns on shortage of women in leadership women because of the obstacles to advancement. “Evening the odds early in women’s careers would have a huge impact” was the punchline; with the pandemic, I believe we have critically impaired the parity of women in middle management and future advancement.

Family, pandemic, and burnout

The time at which women begin to climb the ladder often coincides with the time they may commence family-building. Naturally, carrying a child and birthing a child is one side of the coin but the childcare and household duties stress can add an additional level whilst working in management. This is where downshifting or burnout creep in, and the pandemic has doubled down on women’s responsibilities as parents.

Eighteen months into the Covid crisis, schools are open again, but aftercare is not readily available. My local public middle school in Houston Independent School District—one of the largest districts in the country—is not offering after-school options due to Covid risk. So you’re expected to pick your child up or send them home on the bus at 3:30 in the afternoon. For working parents who don’t have flexibility in their workplace, it not only creates stress, but is also genuinely not feasible for many.

This lack of childcare options continues and will continue to delay women re-entering to the workforce. For those in the throes of crucial new management or middle management roles coupled with child care struggles, exhaustion and stress may lead to burnout, downshifting their career, or attrition.

What can we do to bring women back to work and into leadership roles?

There are four key items to invest in as we build back the women’s workforce.

1.??????Re-entry programs – Actively and intentionally recruit women back into the workplace by providing re-entry coaching and support. This will largely depend on the size of the organization as well as its capability and energy to put the effort in place. It could also be a real differentiator for attracting great talent!

2.??????Middle management – Businesses often "diagnose" a lack of gender parity by focusing on the symptoms rather than using the strengths of the business as a foundation for leveling the playing field. Creating gender parity isn’t simply about identifying problems—it begins by identifying strengths. Using the business itself as a resource for change is more effective than putting a laser focus on what you’d like to change. That being said, take a hard look at your middle management and evaluate it.

3.??????Employers should offer fertility benefits – Empower women to take control of their family planning. Egg freezing has become increasingly accessible option for women, along with seeking fertility treatments later in life when they are ready to start a family. (Message me if you need a doctor reference.)

4.??????Aspiring women business leaders need mentors – In addition to using your grit, working hard, and continuing the uphill trek, the most important piece of advice I would give the next generation of women leaders is to secure a cadre of sponsors and mentors for yourself, and encourage others to do the same. Seek constant advice from this group. Mentors not only help steer your long-term career journey, but can also help with day-to-day situations.

We know gender equity in the workplace grows innovation and diversity of thought, resulting in a positive impact to a company’s revenue growth as well. Getting there is not an option—it’s an imperative. But first we must make sure we don’t go “back to the future” but meet working women where they are.?