It's about a sticky floor, not a glass ceiling
Posted by Mary-Rose Lines in Managing people, Employment law on Thu, 17/09/2009 - 16:06
- Unconscious gender discrimination may still be occurring in HR policies
- If companies are to benefit from a more diverse leadership, they have to develop the right talent management strategies
- Women must be taken seriously without feeling they need to provide more facts and prove everything they do is 'better' than their male counterparts
What caused the war for talent? Many things including demographic changes, globalisation, skills shortages and increased competition. Have any of those things gone away? No. Government and the media are talking about an end to the recession and the city seems to agree with them. When business do start to grow and invest again, we believe that the war for talent will rage again, and fiercer than ever. Companies will have to utilise all of the talent they have but it seems that organisations today are not fully utilising a critical and growing resource.
There is a clear business case for diversity, but unconscious gender discrimination may still be occurring in HR policies that identify, support, promote and evaluate future talent, such as succession planning or accelerated talent pools. That women are less represented at the highest levels of an organisation is well known, but we have found that the talent practices that are in place are more likely to perpetuate, than change the situation. If careers are like trains, it seems men are boarding the intercity while women make do on the suburban line.
To read the rest of the article you'll need to log in below
If you've forgotten your details click here for a reminder
If you haven't got an account, it's free and only takes a minute to set one up,
click here to register
