Jerene Ang* says a new survey has found only 4 per cent of women leaders ranked female leadership quotas as a crucial factor in their personal success.
When thinking of improving gender diversity in leadership roles, quotas usually come to mind.
But do they work?
According to the 2018 KPMG Global Female Leaders Outlook, only four per cent of the 699 global female leaders surveyed from 42 countries and territories ranked female leadership quotas as a crucial factor for their personal success.
Instead, what they found helped them was an active personal network (26 per cent), strong communication skills (24 per cent), and thorough knowhow of new technologies (15 per cent).
More than four in five (83 per cent) global female leaders also found women’s enablement programs a good method to bring women into the business world.
Key learning point: when looking to advance gender diversity in leadership roles, do not focus solely on quotas.
Invest in women’s enablement programs that help them build their network, sharpen their communication skills, and increase their knowledge of new technologies.
KPMG’s report noted: “Global female leaders know how hard it is to fight for their involvement and advancement and want to make it easier for the next generation.”
“Most of the global female leaders do not expect change in these areas to be voluntary, and believe that pressure is needed to reach such a goal.”
Interestingly, when asked about the gender of their successor, 59 per cent of respondents believed that their successor will be female.
When narrowing it down to heads of Department and functional heads, 62 per cent expected their successor to be female.
However, isolating responses from C-level executives and vice presidents in large organisations, the figure dropped to 39 per cent.
Worryingly, with regards to their next career step, only 28 per cent expected their next role to be within their current organisation.
Slightly more than a third (35 per cent) expected their next role to be outside their current organisation, and 37 per cent did not know where it will be.
An interesting correlation the report pointed out was between the response and the length of time the participant has been with her current organisation.
Of those who have worked at the organisation for less than five years, 18 per cent expected to make their next career step within that organisation.
Whereas, among those who have been with an organisation for more than 10 years, only 27 per cent expected to advance in their career outside the organisation — intentionally leaving the organisation to move up the rung.
Learning point: while focusing your efforts on women who have been in the organisation for a long time, do not forget those who have recently joined or you may lose a capable female leader.
* Jerene Ang is a senior journalist for Human Resources Magazine.
This article first appeared at www.humanresourcesonline.net.
