The workforce trends are always changing. In recent times the participation of women in the workforce has gained momentum but at the same time, there are hardly a definite number of women in senior executive positions.
In a study conducted by Deloitte, the already low share of women CEOs which stood at 6.6 percent declined to an even low of 3.4 percent in the year 2018. And in 2021, it still stands at a disappointing 4.7 percent without any improvement.
It seems almost surprising to see such kind of data when there is so much promotion of women empowerment. And almost all the companies claimed to be gender-neutral and support female representation.
So, what are the reasons behind this?
Gender Bias
While talking about women's representation, it is not possible to not talk about gender bias. Many researchers believe that India's corporate sector still struggles with large gender disparities and prevalent gender biases.
Women are often taken to be ‘second on the list’ candidates for a job while male candidates are kept as a priority. There is a mutually agreed notion that women are incapable of taking senior positions which are often reflected in the hiring decisions of the company.
Owing to this harmful notion, women themselves take their steps back and do not apply for the executive positions, happy to be part of working at a position that is not executive.
In interviews and conversations with many women who are now in senior positions, it has been found that due to this biased corporate ladder hardly consider even appearing for the application process and they did that.
Lack of Support from Senior Leadership
One major issue that has been seen and evident in all the companies is that there is a serious lack of support from major stakeholders of the company. To make an initiative successful, support from the board of directors is a primary need.
Policy changes in the companies also require buy-in from senior-most executives of the companies. This buy-in needs to be flexible, adaptable, and committed. But in the current scenario, it is hardly the case.
This again points out that due to fewer or no women in high positions, the attempts to make a space gender neutrality inclusive are often weak and not sustainable. Policies are designed and approved by males only leaving females out of the picture.
Traditional Gender Notions are Hard to Break
This is perhaps the prime reason why we still struggle to see women, leave alone the executive positions, but in any position in the workforce at all. This is why women still voluntarily drop out of their well-made careers without even thinking twice.
There is a harsh prevalence of the belief that ‘some jobs are not just for women’ and unsurprisingly all the leadership roles fall under the criteria of this belief. Women are seen as tender creatures, incapable of making major decisions.
The traditional gender notion also says that women have a bounded life so, therefore, giving them jobs that require liberalized approach throughout would hamper the progress of the institution.
Sounds ridiculous right?
Diminishing Number of Women Leaders
The corporate world has seen a drastic shrinkage in the number of women leaders in the past few years. Not only at executive levels, but also at the junior levels, participation of women has been dwindling.
When there are no women at junior levels, of course, there is no possibility of promotions and them ending up in higher positions as well. It is really important to inspect the reasons behind this as well.
Why this is happening?
Well first could be, the defect in the hiring process of the institutions. Sometimes the hiring disregards gender diversity and this leads to missing opportunities for the female population.
Another reason could be defects in promotions, according to many studies women are subjected to way more amount of delays and denials while asking for promotions.
It so happens that sometimes they are even berated for the negotiations they are making and given regressive feedback. They are often treated incompetently for many jobs.
India has seen some of the greatest women leaders in its history but yet we fail to achieve the gender equilibrium. The gap keeps on widening. Having women as major stakeholders in an institution is extremely important for the equitable growth of an institution.
The credibility of women’s work is already evident. Some of the biggest companies in India are the result of the l hard work of women entrepreneurs. Gender should be used as an asset to promote equality and not as a constraint that pulls one half of the community below the other.
A country can only prosper when women of that country are on the frontline and leading the way.
Written by - Gunjan Nagpal
Edited by - Akanksha Sharma
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