Companies
12.4 Gender Diversity Measures
The proportion of women in higher management levels at consultancies represent between 0 and 10%, on average nearly 3% (Hördt 2002). These figures for the consulting sector reveal that there are more barriers in progression to management positions for women than men. As a result of these additional barriers, that exist both inside and outside the work environment, women need more support on the part of the company in developing their careers. Aspects such as the attainment of equal opportunities for women and men and gender diversity, are central to our study.
Here both internal and external communication with regard to gender diversity are imbued with great significance, so that all participants can be kept informed and become involved. Only if the aim is formulated clearly as company policy can changes take place in the attitude of the employees and management. The poten- tial of internal and external communication are manifold and serve to increase the acceptance and promote the implementation of the measures introduced.
There are many methods of communication and these can be integrated into al- ready existing information and communication media.
The internal information and communication policy should cover all of the supporting policies the company offers to promote the combination of family commitments and career. It should, however, also provide information on active
“father support” to promote the acceptance of fathers wishing to spend more time looking after their children, as well as external sources of information and events for parents and employees with career responsibilities. Positive examples should be given of how such support has already been implemented within the company, as well as ensuring that employees receive updates on the company while they are on their parental leave; details should also be given regarding any innovative sug- gestions made by employees, and of any such ideas that have now been adopted and implemented.
This information can be provided in individual discussions, on pinned-up no- tices and circular letters, and by means of the intranet. In addition, internal infor- mative events such as company or departmental meetings could be planned to fo- cus on a certain topic, or demand-oriented meetings and consultation hours with relevant personnel could be organized. Seminars could also integrate aspects of the company’s “family-friendly” policies. The mission statement should be ac- tively communicated, and someone in the company should be assigned the role as the person to contact on such issues. Company brochures and employees’ newspa- pers focusing on specific topics could also be distributed. A policy ensuring active information and communication channels should lead to employees becoming pro- active in finding out about their own needs.
External communication should be oriented towards a family-friendly company image, integrating the company’s own concept of family-friendliness as well as individual measures and any awards which may have been won for family- friendly policies. This can then be supported by publishing internal and external job advertisements which are non-gender-specific, and which, for example, refer to the possibility of part-time work and explicitly state that applications from women are welcome, “even” for technical and management positions. Advertise- ments which promote the company’s image can be placed in newspapers and spe- cialist magazines, and articles in the press (specialist magazines, conferences, bro- chures) as well as membership of forums, working groups and networks focusing on the issue can be utilized. In addition this topic could be developed as one of the company’s main consulting focus points and thus attract exactly those clients who have an equally positive attitude to this issue.
On the one hand the company’s supporting measures will be used more, which means that the advantages already mentioned will begin to take effect. On the o- ther hand the image of the company as an attractive and progressive employer will be improved. This does, however, mean that the formulation of the specific aim of gender diversity must put in an appearance somewhere, for example in the com- pany’s mission statement or as a general long-term goal of the company. This pol- icy of communication and information can be supported by various measures.
Examples of these practices that serve to achieve gender diversity include (An- dresen, Hristozova and Lieberum 2005):
x The employment situation of women in the company: increasing the number of women in higher management positions; no differentiation between women and men in part-time or full-time work and on parental leave; realization of equal pay for women and men.
x Staff recruitment and selection: gender neutral job advertisements; same se- lection criteria and methods for women and men; reintegration of women and men after their parental leave.
x Personnel development and further education: personnel and career develop- ment of part-time workers; support of women regarding expatriation as this helps to reach top management positions; equal career paths for women and men; (more or different) career counseling, mentoring and coaching programs, cross mentoring programs; support of mixed leadership.
x Flexible working hours: part-time work in higher management positions; ena- bling change from part-time to full-time work and vice versa.
x Information and communication policy: internal policy on equal opportuni- ties; internal statements of co-operation between women and men in the workplace; institutionalization of equal opportunities and partnership-based behavior in the workplace.
x Service for families: support of child care; support for families and contact during parental leave; guidelines for coming back after parental leave.
x Flexible job organization: working at home; telework, mobile telework, teamwork.
Companies have to be aware of the fact that the failure of organizations to pro- vide such support may deprive women of avenues for organizational success. In addition, companies need to make use of the abilities and experience of women.
This last-mentioned control mechanism is required if we are to find out which of the support mechanisms proves to be the most effective and efficient for compa- nies, and to determine and steer an optimum level of diversity.
The idea of categorizing gender diversity approaches and the practice of gender diversity measures leads to the following possible categorization where internal and external communication is deemed to be a necessary prerequisite for a high stage of maturity. The lowest level of intensity describes companies who do not implement any measures or communication activities. Whilst at level four the goal or the possibility of taking advantage of such measures is communicated, these measures do not factually exist in the company. At level three, also, communica- tion is both internal and/or external, but only general measures are implemented, which have not only the goal of gender diversity. These measures are generally limited to flexible working hours or the possibility of part time work, which can be desired for other reasons. The second level includes internal as well as external communication, but at the same time also ensures that several measures are im- plemented which are aimed at fulfilling the requirements of gender diversity. The
highest level is ultimately reserved for those companies who have aligned their en- tire personnel policy in accordance with the need for achieving gender diversity, and who communicate these successes both internally and externally.
This leads to the following intensity levels, which have been summarized in the table below:
Table 12.1. Levels of Intensity Levels of intensity
Level 1: Very high intensity
Companies which communicate gender diversity internally and externally as a company goal and which additionally implement consequently measures in all personnel functions with respect to gender diversity.
Level 2: High intensity
Companies which communicate gender diversity internally and externally as a company goal and which additionally implement explicitly measures with respect to gender diver- sity, such as supporting the recruitment of women employees or networking for women.
Level 3: Middle intensity
Companies which communicate gender diversity internally and/or externally as a com- pany goal and additionally implement general measures not only with respect to gender diversity, such as e.g. flexible working hours and the possibility of part time work.
Level 4: Low intensity
Companies which communicate gender diversity internally as a company goal but do not carry out any measures to promote women in managerial positions.
Level 5: Very low intensity
Companies which do not communicate gender diversity as a company goal and do not carry out any measures at all to promote women in managerial positions.
Compared with the categories applied in the previous section, the lowest level five could be classified as the resistance perspective or a lower stage of maturity;
levels four to three would correspond to the fairness approach or a medium stage of maturity, and levels three to two could encompass the access approach or a me- dium to a high level of maturity. Levels two to one could then be classified as the learning approach, in other words a high stage of maturity, whereby a decisive factor would be the willingness of level two companies to continue their develop- ment as a company. Exactly what this classification would look like for consulting companies will be discussed in the next section.