Recent news headlines tell a story about some of the issues facing women in today’s workplace:

Exclusive survey: Women see progress in leadership roles but gaps on pay, career development persist (The Business Journals)

Women of color are leaving the workforce and vanishing from unemployment statistics (Fast Company)

‘It’s a huge concern’: Senior-level women are calling it quits after decades climbing the career ladder (MSN)

The Workforce Is Failing Women. Business Leaders Can Stop It (WIRED Magazine)

Gen Z women entering the workforce have low pay expectations, showing little has changed since the boomer generation (Forbes)

This year’s International Women’s Day (IWD) has several missions, including celebrating the women forging change, elevating the visibility of women creatives, improving equality for women in the tech industry, empowering women’s choices in health, forging women’s empowerment worldwide, and building workplaces where women thrive. As we celebrate International Women’s Day today, we take a closer look at how to best cultivate safe and supportive workplaces where women can thrive and grow. We delve into some of the challenges facing women in today’s workplace and look at some of the ways in which we can all play a part in creating a company culture that supports women and fosters equality.

Continue to Implement Flexible Work Policies

As we noted in a blog post before the pandemic, employers of choice had already become privy to the fact that employees have different preferences for how, when, and where they work. Continuing to offer and implement flexible work policies offers all employees, and especially women, including options for hybrid work, job sharing, or flex time – where they can work their hours around their schedule, provided they work the required number of hours per day and complete the tasks they need to get done. McKinsey and LeanIn.org’s recent report, Women in the Workplace 2022, found that women employees who can make the choice to work remotely or on-site are less burned out, happier in their jobs, and much less likely to consider leaving their companies. Data from Catalyst’s Equity in the Future of Work research found that organizations that provide access to remote work experience more well-being, productivity, innovation, and inclusion in their culture. Furthermore, remote work addresses and alleviates the physical and psychological exhaustion and burnout that so many employees, and women especially, experienced as a result of the pandemic. 

Prioritize Promoting Well-Being at Work

In addition to offering flexible work schedules, addressing the root causes of burnout is paramount. Employers need to prioritize inclusive employee benefits that allow time off. During an employee’s time off, allow them to disconnect. Use the schedule send feature that most email clients support so that they receive your emails when they have returned to work, particularly if you are asking them to do something.

Organizations should prioritize creating a culture that supports mental health and wellness for employees. This might entail free access to meditation apps, paying for gym or fitness memberships, promoting access to EAPs, and mental health coverage as part of an organization’s health plan benefits.

Cultivate and Promote a Culture Where Work/Life Balance is Important

A major issue facing many women in the workplace today is juggling the demands of their professional and personal life, which may include both childcare and caregiving for an elderly parent. A study published by the University of Michigan in November 2022 found that nearly one-quarter of all American adults who care for an elderly parent also care for a child at the same time. Many women are in the “sandwich generation” and caring for both young children and their aging parents. According to Lianlian Lei, lead study author, the extra burdens facing the sandwich generation largely go unnoticed and that has to do with the fact that, “historically, the work of caregiving, both of older adults as well as of children, disproportionately falls on women,” as evidenced in the gender breakdown of the study itself.

Prioritize Wage Equality

According to the Pew Research Center, among full- and part-time workers ages 25 and older, women earned 86% of what men earned based on median hourly earnings in the third quarter of 2021.

Organizations should conduct a gender pay audit of their current employees and adopt transparent pay practices. Companies can take the Glassdoor Equal Pay Pledge as part of their commitment to paying equitably for equal work and experience.

Close the Leadership Gap

According to the Women in the Workplace 2022 report, only one in four C-suite leaders is a woman, and only one in 20 is a woman of color. Furthermore, their data shows that for every 100 men who are promoted from entry-level roles to manager positions, only 87 women are promoted, and only 82 women of color are promoted.

Organizations should provide equal advancement opportunities for women and support them in achieving their career goals. It’s valuable for an organization to invest in their talent pipeline of women leaders by offering Leadership and Development programs in order to recruit and develop female leaders. This might also involve mentorship programs. The Women in the Workplace 2022 also provides a road map to gender equality for companies, which details how to get more women into leadership roles and how to retain the women leaders they already have.

Research has found that more women in the workplace actually makes an organization a better place to work, for people of all genders. It’s critical for organizations to create a safe, empathetic work environment where women feel both psychologically safe and heard.  An important component of this is stakeholders becoming better listeners and paying more attention to the changing needs of women. Open communication between leadership and employees is key and can go a long way in supporting women employees so that they can better thrive and prosper at work.

Keystone Partners is committed to helping organizations transform their culture through leadership development and training and career management services, and has been doing so for the last 40 years. Interested in learning how we can help your team create an inclusive culture where people want to work and achieve great things? Contact us today to learn how we can help you do exactly that.

3 Keys to Conducting a Respectful and Compassionate RIF

Whether you may be facing a large RIF, or a smaller scale layoff, there are important factors to consider as you deal with the inevitable planning complexities. Here are the three key areas our client focused on to conduct and implement a successful RIF.  

1.          Proactive Preparation 

A critical part of an empathetic and compassionate reduction in force is preparation and planning. In this situation, our client reached out to us months in advance to discuss how we could support their upcoming RIF. Some of the key planning steps included: 

• Identifying the date of the action
• Identifying members of the RIF management team
• Establishing a project timeline
• Determining the list of impacted employees
• Selecting the level of outplacement programs and severance for each employee
• Notifying managers and teams

The goal of this advanced preparation was to ensure the self-respect and dignity of both the impacted and remaining employees.

2.          Collaboration & Logistics 

After the initial planning steps were completed, the next phase was logistics and collaboration planning. Working in a hybrid environment adds another level of complexity when planning a RIF, especially regarding logistics and collaboration.

The organization leveraged technology to overcome these logistical challenges, ensure the right people were where they needed to be, and confirm the information delivered to the impacted employee was correct and accurate.

A plan was put in place to ensure the best possible experience for impacted employees, and included:

• Virtual meeting technology for separation meeting notifications
• Shared drives with clearly defined access to the important documents
• Shared timetable spreadsheets updated “on the fly” so managers and HR notifiers had information in real time
• Slack channels to collaborate and communicate any changes to the schedule or urgent messages to the Control Room

3.          Empathetic Execution 

The day prior to the notification meetings, the organization’s HR leaders and representatives from Keystone Partners delivered a thorough training session to the notifying managers and HR staff. This training was designed to ensure the seamless conduct of the upcoming layoff notification meetings, and to confirm the notifiers were comfortable with delivering the message to the impacted employees. The logistics of the technology plan were also reviewed, as there were many moving parts involving the organization’s managers, HR team, and Keystone. 

The notification timeline was also reviewed while we trained the notifiers on the specific language to use, how to deal with the emotions of notifications, and the importance of empathy and compassion when delivering the message.

CEO’s Commitment to Compassion 

Having HR and Keystone Partners collaborate and lead the leadership team through the messaging and logistics was critical to the successful execution of this RIF. Another key aspect was the organization’s CEO, who was visible and vocal through the entire process. The CEO echoed our message regarding the importance of communicating with compassion and empathy and reminding the leaders to:

• Not make this about themselves
• Be present for the meetings
• Listen intently

Notifying employees that their positions have been eliminated is one of the hardest things a leader can do. Being able to take yourself out of the equation and assume the role of a true servant leader in this situation makes a huge difference and the impacted employee can feel that.

Positive Employee Experience = Protecting Your Employer Brand 

How an organization gauges the success of a layoff will vary based on your organizational values and culture. At Keystone Partners we get to experience first-hand each employee’s experience through the layoff process as we continue to work with them after the event. Not only do the engagement and utilization numbers tend to be higher with a well-orchestrated RIF event, but survey data and overall employee feedback tends to be much more positive. This creates the results that the organization is after – providing employees with the best experience possible considering the circumstances, and protecting your employer brand by demonstrating compassion, empathy, and respect for your employees. 

Interested in learning more? We have been helping organizations of all sizes, across all industries, conduct successful separations for more than 40 years. Whether you are laying off a single individual or are planning a large-scale reduction in force, we can help ensure everything goes smoothly while also protecting your employer brand. Contact us today to learn how we can help with your layoff-related needs.

While individuals continue to invest in their own career development, organizations increasingly recognize the value of providing career coaching programs to their employees as a distinct benefit. By providing access to an external career coach, employers demonstrate a commitment to professional development for their current (and prospective) employees; in particular, to empower employees to plan and propel their individual careers.

Implementing a successful organizational career coaching program can have lasting positive impact on organization culture, recruiting and retention goals, as well as employer brand. 

What Is Organizational Career Coaching?

At first-glance, organizational career coaching may look and sound like the perfect mechanism to develop internal talent for internal roles. While there are executive and leadership development programs designed specifically for this goal, career coaching has a different aim.

Organizational career coaching is designed as an employee benefit. While it certainly benefits the employer (more on this later), the primary goal is to provide employees the opportunity to speak with an unbiased career coach who can assist them in identifying and planning their career progression, whether or not that is with their current employer.

Why Invest in An Organizational Career Coaching Program?

Offering employees an outside resource to assist with career planning may instill fear into some (if not many) employers. Leadership and managers may worry that employees with an unbiased career coach will develop their employees right out the door.

While it’s true that some employees may decide to leave the organization after considering all their career options -most employees will leverage the services to gain clarity on what they truly want for, and from, their career over the long term. Moreover, organizational career coaches skillfully equip employees to have more effective career conversations with their managers, resulting in greater transparency and trust.

Considerations for Implementation

Before implementing an organizational career coaching program, consider these questions:

• Does your organization want to build a culture of trust and transparency where employees feel safe to share their career aspirations both short and long-term?
• Is the organization committed to developing your entire employee population and providing them with tools and resources to discover their unique skills and talents as well as their short- and long-term career goals?
• Is the organization prepared for employees to share the truth that they may have long-term career aspirations that may not align with your organization and as a result they may consider opportunities elsewhere?

Organizational Career Coaching -A Recruiting, Retention, and Culture Building Tool

By demonstrating to current and future employees that you care about their career path and progression, you stand out as an employer of choice in a crowded job market.

At Keystone Partners, clients continually tell us that exiting employees express their disappointment that there were not more career development resources to leverage. Employees share they hoped their managers demonstrated more interest in their career aspirations and helped them create a clearer career path.

By providing organizational career coaching, employees have access to a resource that results in greater self-awareness of their skills and strengths and equips them with communication techniques to express their interest in career progression confidently and proactively with their managers.

Frankly, any employee who chooses to leverage career coaching from their employer (or on their own) is most likely an employee worthy of investment. Expressing interest in coaching indicates that the individual is self-motivated and cares about their career progression and growth. And, very likely that of the organization as well. They are less likely to be the type of employee to clock in and clock out.

Furthermore, an organizational career coaching program can be expanded to coach HR and managers on how to have effective career conversations with employees, integrating career progression and development into the overall culture.

Best Practices for Implementing a Successful Organizational Career Coaching Program

When considering establishing a career coaching program for employees many employers wonder, “How can we leverage this to develop our employees to progress within our organization and into internal roles that we have?” Developing and promoting from within is always a best practice, and pursing internal opportunities is likely a path that appeals to some employees. However, for maximum impact, the organization must release all attachment to outcomes of the career coaching program.

A true organizational career coaching program focuses on career and progression from the perspective of the employee and not have an employer agenda. To realize the greatest benefit from organizational career coaching, it is imperative that the employer and employee know:

• Utilizing the services is completely confidential and there is no bias or agenda by the employer.
• The only agenda is the employee’s success with gaining clarity on what career progression and development look like for them as an individual.
• It is safe for the employee to share their true career aspirations with their career coach -even if that means they may be interested in eventually leaving their current employer and pursuing other career paths.

Providing career coaching to employees is a valuable tool -not only to help employees discover what they truly want out of work -but also to demonstrate that the employer cares about them as a person with an individual career.

Conclusion

The Great Resignation and Great Reshuffle have demonstrated that employees feel more empowered than ever about their career options. The pandemic gave individuals a unique opportunity to explore and affirm personal preferences when it comes to where, when, and how they work.

The competitive talent environment provides an opportunity for organizations to provide benefits that will meet current and prospective employees needs for autonomy and career empowerment.

Employers that provide confidential unbiased third-party resources such as organizational career coaching, demonstrate a commitment to employee growth. Developing career coaching skills for both employees and managers, fosters a coaching culture where there are fewer surprise resignations and greater transparency. Greater transparency yields more trust, and any culture built on trust ultimately creates more employee retention and loyalty.

Additional posts from Brenda Stanton

Cultural Fit Influences Job Success

A Case for Active Inquiry in the Workplace

Is it Still Possible to Get a Better Job with Higher Compensation in 2020?

Don’t lose hope! Companies are still hiring during COVID-19; they need great talent to navigate these challenging times and to help them pivot into new ways of operating and thriving as a business.

Your responsibility is to get in the right mindset to not only find, but also to attract this higher-paying job and new opportunity.

Here are 4 Steps to get you started:

1. Adopt a Worthy Mindset: First, you must start with believing you are worthy of a higher paying job that you enjoy. You do this by taking inventory of where you’ve been and what you’ve done. Carve out some time on your calendar and do a “Career in Review” by looking at projects you spearheaded and individuals with whom you collaborated. Utilize the STAR method which stands for Situation, Task, Action, Result. Document these activities and events so you realize (and remember!) all you’ve accomplished! This exercise will also help you prepare for the inevitable behavioral interview questions “Tell me about a time when you had to…” (Note: it’s a good idea to keep a running list of your STAR contributions, or at least conduct an annual “year in review” audit.)
2. Inventory Your Value: Once your mindset is set, continue your contemplation by specifying what a better job will look like for you. Prioritize what matters to you when it comes to the work you do and how you do it. Sure, more compensation is great, but if it requires working on nights and weekends, you may want to reconsider. This self-inquiry assessment will also help you realize your own worth -because when interview time comes around, you will interview the company just as much as they interview you. You’ll set yourself up as a high-value candidate who does thorough due diligence and knows what you want.
3. Make Your Unique Contribution Stand-Out: Once you’ve taken inventory and are feeling confident in what you have to offer -it’s time to assess why you and your unique combination of skills and experience are valuable to your future employer. Any up-level in responsibilities and compensation will require you to consider the business and how your position will make an impact. Doing your research online and through your network about the organization will give you more confidence in an interview because you’ll be asking contextual questions about the organization -and how your role fits into its short- and long-term success. Knowing about the business and what their biggest challenges and opportunities are will position you as high value and will differentiate you from other candidates vying for the same role.
4. Surround Yourself with Positivity: A job search is a marathon not a sprint. Stay the course, especially as you navigate these choppy COVID-19 waters. Be sure to surround yourself with people who support you and reinforce what you want and what you deserve. Also, look for examples and evidence of others who are landing roles in your industry. The old adage of focus on the positive eliminate the negative sings true here.

It is still possible to land a new role that you love and pays you what you are worth in 2020. Your challenge? Take the first step in believing you are worthy of it and focus on it happening for you and it will.

Yet, you may feel a disconnect and divide between your employees and the organization -where you know the communication is limited and not truly authentic. You sense employees are holding back from sharing what they truly think and feel.

You may have administered employee engagement surveys and received useful insight, but when it comes to understanding what truly drives your employees to do their best work and be their best, you may feel you’re coming up short. Authentic, open employee input is the sometimes-elusive goal.

Clark Kent or Superman? In his book, The Alter Ego Effect, author and performance coach Todd Herman poses an interesting question: “Who do you believe is the alter ego (aka, alternative personality) -Clark Kent or Superman?” Inevitably about 90% of the participants answer that Superman is the alter-ego that Clark Kent created. Therefore, the majority believe that Clark Kent is the “real person” and Superman is the alternative personality he uses to express his super powers.

But what if this assumption is wrong? What if Clark Kent is the alter-ego that Superman (aka the real person) created in order to fit-into society, blend-in, and stay under the radar? What if your employees are doing this at work -wearing disguises to fit-in rather than stand-out and reveal their super powers?

Why would employees hide their super powers? Wouldn’t they want to show their greatness, their full potential? Especially at work and to their bosses?

At a conscious level, employees yearn to display superpowers and unique traits so they can rise to the top, make more money, and realize their true career potential. At a subconscious level, employees fear that their basic survival needs to pay the bills, keep a roof over their head, and connect with others could be threatened if they do step into their full power at work -to truly be seen and heard.

Why would this be? Employees are individuals who have past experiences -some positive and many negative. We must remember that work mirrors upbringings where authority figures such as teachers, parents, and coaches were in positions of power and knew best. Employees are accustomed to people in positions of power (e.g., leadership, management, HR) having agendas for them. Employees may feel that the relationship between them and the employer is a one-way street where the employer and higher-ups get what they want from their work -and the employee ends up with the short end of the stick.

To survive, individuals learn to conform and comply to gain approval and feel safe. Even if complying and conforming requires pretending to be someone they are not -perhaps even pretending to be “less than” their authentic selves.

How can an organization help employees feel safe enough to share their ideas and feedback openly without the fear of negative consequences? Concurrently, how can this organizational commitment begin to actualize and realize the full potential of the company?

Leadership Inquiry = Authentic Intelligence

As with any sustained change, the first step is to start with leadership. The leadership team demonstrates not only the mission and vision of the organization, but also emulates the values and behaviors that shape the culture. As with any behavior and cultural change, the goal is to create learnings that marry knowledge-based content with active inquiry exercises.

Knowledge based content that can foster cultural trust and openness includes emotional intelligence, self-awareness, empathy, values-based leadership, psychological safety -and, yes, vulnerability. A few examples of programs that cover these topics include: Servant Leadership, Brené Brown’s Dare to Lead, and NeuroLeadership.

Experience is the best approach to teach active inquiry. For an executive to be an effective and credible coach, they should experience coaching themselves. Nothing is more effective at teaching a leader how to use active inquiry than a coach asking thought provoking questions and actively listening for the underlying solutions and answers. As a result, the leader can and will find answers to problems and situations that may have had them stuck for months or even years. In this Forbes article, the power of coaching for leaders is captured well.

Equal Conversations = Transformational Business Results

Teaching leaders the power of coaching allows them to learn how to trust themselves and be more present. In turn, employees who work for and with these leaders will inevitably experience a shift themselves when the leaders emulate the concepts. By using active inquiry with team members, leaders not only create a safe space for employees to share feedback and ideas -they also create a culture where employees feel a tremendous sense of value and worth in sharing their voices.

Leaders who remove their ego from the equation and listen intently to employees at all levels of the organization will experience a culture shift and gain incredible knowledge that could revolutionize the business.

Consider the TV show Undercover Boss, where leaders wear disguises so they can connect with employees and hear honest opinions. Incredible knowledge is gained because the executive is now on a level playing field with the employee. The employee “trusts” this individual because they are considered a peer -an equal. When the disguised executives ask open-ended questions and listen intently, they receive the unfiltered truth about the business and how employees really feel.

When coached by a self-aware, empathetic leader, an individual will begin to feel their ideas, feedback, and contribution to the organization are valued; as opposed to a more autocratic approach where an “all knowing” leader passes down wisdom and knowledge, reinforcing a “less than” mentality and culture.

Building Trust -Treat Employees as Puzzle Pieces, Not Pawns

Imagine creating an environment where employees literally feel that without their daily presence, the organization would be missing a valued piece of the organizational puzzle? If an employee feels seen, heard, and valued for the unique, irreplaceable contribution they make, they will remain loyal, engaged, and inspired. It’s human nature to stay in an environment that allows you to actualize your full potential while making a meaningful contribution.

Ashoka, a non-profit based in Virginia, believes in giving everyone a voice. Bill Drayton, founder of Ashoka, stated, “…we’re in the middle of a necessary but painful transition. Machines can pretty much do anything repetitive now -which calls for a new sort of person” which he calls a “changemaker.” “Changemakers are people who can see the patterns around them, identify problems in any situation, figure out ways to solve the problem, organize fluid teams, lead collective action, and continually adapt as situations change.”

Another organization putting employees’ voices in the forefront is, HCL, a global technology company. They have implemented “Ideapreneurship” which is based on the fundamental belief of inverting the organizational pyramid and engaging, enabling, and empowering the front line. “I” innovation is not just another word, it’s part of the organizational heritage and DNA. “Ideapreneurs” don’t run after success, their quest for answers leads them there.

Commitment to Cultural Change

In any relationship, trust is built up day-by-day. The employer/employee relationship is no different. The concepts discussed here are game changers because they create change at the root level; altering behavior and habits through being (overall presence) not just doing. Organizations that demonstrate commitment through consistent action and involving employees at all levels will experience a shift. More openness. More ideas. More candid, truthful feedback. More innovation.

Keep in mind this journey is a two-way street -in order for employees to trust, be open, and be vulnerable -the organization and leadership must go first!

Knowing thyself is your greatest tool when assessing if a corporate culture is going to align well with your personality and career aspirations. It’s critical to know what you must have when it comes to work, and what you can live without. Many a job seeker has said never again to a long commute and then found themselves presented with a job offer that looks great “on paper” but will require a 3-hour commute each day. In that moment the individual must ask themselves, do I want to settle for good -or wait for great?

It’s a hard decision to say no to something especially if you need a job -but the individuals who have the courage to say no to a job or culture that won’t serve them long-term, almost always find themselves in better situations that surpass what they initially wanted. You must give yourself permission to raise your standards and know what those standards are. What is a red flag for you may be a green light for someone else. It all comes down to personal preference and self-awareness.

Once you know what is important to you – gather data from various sources. Go online to sites like Glassdoor and Kununu.com -and read current and past employee reviews. Research LinkedIn to find people in your network who work (or worked) at the company you are considering; use that network to see if you can speak with current and former employees to interview them about the work environment and policies that influence corporate culture. And most importantly, interview the company just as much as they are interviewing you. If career development and contributing to a mission are vital, ask questions about the company’s philosophies in these areas. Ask your potential future boss in-depth questions as well. You’ll quickly learn if the culture is one that will propel you forward or hold you back.

In years past we’d access job opportunities based on the job description alone. Then, after getting the job, mold ourselves to that culture. If you were expected to work late and on weekends, you did it. More recently, the playing field has leveled, and employers of choice have become privy to the fact that employees have different preferences for how, when, and where they work. This knowledge not only gives employees more leverage and opportunities to find the right fit -but also give organizations the insight to hire individuals who they see as a great cultural fit.

Organizations that are recognized as best places to work know the importance culture plays in the attracting great talent -and also in retaining it. They also know that the culture they’ve created is not for everyone and they have to be discerning in their recruitment efforts to find the right fit. Costly mistakes can be made when employee and employer turn out to not to be a great match -not only because of the cost to hire -but also to the potential cost of employer brand reputation in the market.

Gone are the days where you must tolerate a culture just to have a job. There are so many places and opportunities in this new economy to share your talent and gifts. If you love what you do but find yourself tolerating an abusive boss -or dealing with sabotaging colleagues -it’s time to take your talent elsewhere. The costs are too high to waste any more time in an environment that may allow you to pay your bills, but is slowly killing you.