The main reason that diversity initiatives fail is lack of genuine buy-in at a senior level. There is overwhelmingly compelling evidence that diverse teams have a significant bottom line impact. Research from McKinsey indicates that gender parity and increased diversity would boost global GDP by $28 TRILLION.  So it’s something of a mystery why organisations only pay lip…

The  trend for Big Data is one of the current buzz movements with HR being encouraged to embrace every element of big data analytics. A Towers Watson survey of more than 1,000 organizations last year found HR data and analytics to be among the top three areas for HR technology spending. Benefits of Big Data to…

Apps and platforms that tackle workplace bias in job search and recruitment Tech is considered to be one of the least gender balanced sectors. Women are difficult to identify, attract and when that does happen, the churn levels are especially high. But it is also an area which is well placed to offer support to organisations wanting to monitor or…

A presence culture is the current barrier to keep women out of the corporate sandbox One of the many challenges women face in the pursuit of their careers is the widespread existence of a “presence culture” in male-dominated corporate organisations.  Here, highly visible long working hours are rewarded and therefore encouraged, as employees feel they have to make themselves available for their employer.…

Diversity initiatives and commitment Diversity initiatives are hard to introduce and even harder to manage successfully and bring to fruition. Many would say they are the window dressing and lip service to appease campaigners. Having a diversity policy is very different to making it effective. Neil Morrison covered this exact point in his post the other “Some are more equal than…

At a dinner party last week I was asked by a yummy mummy, what field should she encourage her daughter to go into and what academic choices would I advise she make? The kid is 8.  Now my first instinctive reaction was that this was more than a little over the top. I wondered if I had encountered a good dose of PMS (Pushy Mother Syndrome)…

Suzannah works in investment banking. She is on track for a senior role and intends to have a high 6 figure salary (at least) by the time she is 40. Her goal is to break through the glass ceiling in this male dominated sector which has less than 10%  women at board level. Sacrifice culture A 70 hour week…

  Missed point It seems that every time I  pick up a newspaper, click on a link or read a blog there something to be read about women and boards.  And I’m getting bored.  Now this may seem a little hypocritical coming from someone like me, as I have been very vocal over the years…

Transplanting biz strategies into the home The gender split of household duties and child care as well as a general work/ life balance, is one of the most talked about issues in any group of working women whether on-line or IRL. In a women’s online professional forum I have recently joined as a mentor, the…