Rachel Thomas, Co-Founder of LeanIn, presents the Women in the Workplace data at the Seat @ the Table event hosted by Costanoa Ventures and LinkedIn. May 9, 2018.

1. Together, we can do this
Women in
the
Workplace

2. Nearly half of men think women are well represented in leadership at companies where only one
in ten senior leaders is a women. And just over half of women think women are well represented
in leadership at companies where three in ten senior leaders are women.

3. Largest study of its kind
222COMPANIES
12MEMPLOYEES

4. Women are
underrepresented at
every level in the
corporate pipeline
C-SUITE
SVP
VP
SR MANAGER/
DIRECTOR
MANAGER
ENTRY
LEVEL
WOMEN
OF COLOR
WHITE
WOMEN
MEN OF
COLOR
WHITE
MEN

5. Women in the C-suite
1 in 5 C-suite leaders
is a woman . . .
. . . and fewer than 1 in 30
is a woman of color

6. Not because of attrition
WOMEN MEN

7. WOMEN AND MEN ASK FOR PROMOTIONS AT COMPARABLE RATES
White
Asian
Latinx
Black
Not because of lack of interest
WOMEN MEN

8. Good news...

9. Company commitment is high
56%
86%
CEOs in 2012 CEOs in 2017

10. Women are asking for more
22%
34%
23%
34%
Promotions
Raises

11. Bad news…

12. Men and women see the
workplace differently
Thomas Barwick/Getty Images

13. Women see their gender as a bigger obstacle…
My gender played a role in
missing out on a raise, promotion
or chance to get ahead
My gender will make it harder
to get a raise, promotion or
chance to get ahead
37% 8% 39% 15%

14. Men are more optimistic about gender
diversity efforts…
My company is doing what it takes
to improve gender diversity
Managers consider a diverse
lineup of candidates to fill
open positions
49%63% 35%50%

15. Perhaps as a result, men are less
personally committed
Gender diversity is a very important
or top personal priority to me
58%47%

16. Many companies are overlooking
women of color
Hero Images/Getty Images

17. Women of color
face more
obstacles and
receive less
support
SUPPORT WOMEN RECEIVE
STATE OF WOMEN IN THE PIPELINE
BLACK LATINA ASIAN WHITE
Managers advocate for
them for an opportunity
Managers give them
stretch assignments
Managers provide advice
to help them advance
Managers help them navigate
organizational politics
Managers defend
them or their work
Rate of women’s promotions
Rate of women’s attrition

18. Women of color face double discrimination – biases for being women and
biases for being people of color. When diversity initiatives treat gender and
race as different issues, women of color are left out.

19. Women of color
have higher ambitions
to be a top exec
DESIRE TO BE A TOP EXECUTIVE
BLACK
WOMEN
WHITE
WOMEN
LATINA
WOMEN
ASIAN
WOMEN

20. Managers are falling short
John Wildgoose/Caiaimage/Getty Images

21. 39%
50%
52%
My direct manager
My CEO
My company
Gender diversity is a high priority to…
Managers need to commit to gender diversity

22. Managers need to do more to foster gender diversity
Managers make sure a diversity
of voices is represented in
decision-making
39% of employees say...
39%
Managers regularly address
gender-biased language and
behavior when it happens
30% of employees say...
30%

23. Managers need to do more to
advance women
Employees are more likely to be promoted
when managers advocate for them, give
them stretch assignments and advise them
on how to advance
But women are less likely to get this type of
support and mentorship

24. Companies can help managers
get this right
Share gender metrics Offer bias training Reward progress

25. Many companies aren’t
doing the basics
Hero Images/Getty Images

26. 6%
30%
Recruiting for diversity
100%
Mandate a diverse
slate of candidates
Blind resume
reviews

27. Setting targets
18%
25%
31%
100%
For representation
For external hiring
For promotions

28. Sharing metrics
8%
23%
100%
With managers
With employees

29. Holding leaders accountable
31%
40%
100%
Hold leaders
accountable for gender
diversity metrics
Use financial
incentives

30. Advancing women is not just
the right thing to do;
it’s the smart thing to do
MoMo Productions/Getty Images

31. Organizations with more
women have a lower incidence of
sexual harassment
1. Jennifer L. Berdahl, “The Sexual Harassment of Uppity Women,” Journal of Applied Psychology 92, no. 2 (2007): 425–37, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17371089.
1

32. Employees on diverse teams are
more committed and work harder
2. Credit Suisse, Gender Diversity and Corporate Performance (August 2012), https://www.credit-suisse.com/newsletter/doc/gender_diversity.pdf. 3. Corporate Executive Board, Creating Competitive
Advantage Through Workforce Diversity (2013), http://www.executiveboard.com/exbd/humanresources/corporate-leadership-council/diversity-and-inclusion/diversitywhite-paper/index.page.
2, 3

33. Companies with more women in
leadership have more generous
employee policies and produce
better business results
4. Paul Ingram and Tal Simons, “Institutional and Resource Dependence Determinants of Responsiveness to Work-Family Issues,” The Academy of Management
Journal 38, no. 5 (1995): 1466–82, http://www.jstor.org/stable/256866?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents. 5. Vivian Hunt, Dennis Layton, and Sara Prince, “Why
Diversity Matters,” McKinsey & Company, 2015, https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/why-diversity-matters.
4, 5

34. For more information,
visit womenintheworkplace.com