Many companies are failing their senior-level women, as they are unable to engage their female managers when compared to their male counterparts.
In a global survey sent to more than 345,000 male and female employees, The Boston Consulting Group examined factors that contribute to engagement. They found that close to 75% of companies are not engaging their senior women at the same level as men.
The data shows that companies in the bottom three quartiles of overall engagement, the scores of women increase by 4% from non-manager to senior manager levels, while men’s scores increase by 12%.
By asking respondents to grade their levels of engagement on a scale of 1 (very dissatisfied) to 5 (very satisfied), BCG found that junior employees were engaged at similar levels. Female non-managers scored their satisfaction at 3.9, compared to 3.8 in their male counterparts.
Companies in the top quartile of overall engagement had virtually no gap between senior female managers and senior male managers. Women actually scored their engagement at 4.5, compared to 4.4 in their male counterparts.
Claire Tracey, a partner at BCG and co-author of the study said: “When companies do best at engaging their workers, men and women benefit equally. Having a culture and working environment that is great for senior women appears to generate positive effects for everyone.”
Across all companies, while male senior managers enjoyed a 7% increase in work-life balance compared to non-managers, female senior managers feel their time out of work is impacted, citing a 2% decrease in work-life balance.
There was also a significant gap in appreciation, cooperation and good relations with colleagues, mentorship, compensation and promotion opportunities, job attributes and company objectives and aspirations.
Matt Krentz, a senior partner at BCG and co-author of the report commented: “The engagement gap for senior women is important because research demonstrates that engagement ties to overall performance.
“The good news is that this engagement gap can be addressed, as the performance of the top quartile of companies shows. Management teams that want to provide the best environment for their most senior women need to make it a priority and begin working to address the issue today.”
