What Women Want (at Work)

What are you doing to keep your female employees?

A new survey out in April (2022) from Deloitte Consulting shows that half of women are planning to quit their job within two years.  To be clear, this isn’t about the women; it’s about the environments where they work.  “Of the 5% of women who worked for companies where they felt supported, protected, and given opportunities to advance in their careers, none reported seeking a new job.”

Let me highlight two points in that last sentence:

• Only 5% of women work at a business where they feel supported and are given career development opportunities!  5% — that’s a very small number.  (You’re probably not in it… statistically speaking.)  And women have just made it very clear what they are looking for:  professional support, managerial (and peer) caring, and career advancement.  How well does your organization provide those?

• The second item to note is that NONE of the women in those supportive companies were looking for new work.  None — down from 50%.  100% were planning to stay.  Doesn’t keeping your good people seem like an idea worth pursuing?  (YES!)  So, you might be wondering, how can you take this new knowledge and do something about it?  

I’ll share some new ideas with you in my next posting (or perhaps the one after that), but — for now — be sure to check out some of my previous blog posts where I touched on these topics and gave specific ideas for how you can strengthen your organization’s:

• Level of Support — for example, ensuring employees have the resources they need, backing them up in meetings, and dealing with barriers to progress

  • 2021 – Feb 12, 16, 26

• Culture of Caring — so each person feels they belong and are cared about

  • 2022 – March 16, April 6 

• Advancement Opportunities — professional development as well as promotions and mentorship, career guidance, etc.

  • 2021 – Feb 19, 22

What do the women in your organization want?  

How are you meeting (or planning to meet) their needs?

https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2022/4/27/women-are-burned-out-and-want-to-quit-their-jobs-survey