The ‘Great Breakup’ and How to Retain Female Talent

A recent phenomenon affecting the workplace is seeing increasing numbers of women leaders leave their companies at an unprecedented rate.

We are in the midst of a ‘Great Breakup’, according to the Women in the Workplace Report 2022, conducted by McKinsey & Company and LeanIn.Org. The report is the largest study of women employees in corporate America, collecting data from 333 companies employing over 12 million individuals, with participation from more than 40,000 employees.

The study, now in its eighth year, has revealed that female leadership in the workplace are demanding more, and are prepared to leave their jobs to get it.

In this post we’ll look at what the ‘Great Breakup’ is, what the causes may be, and importantly, what steps a company can take to attract and retain female talent.

What is the ‘Great Breakup’?

The ‘Great Breakup’ refers to the rising trend of women in leadership positions choosing to leave their companies as a response to being overlooked for promotions or experiencing unfair treatment in the workplace. Instead of remaining in a company where they feel undervalued, they are choosing to leave and seek out better career opportunities elsewhere.

Women continue to be significantly underrepresented in leadership and companies now face losing the few women leaders they do have. The report makes a number of findings that put the scale of this problem into perspective:

• Only one in four C-suite leaders is a woman, and only 1 in 20 is a woman of colour.
• For every woman at the director level who gets promoted, two women directors choose to leave their company.
• For every 100 men promoted from an entry-level to a managerial role, only 87 women are promoted, and only 82 women of colour.

As an increasing number of women leaders vote with their feet, it raises the question of what factors are driving their decision and what measures can be taken by companies to retain female talent.

What is Causing the ‘Great Breakup’?

The reasons women leaders are leaving their companies are telling. Despite being just as ambitious as their male counterparts, women employees often encounter obstacles that make it harder for them to advance.

The three main factors causing women leaders to leave their workplace are:

Women face stronger headwinds

According to the report, women leaders are more likely than men to experience microaggressions that undermine their authority such as having their judgement questioned or being mistaken for someone more junior. The report finds that 37% of female leaders have had a coworker receive credit for their idea, compared to 27% of male leaders, and are twice as likely as male leaders to be mistaken for someone more junior.

Women are overworked and under recognised

Women leaders are twice as likely as men leaders to spend significant amounts of time on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, yet 40% of women leaders say they are not being recognised or rewarded for their efforts. Dedicating time and effort to such areas can hinder the advancement of women leaders and lead to them becoming overstretched and overworked in their duties. The report echoes this finding by revealing that a disproportionate number of female leaders suffer from burnout, with 43% reporting such experiences, compared to just 31% of male leaders in similar roles.

Women seek a better work culture

Women seek a better work culture and women leaders are placing greater value on flexibility, equality, and inclusivity and are more likely than men to leave their jobs over these issues. Compared to men at the same level, women leaders show greater commitment to DEI and allyship and are more than 1.5 times as likely as men at their level to have left a job due to a lack of commitment to these issues from their previous employer. In particular, young women, under 30, are increasingly prioritising flexibility and company commitment to work-life balance.

4 Steps Companies Can Take to Attract and Retain Female Talent

Despite these challenges, companies can take specific steps to address the issues faced by women in their organisations to ensure more get into leadership positions and to retain the women leaders they already have.

Enable flexible working

The shift towards remote and hybrid work is especially important to women with only a small minority (10%) preferring on-site work. Aside from the flexibility such working styles offer, women employees also report they experience a greater sense of psychological safety and fewer microaggressions, which is especially pronounced for marginalised groups, such as women of colour, LGBTQ+ women, and those with disabilities. The report highlights that employees who have the flexibility to work in the environment they prefer, whether it be remote or on-site, experience lower levels of burnout, increased job satisfaction, and are less likely to consider leaving their organisation.

Companies that offer remote and hybrid working options can make huge strides in attracting and retaining female talent, however, they must put safeguards in place to ensure a level playing field between on-site employees and those who choose more flexible working arrangements. An important step towards this is training managers on making remote and hybrid work settings more inclusive and tracking attrition rates between those working offsite and onsite. Another key component in facilitating an equitable outcome regarding flexible working arrangements is for managers to watch out for judgments arising from ‘flexibility stigma’ – the negative assumption that individuals who use flexible work arrangements are less committed and productive. Given that female employees are more likely to opt for flexible work such stigmas could further set women leaders back in their career advancement if left unchecked.

Fix the ‘broken rung’

Companies must address the broken rung that sees fewer women rising through the ranks to leadership due to obstacles at the initial step up to management. With men significantly outnumbering women at the manager level, there are simply not enough women to promote to leadership positions.

To address the issue, companies must pinpoint where the gap in gender equality lies when it comes to promotion opportunities, whether it be at the first management stage or at higher levels of the corporate ladder. To ensure equal promotion opportunities for both women and men, companies should continue to monitor their progress to maintain equitable outcomes and to eliminate any biases within their evaluation process.

Prioritise manager training

Managers are pivotal in shaping work experiences for women and in retaining female talent. A supportive manager who cares about their well-being is crucial for women and ranks as one of the top three factors in their decision to join or remain with a company. The report also finds that investment in people management by managers leads to increased job satisfaction and reduced burnout amongst women, which gives rise to improved recruiting and retention of female employees. Despite these findings, only half of women surveyed report that their manager regularly promotes respectful behaviour, and less than half feel that their manager is invested in their career and assists with workload management.

By recognising the importance of people management skills in performance evaluations companies can support women leaders to succeed in their roles. Performance evaluations that support well-being, workload management, and that promote a more inclusive work environment can contribute greatly towards women feeling more recognised for their efforts which in turn can result in improved performance evaluations, quicker career progression, and better pay.

Promote inclusivity

Today, more women leaders are willing to leave workplaces that lack diversity and inclusivity, in favour of those that embrace it. Compared to men, women leaders show greater investment in creating a more inclusive and supportive work environment by dedicating time and effort to effective people management, allyship, and DEI initiatives. These matters resonate particularly with younger women, who are seeking work environments that value and promote inclusivity. To retain female talent and attract the next generation of women leaders, companies need to make the workplace more inclusive by fully and transparently endorsing DEI efforts.

Positive steps can be taken by holding leaders accountable for progress in this area. Senior executives can show strong and visible support for DEI initiatives by actively participating in DEI-related training and events, sending a clear message about the importance of these efforts across their organisation. Cultural changes can be achieved by raising awareness through educating employees on the challenges faced by women, in particular, those with traditionally marginalised identities, along with the benefits of a more diverse and inclusive workplace. Companies can foster this awareness through a number of initiatives such as mandatory training on unconscious bias, antiracism, and allyship, inviting engaging speakers and fostering open dialogues for employees to share their perspectives and suggestions for enhancing DEI.

Conclusions about Attracting and Retaining Female Employees

It is clear that companies must take action to prevent their female leaders from seeking better work opportunities elsewhere. Failure to do so puts organisations at risk of losing not only female talent but also the next generation of women leaders who have seen women above them leave for better opportunities, and are ready to follow suit if required.

These challenges present a positive opportunity for companies seeking to attract and retain top female talent. By adopting flexible work policies and taking targeted steps to address their broken rung, companies can make genuine strides in addressing gender equality and creating a supportive and inclusive work environment for women, helping them attract the best female talent and foster a more productive, diversely-rich, and innovative workforce.

If you’d like to discuss your executive search needs, contact Dale Perrett, on: 0844 241 2064, or email: dale.perrett@novoexec.com