Understanding the importance of gender equity in the workplace is a big step but taking action to review, audit, and measure it is the next. So, what are some of the metrics that you can look at when it comes to gender equity?
Think of it like a health check-up for your company – you want to know how your organization is performing and if it’s living up to its commitments to gender equity. Here are a few key performance indicators (KPIs) that you can look at:
- Pay gap: Review the difference in pay between men and women in the same job role, at the same level, and with similar experience. This applies to both new hire packages and current team members’ salaries.
- Performance review results for women employees: Check if there’s any disparity between performance reviews given to female workers compared to their male counterparts. Or if the majority of women employees’ review results are more alarming than men employees.
- Promotion rates: Evaluate how often women are reaching managerial positions within your company compared with men.
- Turnover rates: Look into data on resignations as they might provide some insight into any underlying issues with inclusion and diversity within your organization.
- Leadership diversity: Take note of the percentage of women who are occupying leadership roles in your company.
- Maternity leave: Assess whether or not you have policies in place that support female employees who take time off for maternity leave – or any other family commitments.
Pay Gap: Understanding the Difference in Pay
Do you know the pay gap between your male and female employees? This is a crucial KPI to measure gender equity in your company. The pay gap measures the difference in pay between men and women in the same job role, at the same level, and with similar experience.
In order to get a good understanding of the gap, you’ll need to conduct an audit of current salary packages for your team. This should include all new hires and internal employees who are currently working at different levels in your organization.
By evaluating these key performance indicators, you’ll be able to gain insight into how well women are treated and included in your company, ultimately helping you understand where the gaps in gender equity lie.
Performance Reviews: Identifying Bias in Results
The next KPI to look into when running gender equity audit is performance review results for women employees. It’s important that these reviews are conducted objectively, without prejudice or bias. This will give you an indication of how well your women employees are being evaluated, and if there any potential biases that may be at work, such as lower ratings or slower progression for women in comparison to their male colleagues.
You can also compare performance results between men and women in the same job role and at the same level and with similar experience. Use this data to identify any discrepancies, and then take steps to address them accordingly – this could include introducing unconscious bias training, or setting up mechanisms that ensure equal opportunities for internal promotion.
It’s also useful to look at turnover rates – if you notice a disproportionately high rate of female employee resignations over time, it could be an indicator of issues within the organization related to gender equity.
Promotions and Turnover Rates: Ensuring Fair Progress
It’s important to review how your company is doing in terms of promotions and turnover rates. Are your women employees getting the same chances for advancement that their male counterparts do? If not, why not? It’s also important to track turnover rates for your female staff, and make sure that these numbers don’t vastly differ from those for men in similar positions.
You should note if the promotion rate for women is lower than that of men on average. This can shed light on issues related to pay gaps, glass ceilings and unconscious bias against women. Some of the questions you can ask while carrying out a KPI audit on promotions and turnover rates include:
- Do men tend to get promoted more regularly or receive better remuneration?
- Are there certain positions where women are systematically underrepresented?
- Is there evidence of bias against women when it comes to promotion opportunities?
- Does the evidence show patterns throughout different departments or roles?
- What policies or initiatives can be put into place to ensure fairness in this area?
Leadership Diversity: Making Room at the Top
To really understand gender equity in your company, you need to take a look at leadership diversity—namely, the percentage of women in leadership roles. Having more diversity at the top can contribute to a healthier and more productive workplace, as well as improved morale.
When you look at the numbers here, you should also consider:
- Are there enough female leadership roles in the company?
- Are these leaders being given enough responsibility?
- Does their work coincide with company objectives?
- Are they on boards or committees?
- Do they influence decisions and policy-making in a meaningful way?
- Is there an effort to support their career development and growth?
Including more women in senior positions creates role models for other employees, reinforces positive messaging about gender equality, and helps foster an environment that encourages diverse thinking. This can lead to a much healthier work culture where everyone has an equal voice and opportunity for advancement.
Diversity in Hiring
Another key KPI to look out for is diversity in hiring. This means actively looking out for qualified candidates from a variety of backgrounds. Doing so helps open up better perspectives and ideas to the team, leading to higher productivity and stronger products. Additionally, having a diverse workforce also helps attract more diverse candidates, creating an even bigger pool of perspectives and ideas.
So how can you audit diversity in sourcing today?
- First, review job postings for bias towards any particular gender by changing any phrasing that’s too male or female-focused.
- Second, bring in a wider range of recruiters from all backgrounds to help you find more diverse candidates during the recruitment process.
- Third, review the data on who actually applied after the job was posted—are they mostly men or mostly women? If they are primarily one gender, you can work on adjusting language to be less biased towards either gender or consider partnering with organizations that help bring in a more diverse pool of applicants.
As a well-known hiring metric, you can go for following up percentage of female candidates for the roles, however this is usually related to narrow talent pools from a diversity point of view. So your target should be solve the source of the problem and focus on sourcing more female candidates, initiating talent programs designed for them.
Maternity Leave Policies: Providing Necessary Support
Another important aspect of this issue is maternity leave policies. If women feel safe and supported to have children, they are more likely to stay in the workforce. Equally important is having them come back after their maternity leave and not feeling like their career trajectory has been compromised.
It’s also helpful for your business to understand if you are providing enough support for new mothers, such as a robust parental leave plan, flexible hours and other services such as access to daycare or onsite lactation rooms.
Encouraging a culture of flexibility and understanding can help create an environment where employees feel empowered to start a family without fearing professional repercussions, which can be key in helping you maintain gender equity within the company.
You can check answers of following questions quickly:
- Have you ever not walked away and hired a pregnant candidate?
- Have you ever promoted a pregnant employee or given them more responsibilities?
- How many of your women employees left the company after becoming a parent?
Understanding gender equity in any company is critical for its success. With the right KPIs in the audit, it’s possible to quickly and effectively get a good understanding of the current levels of equity and what actions need to be taken to improve them. A gender equity audit can help to identify gaps in pay and promotions, areas of high turnover, and the need for more women in leadership roles. Doing a gender equity audit periodically will ensure that everyone in your company is treated fairly and that your team is steadily growing into the best it can be.
