International Women’s Day: 5 Ways to Attract & Retain Talented Women in the Workplace
It’s International Women’s Day on 8th March 2022 — a day to celebrate women’s achievements and raise awareness about equality for women. It’s also an opportunity for every workplace to assess their own efforts and consider whether they are doing everything possible to attract and retain women.
Not only is striving for gender equality the right thing to do, but research shows that gender diversity is good for business. Diversity of demographic factors such as gender has been positively linked to team performance and employee engagement, as well as creativity and innovation. Gender diversity can also signal an attractive work environment for talent — when considering a potential employer, it has been shown that around 61% of women look at the diversity of an employer’s leadership team.
Magnopus is proud to have talented women across our teams in the UK and US — in Art, Engineering, Finance, HR, Marketing, QA & Production. However, we know that we can always achieve more in this area. Last year, we launched a Diversity & Inclusion initiative, and one of our core objectives was to actively prioritise and support the recruitment, development and retention of talented women at Magnopus, to achieve equity and gender diversity at all levels.
But how can this be achieved?
Here are 5 of the best practical insights that came out of our staff surveys and action group meetings…
1. Assess your benefits
Although all parents can struggle with work-life balance, research shows that it is women’s careers who are most impacted by becoming a parent. One YouGov survey found that 38% of women say that having children has harmed their career, compared to just 14% of men.
Flexible working, parental leave benefits, healthcare provisions and supportive maternity policies are all benefits that demonstrate a commitment to supporting women with children in the workplace.
Last month, in the UK, Magnopus introduced new enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption policies with additional pay to support new parents in our workplace. The US studio supplements with paid maternity and paternity leave for new parents to bond with their child.
2. Make an effort to celebrate successful women
Taking time to celebrate successful women both in and outside of your industry helps to promote a positive culture around diversity. For example, inviting female speakers to share their expertise and experiences can inspire and motivate your staff. If you have a company newsletter or intranet system, make sure that you’re using that to highlight and celebrate the achievements of women in your organisation or industry.
Look for additional opportunities to celebrate and inform through social events. For example, the UK office is celebrating International Women’s Day with a movie night in March — we will be watching our favourite female-directed movie together with a takeaway.
3. Watch your language
Are you struggling to get female applicants through the door?
Research shows that the language used in job adverts could be communicating a gender bias to applicants, with one study finding that women were 50% less likely to consider roles with a coded gender bias. Using inclusive language could widen the section of the talent pool that you have access to.
It has been shown that the use of masculine-coded words, such as ‘individual’, ‘challenging’ and ‘driven’ in a job advert both discouraged female applicants and made it less likely that the role would be offered to a woman. There are many gender language tools online that you can use to check your job descriptions, but remember that bias in job adverts goes further than the words themselves. It is commonly cited that women typically don’t apply for jobs unless they meet all of the listed criteria, whereas men will apply for a position if they meet 60% of them. Combat this by focusing on key requirements, and ensuring that you are clear about which of the listed skills and responsibilities are actually necessary for the role, and which are beneficial extras.
4. Take active steps to wipe out workplace harassment
In 2016, a TUC report found that 52% of women had experienced sexual harassment in the workplace. Every employer has both moral and legal obligations to ensure that employees are safe in their workplace, and the UK government has also now committed to introducing additional proactive duties for employers to prevent sexual harassment.
Having a written anti-harassment policy isn’t enough. Employers should work to create a culture of zero-tolerance through education, communication and action — all complaints should be taken seriously and should involve a meaningful and prompt investigation.
Additionally, every employee should understand their individual responsibility to build a safe working environment for women. For example, all Magnopus employees attend training on harassment and discrimination, with refresher courses available.
It is also important to maintain open and regular lines of communication with all staff. Magnopus offers all staff regular 1:1s, delivers annual employee surveys, and has a monthly anonymous comments/questions box to help ensure that every team member has a comfortable way to communicate issues. We are proud to say that in our most recent staff survey, 100% of employees reported that they knew who to speak to if they had a concern about harassment or discrimination.
5. Place importance on professional development
Last year, research conducted by Skillsoft showed that 86% of women in tech consider that opportunities for professional development and training are ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ important to them. A PwC survey found that ‘opportunities for career progression’ was one of three top factors in making an organisation an attractive employer to women (alongside competitive wages and flexible work arrangements).
At Magnopus, we believe all employees should have a Personal Development Plan, with individual goals and development opportunities so that they have the tools to grow and succeed in their career.
If you are struggling with retaining talented women in your workplace — are you engaging with your team to ensure that there are opportunities for development that match with their career goals? Some women value learning opportunities such as access to conferences and training courses, whereas others would be more engaged by internal opportunities such as leading new projects or mentoring others. A Personal Development Plan should work for both the business and the individual.
With so many companies focusing on diversity and inclusion, you can’t afford not to explore opportunities for improving your offering to women. Why not use International Women’s Day as a time to reflect on your business, understand where you are, and take bolder actions to create and maintain a diverse and inclusive culture?
