Advancing Women:
Where We Stand Today
Janice Fanning Madden
Professor, The Wharton School
University of Pennsylvania
• Gender Differences
• Glass ceilings, glass walls, pay gap
• Causes of Gender Differences
• Discrimination: dislike or stereotypes (implicit bias)
• Family-career tradeoffs: employees vs. workplace design
• Eliminating Gender Differences
• What works in company policies
• What women executives can do
Glass Ceilings
Percentages of Women in Top 5 Executive
Positions, and in CEO Positions, for All
Publically Traded Firms 1991 - 2003
7.00
6.00
6.32
6.35
2.15
2.10
6.18
5.82
5.32
5.00
4.72
4.29
4.00
3.83
3.47
3.00
2.80
2.08
2.00
1.93
2.01
2.16
1.67
1.00
0.61
0.65
0.79
0.96
1.13
1.15
1.40
Top Executives
CEO/Chair
0.00
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
Percentages of Women in Top 5 Executive
Positions, and in CEO Positions, for All
Publically Traded Firms 1991 - 2003
7.00
6.00
6.32
6.35
2.15
2.10
6.18
5.82
5.32
5.00
4.72
4.29
4.00
3.83
3.47
3.00
2.80
2.08
2.00
1.93
2.01
2.16
1.67
1.00
0.61
0.65
0.79
0.96
1.13
1.15
1.40
Top Executives
CEO/Chair
0.00
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
More recent data, Fortune 500?
Includes more than the top 5 executive positions (prior slide), ranging from 7
to 50 per company, and fewer firms that are larger.
More recent data, Fortune 500?
Includes more than the top 5 executive positions (prior slide), ranging from 7
to 50 per company, and fewer firms that are larger.
US Census Data on Percentages
of Managers, Executives, CEOs
who are Female
US Census Data on Female
Managers, Executives and CEOs
Percentages of BAs, Business BAs, and
MBAs Awarded to Women, 1970-2008
The Glass Ceiling
• Underrepresentation of women
increases going up the management
hierarchy
• Progress in women attaining senior
management positions appears to
have stalled since about 2000
except among Fortune 500 CEOs:
As of 2012, 18 women CEOs, but only 4 in 2004 and 2 in 2002.
Glass Walls
Percentages of Men and Women by Job Title in Top 5 Executive
Positions, for All Firms in the S&P500, S&P Midcap 400 and S&P
Smallcap 600, 1991-2003
Women
Headlines go here
General
Council
Men
10.01
4.38
Subhead if need goes here
Chief
1.46
• Use up to
six bulleted items per slide
Operating
2.53
Officer
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
Chief
Financial
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
11.09
Officer
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
President
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
2.34
Chair and/or
CEO
9.73 slide
• Use up to six bulleted items per
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14.1
12.64
16.05
14
16
18
Percentages of Men and Women by Job Title in Top 5 Executive
Positions, for All Firms in the S&P500, S&P Midcap 400 and S&P
Smallcap 600, 1991-2003
Women
Headlines go here
General
Council
Men
10.01
4.38
Subhead if need goes here
Chief
1.46
• Use up to
six
bulleted items per slide
Operating
2.53
Officer
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
Chief
Financial
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
11.09
Officer
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
President
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
• Use up to six bulleted items per slide
2.34
Chair and/or
CEO
9.73 slide
• Use up to six bulleted items per
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14.1
12.64
16.05
14
16
18
Glass Walls
• Women executives are more likely
to have professional or non-line
(finance, law) than line (president,
CEO, COO) executive positions.
• Also, retail trade companies have
more women CEOs.
The Pay Gap
Women Earn Less Than Men
• Women in the top 5 executive positions earned
22% less total compensation (annual salary plus
incentive pay) than men, although their annual
salaries were only 11% less than men’s.
• Most, but certainly not all, of the gender gap in
incentive pay arises from women being in smaller
firms (measured by market evaluation and
employees) and in different job titles.
WHY?
• Discrimination
• Men dislike women managers
• Stereotypical notions (implicit bias) that
women lack skills: decisiveness, leadership,
etc.
• Family and career tradeoffs
• Accommodating family demands
• Workplace design—24/7, no time away,
the “rat race”
Discrimination
Discrimination, which is it:
Dislike of working with women or
stereotype that women are less qualified
2003 SEC regulation said that corporate boards,
not company insiders, set compensation:
– If dislike, gender pay gap decreases after 2003
– If stereotype, gap grows after 2003 (because boards have
no direct ways of discovering ability, rely on stereotype)
Discrimination, which is it:
Dislike of working with women or
Stereotype that women are less qualified
2003 SEC regulation said that corporate boards, not
company insiders, set compensation:
– If dislike, gender pay gap decreases after 2003
– If stereotype, gap grows after 2003 (because boards have
no direct ways of discovering ability, rely on stereotype)
Gender pay gap grew 19% on average in companies
who were affected by regulation, suggesting that
stereotypes are the problem.
Discrimination, is it:
Dislike of working with women or
Stereotype that women less qualified
Another study found that stocks decreased 3% on
average with appointment of new female CEO, but
only 0.5% for new male CEO
– No gender difference in change in stock value over
time between firms with male or female CEOs
– Women often appointed CEO when firm performance
is in decline, glass cliff phenomena: Patricia Woertz at
Archer Midland Daniels, Susan Ivey at Reynolds
American, Brenda Barnes at Sara Lee, Anne Mulcahy at
Xerox, Mary Sammons at Rite Aid
Discrimination, is it:
Dislike of working with women or
Stereotype that women less qualified
Research supports “implicit bias” as the “discrimination” source
of gender disparities in labor market outcomes.
Implicit bias occurs when learned stereotypes operate
automatically or subconsciously in decision making; our brains
automatically map people into categories. This behavior is strong
and pervasive; gender categorization occurs for men and for
women taking the test.
See https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/
Discrimination
• Discrimination appears more likely to be based on
stereotypical thinking, or implicit bias, then on dislike
of women in management.
• Stereotypes are better than dislike as a cause of
discriminatory behaviors, because it is easier to
correct misunderstandings and reduce implicit bias
through education and increasing awareness than it
is to eliminate “hatred.”
Family/Career Tradeoffs
Family/career tradeoffs
• Women provide more house and family care than
men.
• Often, there is hostility at the workplace toward time
off for parental responsibilities, as well as for flexible
time schedules.
• Media has reported extensively, and inaccurately, on
increasing tendencies for educated women to opt
out of demanding jobs for more family time.
Family/career tradeoffs
Women are more likely to take time off.
Women MBAs work:
–fewer hours per week (goes from an average deficit
of 1.8 to 6.5 hours as experience goes from entry to
greater than 10 years)
–more likely to have taken some time out since
graduation (less than a year’s gender difference over
a career)
–Lead to large earnings penalties for men and women.
Design of Workplace
• How “should” less hours or time off affect career?
• Would workplace norms be different if women’s
lifecycle needs were the basis of the company’s
norms for promotion?
• Obviously earn less if work less, other things being the
same.
• But should fewer hours or time off when one has young
children mean derailment of career, as opposed to delay?
What Companies Can Do
What matters in increasing women
in management
•
•
•
•
•
•
AA Plan
Diversity Committee
Diversity Staff/ in-house attorney
Networking Programs
Family accommodations
Having been sued for discrimination or have a
compliance review from US Dept of Labor
• Having women in top management
(Kalev, Kelly, Dobbin, ASR 2006)
What does not matter in increasing
women in management
• Diversity training
• Mentoring programs
What Women Executives
Can Do
Women CEOs Matter
In companies with a woman CEO, 11% of top
executives (excluding CEO position) are women; for
the other firms, only 5% are women.
Women CEOs Matter
In companies with a woman CEO, 11% of top
executives (excluding CEO position) are women; for
the other firms, only 5% are women.
Women CEOs double the representation of women
in top executive positions!
And, these women earn more when there is a
woman CEO.
Women CEOs Matter: Why?
• Sponsorship/mentoring
• Women-friendly policies at firms
• Selection: higher achieving women
select firms with women CEOs, or
women have an advantage in some
industrial sectors.
Women CEOs Matter: Why?
• Sponsorship/mentoring
• Women-friendly policies at firms
• Selection: higher achieving women
select firms with women CEOs, or
women have an advantage in some
industrial sectors.
• Women slightly more likely to be
mentored (83% v 76%)
• Women get less benefit
–72% of men, but only 65% of women
with active mentor relationships in
2008 were promoted by 2010.
• Women need sponsors, not mentors
Sponsors
• Senior managers with influence
• Give protégés exposure to other execs who will help
careers
• Make sure protégés get challenging opportunities
and assignments
• Protect protégés from damaging contacts with
publicity or senior execs
• Fight to get protégés promoted.
Recent study shows that the number
of currently influential people an
executive has previously encountered
in career increases men’s, but not
women’s, compensation.
Conclusions
• Women face a glass ceiling and glass walls in highest level
management.
• Women in highest level jobs earn less due to jobs and to
the types of organizations they manage.
• These outcomes are due both to “discrimination” and
“family demands.”
• Discriminatory behavior based on implicit bias, which can
be managed and alleviated.
• Career effects of family demands probably greater than
they need be if organizations reconsider how norms and
talent identification programs are designed.
Conclusions:
What Companies Can Do
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
AA Plan
Deals with
Diversity Committee
implicit bias
Diversity staff/ in-house attorney
Networking programs
Family accommodations
Rethink norms and benchmarks for promotions
Women in top management
Conclusions:
What Women Can Do
• Senior executives
–
–
–
–
Give protégés exposure to other execs to help careers
Make sure protégés get challenging assignments
Protect protégés from damaging contacts
Fight to get protégés promoted.
• Aspiring to move up the executive hierarchy
– Find a sponsor who does the above for you