The Leader's Edge™ Research 2004

How “Best Practices” Programs Can Be Used Most Effectively to Support the Growth of Women Leaders

The Leaders Edge research study completed in February, 2004 demonstrates the need for companies to have depth and breadth in their “best practices” programs to support executive women. Further, comprehensive, integrated “best practices” programs can contribute to the corporate bottom line in several important ways; namely, the retention of professional and executive women; the recruitment of women who wish to work for a company that values the development of women; improved leadership skills; increased morale and overall heightened awareness of the benefits of diversity and a respectful culture.

In the research study, “Corporate Best Practices for Women”, fifty-seven in-depth interviews were conducted with Fortune 1000 companies between July and September 2003. Twenty nine of the companies, or about half, had been commended as “best practices” companies by organizations such as Catalyst, Chicago Area Partnerships (CAP), and Pathways & Progress. Respondents, who held titles such as Vice President of Diversity; Vice President, Talent Management; and Human Resource Director were asked to identify and describe documented strategies and tactics employed in their companies to help develop, attract and retain successful women. Findings of the study included:

While 92 % of all the companies surveyed reported having some elements of a best practices program in place, “best practices” companies distinguish themselves from the general population in the depth and breadth of their programs.

Key elements of the “best practices” programs offered include the following:

Coaching
Coaching in “best practices” companies is largely conducted by external consultants, and the techniques are sophisticated and targeted.

The employee has an opportunity to interview and select from several possible coaches.
Goals and objectives are established, and status is reviewed on a regular basis.
A benchmark 360 survey is often conducted to provide feedback to the employee.

Retention
“Best practices” companies give women the tools they need to move up in the organization.

Women are given education, training and experience to allow them to grow within the organization.
Women are given the tools to successfully deal with customers and vendors in male-dominated industries, which often involves role playing.

Mentoring
The mentoring programs used by the “best practices” companies are formal and informal corporate-wide programs, usually tied into the development process.

An independent matching program is provided to ensure that mentor and mentee are well suited.
Goals, timelines, action plans and a review process are established up front with many formal programs lasting as long as a year, and continuing on an informal basis.
A variety of programs including peer mentoring, mentoring circles and reciprocal mentoring opportunities are offered.

Networking
Networking works best in the companies that offer a consistent, organized program throughout the organization.

There is a system for executive women to meet regularly which acts as a conduit for information down through the organization, and across functional areas.
A wide range of networking activities is offered including conferences, brown bag lunches, seminar, small group dinners, workshops and panel discussions.

Additional key findings based on the in-depth interviews conducted for this study include:

87% of all the companies surveyed reported that they measured the results of their best practices/diversity programs, with 80% reporting that they have attempted to tie diversity to a business case.

“The business case is obvious: our key resource is people…If we lose good people…that turnover costs money. The lost brain trust is our business case.”
- Assistant Director for Diversity

84% of all respondents report that the CEO is critical to the success of diversity efforts and that “best practices” programs will succeed or fail based on whether or not the CEO is involved. Having the CEO deeply committed tends to incorporate diversity into everyday practice and the culture of the organization and helps build the belief that it is here to stay.

77% of companies stated that if they could do things differently today, they would see that diversity and inclusiveness were incorporated into the vision and culture of the organization—not as an independent or Human Resources program—but as an integral part of corporate life. Strategies for accomplishing this varied but mentioned most often was involving the CEO early in the process, instituting accountability at the line level, engaging all employees and tying the program into the overall corporate strategy.

Many companies stated they believe strong diversity programs were good for business and that having them opened the door to better business problem solving.

“When we look at changing demographics, we have to have the best talent to do the best job for our customers—that leads us to demand a diverse workforce with diverse opinions—better decisions, better results all around.”
- Director, Workforce Diversity

In conclusion, it is incumbent upon firms interested in retaining executive women to provide “best practices” programs. While offering executive women a rich, comprehensive program with a wide array of options would go a long way towards providing women the support they seek, by itself it is not enough. Women want to be valued and respected for the diversity of thought they bring to the corporate table. The best case scenario for an executive woman is a comprehensive program embedded within an open, respectful culture with free flowing information. A CEO setting this culture by example seems fundamental.

Providing this environment is in the best interest of the company as well. The firm saves replacement costs, which for an executive are generally calculated at one and one half times current salary. This includes recruitment costs, replacement salary and possible severance and litigation costs. This does not include the soft costs such as loss of knowledge, client relationships and morale to the company once a woman leaves. Further, since women make over 80% of the buying decisions in the $3 trillion consumer products market, the optimal business marketing decision is to have women actively involved in creating and implementing strategies, products and services that appeal to the woman’s market.

Please take the time to review our other research:

The Leader's Edge Research™ 2005
The Leader's Edge Research™ 2002
The Leader's Edge Research™ 2001
The Leader's Edge Research™ 2000