Deconstructing The Glass Ceiling

The article below is excerpt from the edge about the same time I was reminded of the glass ceiling...


26 Mar 2007: Manager@Work: Deconstructing the glass ceiling
By Joyce Au-Yong Email us your feedback at fd@bizedge.com

Despite all the advances women have made in the workplace, a new study by Accenture titled The Anatomy of the Glass Ceiling: Barriers to Women's Professional Advancement provides evidence that there is a glass ceiling out there.

"In the survey, globally, women make up 45% to 50% of the workforce, but women at senior management levels make up only about 15%," Accenture's executive partner, Joan Hoi Lai Ping, told Manager@Work at a recent event held by the consulting firm to mark International Women's Day.

"That tells you that statistically, there is a glass ceiling." Just what constitutes this glass ceiling or invisible barrier that prevents women from getting ahead in business?

Accenture's study looked at three dimensions that would affect a woman's ability to move up the corporate ladder — individual (which includes career planning, assertiveness and ambition), society (equal rights, promotion programme, government support of parental leave), and company (having a fluid hierarchy, a supportive supervisor and transparent promotion processes).

A total of 1,200 male and female executives from eight countries in North America, Europe and Asia were asked to score these factors in terms of their importance in career success. The differences between the male and female scores were used to calculate the thickness of the glass ceiling — the higher the score, the thicker it is.

Three key trends emerged from the survey. First, 31% of females said internal support mechanisms such as mentoring and coaching within their organisations play a vital role in female advancement.

"A woman who joins the firm in her 20s is different from those in their 30s, 40s and 50s. In their 20s, they're just starting out, but in their 30s, motherhood affects the way they work," says Hoi.

"They have different requirements and commitments, and an organisation needs to be supportive of that." Supportive companies should allow mothers the flexibility to work from home, and to take time off from their career to be with their family, she adds. However, 60% of the female executives surveyed believe that companies are doing a better job than society in general to promote equality as a core value.

"Organisations, as they mature and become more competitive globally, will realise that retention of talent is important — including their women talent," says Hoi.

"Market forces will make it imperative for corporations to have diversity and inclusiveness." Surprisingly, gender is no longer seen as a career-limiting factor. Only 20% of men and women surveyed said gender limited their career advancement, while 35% of female respondents said gender had no effect on their career opportunities.

Interestingly, women in Australia and the Philippines were more likely than those in other countries to see their gender as a career advantage. The survey did not cover Malaysia or Singapore. Australia and the Philippines were the only two Asia-Pacific countries surveyed.

What advice does Hoi have for women to crack the glass ceiling? "... not to lose the support structure and your own determination to want to do something. There is a glass ceiling, statistically, and it's not easy for a woman to progress," she says. "But we should not take no for an answer — the glass ceiling is a minor inconvenience for us!"