Did COVID-19 Remove - or Reinforce - The Last Bar To Women Leaders in Professional Services?
In its March 2020 issue, Harvard Business Review published an article entitled, What's Really Holding Women Back? examining why women still hold proportionately fewer leadership positions in professional services environments than men. The authors - two distinguished university professors - revealed data and anecdotal findings from an eighteen month engagement with a global consulting firm that struggled to bring women into its highest ranks of leadership. The firm was particularly puzzled because, unlike many firms, it offered programs that allowed women flexible schedules, work-from-home arrangements, and part time hours in order to keep them in the workforce as their families grew.
Don't Always Accept What's On Offer
The authors concluded that although the firm offered appropriate accommodation programs to help employees balance work and familial obligations, colleagues and superiors developed negative perceptions of workers who took advantage of the programs. Many respondents justified their negative feelings on the basis that workers in the programs could not be as "responsive" and "available" to client needs as those left toiling in the office. Remember: the firm offered accommodation programs as a benefit of employment to everyone, yet such attitudes persisted.
These findings reveal that the double-bind many women have found themselves in for decades has evolved into an even more insidious choice. Instead of merely choosing to suffer in silence at work or downgrade your career ambitions to allow time to be present at home, women must now gauge whether accepting accommodations offered by her employer will silently but irrevocably damage her reputation and derail her career.
A Deeper Problem Emerges
But how could peers and superiors think less of a fellow worker for accepting a benefit offered by the firm? The authors found that below the surface a deeper psychological and social construct was at play. The firm's culture expected constant, 24/7 availability that no one - men or women - felt completely comfortable with. To manage their feelings of discomfort, most members of the firm viewed workers who took advantage of accommodations to be poor fits for its culture, and therefore less suited for big accounts, promotions, and leadership roles. This view helped those who remained in the office to rationalize their own participation in a culture they couldn't fully endorse.
A National, Real-Time Experiment
Just as HBR published its article, the global coronavirus pandemic worsened in this country. States began issuing stay-at-home orders in mid-March, diverting many workers from offices to their homes in just a few days. An April 2020 study estimated that 31% of all individuals employed in mid-March 2020 had switched to working from home by the first week of April. Another study found the percentage rose as high as 69% by May. With such a substantial portion of the American workforce suddenly working from home on a full time basis, the novel coronavirus launched an incredible, real-time investigation into the effectiveness and long-term viability of alternative work arrangements, similar to those offered as accommodations to women (and sometimes men) who are primary caregivers at home.
The Good News
By most accounts, this national experiment in large-scale work-from-home arrangements has been a success for productivity. Employees report great satisfaction in spending less time on commutes, meetings, and distracting interactions with coworkers. With 48% of workers reporting higher productivity in their work-from-home environment, it seems that this experiment has revealed that fears about efficiency and responsiveness in work-from-home arrangements were unfounded.
The Bad News
On the other hand, some employees report that work-from-home arrangements have exacerbated the always-available expectation of the "culture of overwork" observed in HBR's study. Some workers estimate their workdays have expanded by three hours or more, with work-related communications coming far more frequently in evening and weekend hours.(6) Where a "culture of overwork" exists, it seems the pandemic has worsened the expectation of 24/7 availability as the home literally becomes the office.
The Conclusion
The authors of What is Really Holding Women Back? came to two conclusions. On the surface, many women seem to be actively excluded from leadership after accepting accommodation programs. Buried below and buttressing this exclusion, though, is the "culture of overwork," which harms men and women alike, but seems to make inevitable women's continued early exit from industry and resulting under-representation in leadership.
The pandemic has given us the data we need to rebut any question of a woman's ability to be a fully present, contributing member of a team in a work-from-home environment. Negative feelings about women based upon their use of accommodation programs are nearly indefensible based upon the success of the work-from-home structure over the past several months.
That said, the pandemic has also laid bare the fact that the "culture of overwork" is real, insidious, and toxic. And it can get worse. In a time when employees are managing more than ever with homeschooling obligations, health concerns, lost jobs and uncertainty about the state of the world, some companies have demanded even more availability from their workers than ever before. Companies need leadership that recognizes the value of a balanced employee, whose personal goals are valued alongside their professional achievements. The Atalanta Group coaches individuals and works with leadership teams to develop compassionate, inclusive and well-rounded leaders. Schedule a Services Consultation or Coaching Right-Fit call to begin your path or your organizational path to compassionate leadership:
