Conference Presentation, Panel, Fireside Chat
Gender Gap: Checking the Box or Moving the Needle?
Milken InstituteRichard Ditizio, Christopher Ailman, Alexandra Cavoulacos, Lauren Leader-Chivée, Rosie Rios, Janet Thomas, Candida Wolff
- The Treasury Department's initiative to place a woman on currency is viewed as a catalyst for a broader conversation and the first step in ending an era of singular female representation, though this effort risks remaining confined to HR departments rather than being recognized as a front-line business imperative.
- Predictions suggest that while women may constitute a majority of the workforce and university attendees over 20-plus years, they will likely continue to be treated as a minority, with gender equality remaining a recurring topic showing relatively little movement unless shifted from HR studies to CEO engagement strategies.
- Economic modeling and think tank expectations indicate that companies with 30% female senior leadership or female board members will outperform the marketplace and make better decisions, with women-led boards projected to generate market-level returns with a lower risk profile, potentially contributing 10% to the UK's GDP by 2030.
- Structural barriers are expected to persist without intentional intervention, including a 100% attrition rate for young women in UK finance within two years, a widening technology sector gap due to male powerholders lacking exposure to female leaders, and a funding gap where women entrepreneurs are evaluated on historical performance rather than potential.
- Political and electoral dynamics anticipate the 2016 election functioning as a gender election that could drive policy implementation, with Black women expected to vote at the highest rates, while a Women's Equality Party in the UK aims to influence Labour and Conservative parties in the May 5th elections.
- Social shifts regarding the definition of unemployment and maternity leave are expected to expand beyond "women's issues" to encompass parenting and economic indicators, though men often defer gender-related topics or specific funding support to women's organizations, hindering progress toward a 50-50 candidate slate split.
- Accountability for diversity is forecasted to yield extraordinary results if leaders are held responsible for individual actions rather than just numerical targets, whereas quotas in the United States are viewed as a fantasy that could promote unready candidates, while the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment by August 26, 2020, is set as a deadline for demonstrating backward-planned progress.
- Risk factors include the potential for continued attacks on women to alter voting behaviors, the double jeopardy women candidates face in fundraising where men assume women should fund women, and the perception that diversity dilutes efficacy, which perpetuates stereotypes of white males as the default skilled workforce.