New research reveals that women account for less than 5% of CEO positions in the U.S. and Europe.
Per the Financial Times, “The study by Heidrick & Struggles, an executive search firm, found that women held 4.9 per cent of the top roles across 13 countries, with female representation in the chief executive position ranging from 6.9 per cent in the US to zero in Denmark and Italy.”
Heidrick’s vice-chairman of its global CEO and board practice Anne Lim O’Brien said that while the executive gender gap may be improving, it’s moving at a very slow pace.
According to the Times, the Heidrick report also explores chief executives’ routes to their leadership positions, “finding that their average age on appointment is 50, two-thirds were internal appointments and almost half held a C-suite role before their elevation.”
LinkedIn has released its Big Ideas for 2019 – a list of 50 predictions and trends for the coming year, collected from consultation with CEOs, academics, economists, and other big thinkers. Here are some of the trends that will have an impact on employers and HR leaders:
The Wall Street Journal reports that to appeal to top talent in a tight labor market, employers need to offer more than free snacks and fun times.
Related: Why employees leave their jobs – and how you can get them to stay
They’re going to have to go deeper. What will distinguish the most profitable companies from the rest in the coming year…will be whether leaders foster a workplace culture where employees feel a sense of belonging, like their jobs and trust their managers to help them move on to a better one.
In short, employees are looking for trust and motivation, great managers, and organizations where they can carve out a long-term future.
Per the WSJ:
The most profitable companies are actively cultivating current workers to fill future openings, according to a recent study of 1,220 employers by Bersin, Deloitte Consulting LLP. The top 13% of companies in the study were five times as likely to develop and promote insiders in a systematic way, and three times as likely to retain top talent, than the lowest-performing companies. They also posted 30% higher profit per employee, the study shows.
This means that employers will need to look more closely at their career planning and development offerings. Companies cited in the WSJ article offer programs like job rotation, and invest in teaching problem-solving and innovation skills. They’ll also need to look more closely at how to better foster cultures of inclusion and innovation – in short, creating environments in which employees feel a sense of belonging, where they feel challenged to do their best work.
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