This is a big loss to companies, which sacrifice a major source of talent and fall further behind in boosting gender diversity (especially in senior roles). If something has to give, it’s their job-which is why many women step off the career track, at least temporarily.Ī Center for Work-Life Policy survey of women with advanced degrees or high-honors undergraduate degrees found that among those who had left work, 69% would not have done so had their workplace offered more flexible work arrangements. Women in dual-career households are 1.9 times more likely than their spouse to have primary responsibility for everyday chores. In most families, women still bear the heaviest burden in caring for children and ailing parents and in running the household. The rise of dual-career couples, a culture of always-on work (fueled by technology), and other factors mean that many employees feel overstretched in their efforts to meet all their work, family, and personal obligations. Traditional, always-in-the-office work models can be challenging for many employees, but particularly for women. When Face Time Is Overvalued, Women Pay the Price For those that understand its power, we have identified six steps that lead to success. Companies that don’t embrace flexibility will be left behind. The payoff is significant in terms of gender diversity but also in terms of retention, employee engagement, and a company’s ability to differentiate itself in the war for both male and female talent. Seen in this light, flex work is becoming a business imperative. (Of course, that disparity may be due in part to women’s inclination to make the best of any situation in which they find themselves.) Our research shows that women at companies with no flexible work option are 20% more likely to seek a new job at another company in the next three years-and men in the same situation are 30% more likely to move on. In other words, companies that use flexible work solely as a means of boosting gender diversity are missing the full picture. Flexibility is increasingly in demand by men as well it’s a trend that’s growing because of both demographic changes (millennial men are far more likely than previous generations to want flexible work options) and the shift to a gig economy. Yet to view these programs as just a gender diversity measure is to underestimate their power. Our research shows that flexible-work options-giving employees a say in when, where, and how much they work-is a key lever in retaining female employees. This inflexible and increasingly outdated approach holds companies back, and for organizations that don’t make needed changes the problem will only get worse. Just about every aspect of work has changed in the past decade or so, but one thing remains the same: companies still require that most people do most of their work at the office.
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