Greasy poles. They're famously hard to climb. But there's no doubt that the process is made a little easier by having good friends to reach down and lend you a hand, and equally, by having buddies to prop you up from below when you feel yourself losing your grip. In fact, workplace support is a huge factor in career success - mentorship can boost the likelihood of promotion five-fold. Given that we spend most of our waking hours working, this isn't rocket science. Daily validation of the fact that we're doing a good job boosts our self esteem and promotes good mental health. It gives us the confidence to apply for new roles and pursue career progression - because we believe that we're worth it. But it also gives us the self-belief to behave differently in those smaller, everyday situations where an unsupported person might stay quiet or shrink away from raising their head above the parapet. With a solid workplace support network, it's easier to speak up at meetings without fear of being ignored or spoken over. If you have less fear of failure, then it's more straightforward to put yourself forward for new projects or opportunities. In short, we think most people would agree that you'll get by (a lot quicker) with a little help from your workplace friends.
It's been alarming, then, to read the results of a new report by McKinsey. Among other things, it discusses the fact that some companies are considering their longer term policies on remote working vs office attendance. No surprises there, you might think - we've all been thinking about that for some time. And that's a good thing. Here at 9-2-3, we think there are significant advantages to hybrid work policies. We all work remotely but we think it's really important to get together regularly, to bounce ideas off one another, to learn from each other, and to build team bonds which make our working culture stronger.
But actually, it's a bit more complicated than that. McKinsey's research shows that the return to on-site working has a disproportionately negative impact on women. Not just for the reasons you'd think, either. We've spoken at length about how remote work has hugely improved employees' work-life balance. About the fact that women still bear a disproportionate share of the burden of childcare and domestic duties, even when they're the primary earners in the household and how working from home has in many cases made it possible for them to balance professional success with other, competing, commitments, and continue to build their careers. About how it's enabled many women to return to full time work, and to still do the nursery runs, attend school plays and care for elderly relatives - responsibilities that, more often than not, still seem to fall on their shoulders.
What we haven't discussed is the fact that the experience of returning to the office itself could give rise to negative effects for women - effects relating to their relationships with other members of their team, and which aren't experienced in the same way by men. McKinsey's study found that, when they carried out their jobs on-site, men were 7-9% more likely than women to feel that they were "in the know" about what was happening at work, that they were receiving the mentorship and sponsorship they needed at work and that they were having their accomplishments noticed and rewarded. We already know that mentorship can provide a huge boost to professional success - 87% of mentors and mentees feel empowered by their mentoring relationships and report that they've developed greater confidence - and so if men are, for whatever reason, being given the opportunity to build these working relationships more easily than women in an office environment, they may find it easier to climb the career ladder. In turn, this reduces women's access to leadership roles and widens the gender pay gap.
Then there's the question of how that mentorship and support is communicated to men and women in different working environments. Interestingly, more than one third of men reported that they received better and more useful professional feedback when they received that feedback in person. Less than a quarter of women felt that way. In addition, that feedback was reported to be more actionable for men than for women. This all suggests that the "benefits" of working from the office may be less clear for women than they are for men. And it also seems that part of the detriment suffered by women concerns the working relationships and mentorship support which they are, or are not, able to access in an office environment. It's been noted that mentoring relationships are more likely to involve two parties of the same gender - so female employees are more likely to be mentored by women. Why is that support more accessible in a remote working environment? Is it perhaps that women, who are statistically more likely to be carrying all the extra caregiving responsibilities we mentioned above, have more time to devote to mentoring a colleague, or being mentored, when they've reclaimed the time it might otherwise take to commute to the office?
Either way, the impact of return-to-the-office policies on women is significant; a major survey by Deloitte reports that more than a third of women who've been asked to return to the office full time, and 17% of women who've been asked to work on-site for an increased number of days, have had to ask their employers for a reduction in their working hours as a result. Of those women who now need to be in the office full-time, one quarter say that their mental health has been negatively impacted, and one fifth say that it's made them less productive. It appears, then, that return-to-the-office policies risk having a negative impact on the gender pay gap at a national level, on organisations' own diversity profiles and output levels, and, most importantly, on the career progression and financial status of individual female employees. Nearly three quarters of HR leaders report that DEI is critical to a company's future success, but perhaps this isn't filtering down to the everyday nuts and bolts of workplace policies?
So what's the answer?
First things first - knowledge is power. It's been reported that only 30% of organisations are currently tracking the effect of return-to-the-office policies on key DEI outcomes. Although companies might anecdotally notice that women are finding it more difficult to balance their professional and personal responsibilities, a lack of solid figures makes it much harder to build a clear picture of what's best for individual organisations. And basic data on hires, attritions and promotions aren't necessarily going to cut the mustard in this day and age. If we really want to know the extent to which return to the office policies may undermine diversity, we'll also need to look at how they affect male and female participation in career development programmes and mentoring schemes, how they impact employees' performance ratings, and how they influence employee sentiments. After all, a happy employee is a loyal and productive employee in the long term.
And once we have this data...? Well, sadly, it's sometimes true that HR reports and employee surveys are widely championed, carefully drafted, meticulously produced and then sit, beautifully bound, on a shelf, gathering dust. If we're serious about tackling gender equality and diversity, then perhaps we should encourage our organisations to use the data they collect to inform decisions about return to work and mentoring policies. Sometimes, our companies approach these issues with slightly heavy hearts, viewing them as an obligation - what if instead we persuaded our managers to see them as an opportunity - an opportunity to build employee loyalty, improve productivity and reduce staff turnover? A superpower, if you like. And it's a need that our managers can relate to quite easily; ultimately, however senior we are, we all need someone to talk to and to boost our spirits when faced with a tough day at the coalface. It doesn't have to be complicated or expensive. It can be as simple as pairing up workplace buddies for mutual support, introducing a mentoring scheme, and giving a little thought to how working patterns and working locations can help different groups of employees to access these projects. All are cheap and easy and can make a huge difference to our happiness at work.
We promise you that there are organisations out there who really care about their teams; we're lucky enough to work with lots of them! If you're looking for a forward-thinking employer and are interested in finding out more about companies who really value their employees, do give us a call. We have some really interesting roles this summer, with innovative and exciting organisations. Professional friendships in your own workplace are a fantastic thing, of course, but if from time to time they aren't forthcoming, then there are other places to find support to help you along your career path. We hope that 9-2-3 can be one of them!