As we celebrate International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, we reflect on how far we’ve collectively come in empowering women, and how much further we still need to go.
While women have broken barriers, shaped industries, and made significant strides, recent global challenges have highlighted that progress can sometimes feel like it’s been set back.
This year, more than ever, we must acknowledge the importance of pushing forward, advocating for equality, and ensuring that women’s rights and opportunities continue to evolve, not regress.
In this blog, we’ll dive into 4 key areas you can drive meaningful change within your business and share key tips to guide your next steps!
1. Close the gender pay gap
The gender pay gap refers to the difference in earnings between women and men, usually shown as a percentage between what each group earns on average. It’s shaped by things like the types of jobs people have, the industries they work in, their experience, education, and even biases that affect women’s career growth, salary negotiations, and job opportunities.
The gender pay gap has been a major issue for decades. While there’s been some progress, women, especially those from historically marginalized groups, are still paid less than their male counterparts in many industries.
Closing the pay gap matters because – simply put – it’s fair. It also helps retain talent and empowers women, which in turn contributes to equality within our workplaces and society.
What you can do:
- Conduct pay audits: Regularly reviewing pay structures to spot discrepancies is crucial. Being transparent about pay practices also helps level the playing field!
- Focus on skills, performance, and clear criteria for advancement: Ensure raises and promotions are based on employees' contributions and measurable performance, not gender. Establishing transparent, objective criteria ensures that employees will know exactly what’s expected to earn a raise or promotion, making the process more fair and less influenced by biases.
- Equal pay for equal work: Individuals who perform the same or similar jobs should receive the same pay, regardless of their gender, race, or other characteristics. This principle is based on fairness — if two employees are doing the same job with similar skills, experience, and responsibilities, why wouldn’t they be compensated equally?
2. Create inclusive hiring practices
Inclusive hiring practices are strategies and actions that employers use to ensure a fair, equitable, and diverse recruitment process. The goal is to create a welcoming environment where candidates from all backgrounds, including different genders, races, abilities, and experiences, have an equal opportunity to be considered for a role.
Inclusive hiring practices are one of the most impactful ways to empower women in the workplace right from the start.
What you can do:
- Implement blind recruitment: Strip resumes of identifying details (gender, names, etc.) to reduce unconscious bias during the hiring process. This way, candidates are evaluated purely on skills and experience.
- Promote flexible work arrangements: Offering flexible hours or remote work can make a huge difference for women, particularly for those balancing caregiving responsibilities.
- Create a diverse hiring panel: Make sure your hiring team is diverse. A variety of perspectives leads to better decisions and reduces the risk of bias!
3. Empowering women for leadership
There’s no denying that women are still underrepresented in top leadership roles. Despite progress, women continue to face barriers when it comes to advancing to the highest levels.
This needs to change, not only to create more inclusive workplaces but to drive lasting transformation.
What you can do:
- Implement a mentorship program: Women need mentors who actively guide them through career challenges and help them rise in their organizations. You can support mentorship by creating a structured program that pairs employees with trained mentors, sets clear objectives, provides time and resources, fosters diversity, and tracks progress to ensure effective career development and advancement.
- Leadership development programs: Create tailored programs that help women develop the skills and confidence they need to step into leadership roles. These programs can help them take on more responsibility and navigate organizational hurdles.
- Encourage networking: Encourage women in your workplace to build their networks both inside and outside of your organization. Networking helps open doors to new opportunities and connections that can inspire and help set women on your team up for success.
4. Addressing bias
Bias is everywhere. Whether it’s a casual comment or a decision made without considering the bigger picture, biases are often hidden yet can have a significant impact on women’s careers. It’s important to address these biases to create a truly inclusive workplace.
What you can do:
- Offer bias training: Equip employees with the tools to identify and confront unconscious biases. This ensures women are given fair evaluations and equal opportunities. (Our team specializes in delivering tailored bias training to help your organization create a more inclusive workplace — reach out to learn more!)
- Promote diversity in decision-making: Encourage those making decisions to consider the impact on women, whether it’s in hiring, promotions, or everyday interactions.
- Foster an open dialogue: Create an environment where employees feel safe speaking up about bias, and where these conversations actually result in meaningful change. Encourage leadership to model openness and vulnerability in addressing their own biases.
Moving Forward
As we celebrate Women’s History Month, it’s important to remember that empowering women in the workplace isn’t something that should only happen in March. It’s an ongoing effort.
The goal is to create a workplace where women receive equal opportunities, respect, and recognition.
By focusing on closing the gender pay gap, creating inclusive hiring practices, empowering women for leadership roles, and addressing bias, you can make huge strides toward a more equitable future.Let's work together to create workplaces that truly reflect the talent, potential, and ambition of all individuals, regardless of gender.
Download our tool today and take the first step towards inclusive hiring in your workplace.