Office Diversity Trends

LinkedIn asks you to post today to celebrate "a woman who's made an impact on your career." But these kinds of posts, even earnestly written, tend to leave us feeling hollow. If we're looking for real progress towards fairness and equality at work, here's what to do instead: 🪴 Did you know that if there's only one woman on a shortlist of qualified candidates, she has a whopping 0% chance of being hired? Simply expanding shortlists to include more than one woman (and for that matter, people from historically marginalized communities) helps counter biased decision-making. 📋 Standardized process can be a surprisingly easy way to mitigate bias. Structured interviewing, standardized skill-based assessments directly related to job tasks, and standardized scoring rubrics can make comparisons across candidates more fair and substantially reduce subtle gender discrimination. 🌻 Incentivize flexibility for ALL workers, not just women. In a vacuum, harmful norms may arise that imply these arrangements are only utilized by those who "don't value their careers as much," penalizing workers of all genders. Celebrate senior leaders, especially men, who model greater flexibility and wellbeing so that all workers are licensed to do the same. 🔍 Conduct a pay equity audit, seeking to examine not only outcomes like total compensation, but also distribution of candidates across roles. If men and women in the same role are getting paid similarly, but women are dramatically overclustered in low-paying roles, you've still got a problem. ❤️🩹 Create an anonymous and/or informal process to report and addressing discrimination and harassment. A lower-stakes way to address harm, in addition to training bystander intervention and modelling respectful communication, accountability, and timely feedback from the top, can mitigate daily harms for all workers. Some folks hesitate to push for these practices because they feel more committing than just posting on social media. They're right — because with more effort comes more impact. So reach out to a few of your colleagues and advocates within your workplace to work together on pushing for these changes. Ten posts in isolation pale in comparison to the impact ten peoples' collective organizing might have on your workplace and everyone in it! Remember: International Women's Day is a chance for us not just to celebrate women, but to sharpen our advocacy alongside women, to build a future that's better, brighter, and more fair for all of us.

Flexible (not just remote) work is a driver of opportunity and inclusivity for people with FELCs, a term I only learned today despite having one myself. FELC stands for Fluctuating Energy Limiting Condition. Many disabilities do not fluctuate, e.g., an amputee does not does not magically get their limb back a few times a day. They may have accommodations like a prosthetic limb, but the disability does not change randomly. Some health conditions, on the other hand, are characterized by having energy or pain that comes and goes, like some neurological, respiratory, musculoskeletal, or autoimmune diseases. I have one such condition called myasthenia gravis. Anyway, I bring this all up because I caught a King's College London article about a study from Catherine Hale asking "can flexible job design improve employment outcomes for people with fluctuating disabilities?" For my audience here, it's critical to see how jobs can be "flexible" in many ways that are not simply "remote," but that the supply of and support for remote positions is a clear way to address the large population of people for whom traditional, inflexible, and office-based employment may not be possible. As I myself said a month ago: "Remote work may not be right for you. But not everyone can physically get to an office. So remote work opens doors, figuratively, for the disabled." Kudos to Catherine and team for the great work. Check out the links in comments and resources from Astriid. #remotework #disabilities #futureofwork #healthcondition #chronicillness #flexiblework #talent #inclusion #office

Your daughter's daughter's daughter might finally see equality, because at the current rate of progress, it will take 123 years to close the global gender gap. Unless we stop doing IWD like this. 👇 Most companies post about "honoring women" in March, the same companies where: • Women are 55% more likely to take career breaks than men • Only 29% of C-suite roles are held by women (unchanged from last year) • Entry-level women are sponsored at HALF the rate of entry-level men • 34% of men got promoted last year vs. 22% of women So before you plan your IWD, answer this: ❓ What are you actually trying to change? Because if the answer is "nothing, we just need to do something," then you're part of the problem. 🎯 Here's the HOW TO: 👉 SHORT-TERM: Spark Awareness & Energy If your people don't even know there's a problem → Keynote • Bring an outside voice to challenge internal comfort • Name the uncomfortable truths leadership won't say • Create a shared "before& after" moment Best for: Companies who've never had honest conversations about gender 👉 MID-TERM: Shift Behavior If your people know the problem but don't know what to do → Workshops • Negotiation skills for women taught to wait their turn • Sponsorship training for senior leaders who only mentor (mentors advise, sponsors advocate) • Inclusive leadership for managers who keep promoting "culture fit" Best for: Companies with awareness but no capability 👉 LONG-TERM: Change Who Gets Promoted If you want systemic change → Panels + Leadership Commitments • Panel with YOUR senior women sharing real stories • C-suite on stage making public commitments with deadlines • Follow-up in 6 months. Real accountability. Best for: Companies ready to be measured 🚫 What doesn't work: • Panels where everyone agrees • Events organized by the women they're meant to "celebrate" • One-day inspiration with zero follow-through • Changing your logo pink & call it progress 💡 The hard truth is: You won't close your gender pay gap this year. You won't hit 50% women in leadership by March. You won't undo decades of systemic bias in 90 minutes. That's okay. But you can: ✅ Know your numbers (pay gap, promotion rates, attrition post-maternity) ✅ Name ONE metric you'll move by next March ✅ Make someone's bonus dependent on it ✅ Design an event that serves that goal, not your PR calendar The companies making real progress aren't the ones with the biggest IWD budgets. They're the ones who treat March as a checkpoint, not a celebration. At THE ELEVATE GROUP, we design all of it: 🔥 Keynotes that challenge, not comfort 🔥 Workshops that build capability, not just conversation 🔥 Panels that create accountability, not just applause 🔥 Experiences that outlast the event 📎 Check out our offer & DM me! https://lnkd.in/eGzPMNN4 Let's make your March actually matter in April. 👊 Because at 123 years to parity, your daughter can't afford another cupcake.

Change the system, not the individuals. This trans day of visibility, I encourage organizations to change their environments for transgender & gender diverse (TGD) inclusion. 🗺 Co-design workplace initiatives, practices and experiences with transgender & gender diverse (TGD) folks. Pay, recognise and reward them for this unique and vital contribution. This is not volunteer work, this is a form of research, this is culture building, this is experience design. This has an emotional tax so pay the bills. 🛑 Drive a zero tolerance approach for all forms of transphobia. Clearly define what’s a teachable moment (i.e. make a mistake, acknowledge it, apologize, aim to not make the same mistake, show growth) and what’s a sackable moment. Embed this into your code of conduct, policies, practices, training and values/behaviors efforts. Hiring? Here are Some Specific Edits at “Joining” Stage of the Employee Lifecycle. Systems: Review all systems and forms where gender markers and pronouns are asked. What options do you provide? What comes next and is it an ID/verification check? If so, what happens when someone’s government name and documentation doesn’t match their name on file? Can this be avoided and if not, are you teams trained on inclusive customer/employee experience? If a candidate is likely to meet 4-5 people during the hiring process, how will you ensure you limit the risk of them being misgendered or deadnaming occurring? See Envato example in comments. Process: Review your recruitment practices end to end with TGD employees and/or experts. Where you think you are being equal, you may need to consider where it is necessary to be equitable. Sameness isn't fairness. This includes when you collect information and why, unbiased interviews and selection practices and making sure your role descriptions and selection criteria are robust and line up otherwise, it’s left to “gut feel” and bias will come into play. Not all trans colleagues or candidates are out at work, and no two trans people will have an identical journey or transition. So remember to treat everyone uniquely, and without bias. Language: De-gender your targets, adverts and language. Use “they/them” as a default. Ensure you have 40/40/20 targets not 50/50 gender targets as nothing tells a non-binary colleague they aren't welcome in the exec team more than a target that literally denies their existence. Demonstrate: Show candidates not tell them. On your careers page, adverts and key hiring process points remind candidates that they can access someone in your team who is trained and aware of the barriers trans and gender diverse people face through the application process, and in work. See: Coles example in comments. Leverage (and credit) some great trans-led organizations who are specialists in this work. I’ll drop examples in the comments. What would you add?

Today we released 'Speeding up progress towards gender economic equality', the third report from our Jobs and Skills Australia Gender Economic Equality Study.   The report includes 10 recommendations for speeding up progress through action. 1. A three-year Shifting the Dial Policy Action and Evaluation Agenda, with national coordinated action beyond 2029 2. Intervene earlier in study choices through curriculum and career supports in schools 3. Leveraging the National Skills Agreement and introducing gender targets in reporting 4. Targeted action on highly gender segregated in shortage VET training pathways 5. First Nations-focused VET reforms and a standalone plan for First Nations Women’s Economic Equality 6. Industry and employers to supercharge inclusive and safe workplaces 7. Extend policies to normalise men’s involvement in unpaid care and domestic work 8. Embed the Gender Segregation Intensity Scale across government 9. Address gender and other bias in labour market and skills frameworks 10. Expand intersectional data, research, and reporting These recommendations were informed by a broad range of consultation, and underpinned by the extensive data analysis and research in our first two papers.   As a reminder, Paper 1 identified: * Australia's workforce remains highly gender segregated, and there are clear connections with gendered choices, divides and outcomes across education and training pathways. * Gendered occupational segregation is complex and difficult to shift. However, there are encouraging examples. * Gendered occupational segregation is a problem for addressing occupation shortages—with clear economic impacts. * There are large gender pay gaps at the detailed occupation level, even in gender balanced or highly female dominated occupations. * There are sources of compounding gendered and racial discrimination in the world of work, education and training—particularly for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women. * There is value in more data and monitoring. In Paper 2, we highlighted that: * Gendered segregation in education and training remains entrenched, with current enrolment and completion patterns unlikely to shift occupational gender segregation. * Only 20% of narrow fields of education have gender balance in their graduates. * Social and cultural norms strongly influence education and training choices and pathways, and subsequent occupation and career pathways. * Women are more likely to be ‘skills mismatched’—working below their level of qualification. * Economic inequality persists post-training, with women consistently earning less and being more likely to exit the workforce despite being similarly or more qualified. * Men generally achieve better economic outcomes across most VET qualifications, even in female dominated fields. * Workers tend to stay longer in occupations dominated by their gender. For more, see: https://lnkd.in/gpbjdR2f

🌍 DE&I Initiatives: Tokenism vs. True Impact DE&I as a brand has been associated with too many tick-box exercises. Inclusion is more than just a box to tick—it’s a culture to build. Too often, DE&I initiatives fall into the trap of looking good on the surface without creating real change. Here’s a look at 5 tokenistic DE&I measures vs. 5 impactful strategies that drive meaningful transformation. 👇🏾 Tokenistic DE&I Measures 🚫 One-Time Diversity Training – A single, isolated training often doesn’t lead to lasting behavioral change or deeper understanding. Public Statements Without Action – Leadership statements on diversity are valuable, but they need tangible actions to back them up. Unfunded ERGs (Employee Resource Groups) – Forming ERGs without budget, leadership support, or influence can make them feel tokenistic and sidelined. Hiring Quotas Without Inclusion Efforts – Bringing in diverse talent without creating an inclusive culture leads to high turnover and disengagement. Celebratory Events Without Systemic Change – Cultural events are great, but without addressing structural inequities, they risk being surface-level gestures. Measures That Make Real Impact 💡 Ongoing Education & Training – Embed regular, in-depth DE&I training across all levels, with follow-ups and reinforcement to encourage sustainable change. Accountability & Action Plans – Move beyond statements by setting measurable DE&I goals, tracking progress, and holding leaders accountable. Empowered, Supported ERGs – Fund ERGs and give them a voice in decision-making, showing that diverse perspectives shape the organization’s direction. Inclusive Culture Building – Train managers to foster a culture where all voices are valued, and diverse employees feel they truly belong and can grow. Systemic Change Initiatives – Address equity in areas like pay, promotion, and representation in leadership to tackle root issues beyond symbolic gestures. True inclusion requires more than optics; it’s about creating spaces where everyone feels they can be themselves, contribute, and thrive. Let’s commit to the kind of DE&I work that goes beyond tokenism and creates genuine, lasting change. 🌱 #DEI #InclusiveLeadership #CultureChange #Diversityandinclusion #Leadership

𝐈𝐊𝐄𝐀 𝐕𝐬 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 When IKEA opened its first India store, it didn't just bring Scandinavian design. It brought a bold people-first policy 50% women across all levels from warehouse to leadership. That’s not a target. That’s a redesign of how work works. Because gender diversity isn’t a hire-and-hope exercise. It’s a system. 𝘏𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘐𝘒𝘌𝘈 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘦. 📦 In warehousing, where female presence is often <5%, IKEA introduced flexible shifts, secure transport, and ergonomic redesigns. 🛒 In retail, women took on frontline and leadership roles not through tokenism, but through structured mentorship and skill-building. 👷♀️ Even construction teams of partner vendors were held to inclusion metrics. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵? More than 46% of IKEA India’s workforce today are women👍 Across roles, ranks, and regions. 💬 As Parineeta Cecil Lakra, Country People & Culture Manager at IKEA India, put it: “Gender balance is a business priority. It's about building better teams, better decisions, and a better workplace.” This wasn’t easy. But it was deliberate. 𝑷𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝑷𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 ➡️ Is gender diversity part of your business model , or just your HR strategy? ➡️ Are frontline and supply chain roles truly open to women, or just support functions? ➡️ Do your vendor contracts reflect your internal diversity values? ➡️ Are inclusion metrics tied to leadership performance KPIs? ➡️ Would your workplace design need to change to include more women? Sources: IKEA India via HR Katha, Infosys ESG Report 2023, Wipro Annual Report 2023, Hindustan Unilever Integrated Report 2023, Tata Sons DEI disclosures, Mahindra Group Sustainability Report, Godrej Group DEI data, Nestlé India Corporate Sustainability Report. #Diversity #CorporateGoveranance #OrgCulture

Please stop telling your recruitment partners that "it'd be great if you could find a woman for the team". ❌ Instead, start doing the following... ✅ Evaluate your sales culture. If it's feels like a "boys club", it is. Fix it. ✅ Analyse the language you are using. Gendered wording of job advertisements signals who belongs and who does not. "Masculine- worded ads reduced perceived belongingness [among women], which in turn lead to less job appeal, regardless of one’s perception of their personal skill to perform that job." - Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, January 2011 - (🔗 Link in comments.) ✅ Provide workplace flexibility A 2023 study conducted by the University of Oxford’s Well-being Research Centre found that when it comes to fostering a positive working environment, reducing stress, and boosting employee resilience, flexibility is one of the most effective elements required to create a healthy work-life balance. The findings correlate with a separate study which found that post-pandemic, 72% of women are prioritising purpose and balance at work, and are looking for the flexibility that facilitates this. (🔗 Link in comments.) ✅ Build an infrastructure and culture of coaching and support. The opportunity to be coached by other women (both internal and external) goes a long way in not only developing existing staff members, but also in attracting new talent. (Bonus point: ensure your interview processes are as gender diverse as possible. You can't be what you can't see.) ✅ Implement gender-neutral and diversity-inclusive policies. Offer gender-neutral parental leave policies to prevent issues like absence visibility, project loss, and early return pressure. In my experience, the Nordics lead the way in gender-equitable parental leave policies, for example. ✅ Address any existing gender pay gaps. It's 2024... This shouldn't even have to be a point. I'm a recruitment & search professional. I'm not a DE&I specialist. But I really hope one day the conversation changes from "it'd be great if you could find us a woman" to "we have awesome diversity in our team because...". Women in sales & those of you in gender diverse businesses - what else would you add? LP ✌️ Pack GTM | SaaS Sales Recruitment in Germany #sales #hiring #careers #startups #recruitment 

In the wake of the recent executive orders targeting DEIA initiatives within federal organizations and beyond, it’s clear that the current administration is setting the stage for broader attacks on inclusion efforts. From the establishment of a “hotline” for reporting DEI language to the appointment of DEI critics to key leadership roles, these actions are not just a government matter—they are a signal of what’s to come for private businesses. As I’ve said before, it’s going to get worse before it gets better. However, instead of retreating, we must act now. The playbook being deployed isn’t new, and it’s more important than ever to double down on creating cultures of belonging and environments where all voices are valued and heard. Here are six actionable steps leaders can take to safeguard and strengthen their commitment to building inclusive workplaces: 1. Embed DEI Into Core Business Strategy Treat DEI as integral to your business strategy, not a separate initiative. Align DEI initiatives with organizational objectives, and tie them to measurable outcomes like employee retention, innovation, and customer satisfaction. Pro Tip - Ensure Merit, Excellence & Intelligence (MEI) is highlighted. 2. Invest in Psychological Safety Ensure your workplace fosters open communication where employees feel safe to express themselves without fear of retaliation. This foundation of trust enables innovation and builds stronger, more cohesive teams. 3. Be Transparent and Data-Driven Use metrics to assess the current state of your culture and workforce. Share findings transparently with employees and leadership. Pairing data with storytelling humanizes the numbers and helps make the business case for DEI. 4. Strengthen Leadership Equip leaders with the cultural competency and tools they need to champion inclusion authentically. Empower them to drive change at every level of the organization, making them visible advocates for a culture of belonging. 5. Collaborate Across Sectors Join forces with advocacy groups, industry leaders, and community organizations to share resources, amplify impact, and stand united in advancing inclusion. This collective approach can strengthen resilience against external pressures. 6. Listen, Learn, and Adapt Create regular opportunities to listen to employees and communities impacted by your decisions. Use their feedback to refine and adapt your DEI strategies to remain relevant and effective. While the current climate might be challenging, this is also an opportunity to reaffirm your commitment to creating workplaces where everyone feels valued and supported. Proactive leadership in the face of adversity not only protects your organization but also positions it for success as workforce and market demographics continue to evolve. Rise to meet the challenge, stay the course, and collaborate to create a workplace where belonging thrives. Together, we can ensure our workplaces are resilient and inclusive moving forward.

🌈 5 FREE Tips to Support Trans Colleagues in the Workplace (and Beyond!) 🌈 Creating an inclusive workplace isn’t just about policies—it’s about action. Here are five practical ways you can start supporting trans colleagues today: 1️⃣ Normalize Pronoun Sharing Introduce yourself with your pronouns and invite others to share theirs, if they’re comfortable. Example: “Hi, I’m Magda (she/her). What’s your name, and would you feel comfortable sharing your pronouns with me?” 2️⃣ Implement a Transition Support Policy Develop clear policies to support transitioning employees and actively communicate them. Be sure everyone knows where to go for help. 3️⃣ Audit and Update Company Language Review documents like job postings and handbooks for inclusive language. Small changes, like using "they" instead of "he/she," make a big difference! 4️⃣ Allyship from a Place of Love Encourage cis allies to take action: speak up against misgendering and transphobic remarks, and foster inclusivity daily. 5️⃣ Celebrate Trans Awareness Days Recognize events like Transgender Day of Visibility with thoughtful campaigns, education, and amplification of trans voices. What would you add to this list? 💬 I’m Magda (she/her). I’ve experienced exclusion firsthand, and for the past three years, I’ve been working with brands like Google, Zalando, Grammarly, and the European Commission to help them become more trans-inclusive through AMA sessions and keynote speeches. Let’s make workplaces where everyone can thrive! 🚀 💡 If you found this helpful, share it with your network to spread awareness.