In March 2011, Mercer released its Women’s Leadership Development survey. The study, conducted in December 2010, highlights a big contradiction that companies have: diversity is considered important, but firms are not taking the necessary steps to increase it.

The majority of firms -71%- do not have a clearly defined strategy for the development of women leaders. However, according to Collen O’Neill, Talent Management Leader for Mercer North America, the encouraging aspect is that companies are starting to understand the importance of diversity and exploring options to eliminate the barriers to advancement.

O’Neill mentions that frustration at the entry level, where there is parity between men and women, has been translated into more open conversations about gender diversity in leadership. Although there is no one “magic” answer, business can take a systematic approach to manage this problem. This approach would include identifying a diverse pool of future leaders, educating employees about potential obstacles, and becoming more flexible with prospective leaders by providing alternative career paths.

According to a recent Working Mother survey, moms who are career-oriented report greater satisfaction in all aspects of their life than women who work for financial reasons.  Women interviewed for the Working Mother study who see their job as an important career feel that they are able to develop their skills and feel as though they have a purpose, while they also sense they have more support from their spouses and generally feel more positive about the time they spend with their family.  Alternatively, career-oriented moms do report feeling as though they cannot get away from their work.

Women and men in the corporate world without children have a tendency to see career-oriented women as less likely to: “be committed to career advancement; take on additional work; be committed to job responsibilities; be willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done; take stretch assignments; reliably deliver quality work; and, be prepared for a promotion.”  The report shows that working-moms are concerned with co-worker’s pre-conceived ideas of what it means to be a “working mom.”

This report points to misconceptions that can lead to misunderstandings in the office. In the changing workplace, dialogue becomes a necessary tool for intervention and clarification among co-workers.

Women’s History Week was first celebrated in 1978, and March 8th was International Women’s Day. But in the adage of “you’ve come a long way baby”, what has changed?

Is the glass ceiling still in place?

In our discussion of news, Professional Perspectives and Academic Insights on this site, 3 items point to progress in women’s participation in the workplace but little to shout about.

• Only 11 women are CEOs in Fortune 500 companies and total 25 in Fortune 1000 firms.

• Women as presidents of universities and college are increasing but only 13 are in Research I institutions.

• No woman has been President of the United States; there have been women presidents in South America (Argentina, Chile, Brazil Trinidad and Tobago and Costa Rica), Europe (among others – Germany, Switzerland and Finland) and Africa.

• Women in the US earned 36.6% of MBAs in 2009-2010

• The percentage of women college graduates increases annually. In 2009, 34.8% of women had a Bachelor’s Degree.

• Women earned only 22% of all advanced degrees in 1960, but in the year 2009 that number had increased to 58%.

• Our report on women engineers, “Stemming the Tide” highlighted the high percentage of women who leave the profession.

• During the recent economic downturn, women suffered proportionately greater job losses than did men. And, with the economic recovery process, women are not making the same gains as men.

What does research tell us about women in the workplace?

• Women are as good as men managers because of their soft skills prowess.

• Women’s ambitions are similar to men’s.

• Women are often brought into the “C” suite in organizations that are floundering rather than stable.

Opportunities for employers and educators

Progress has been made, but the full talents of women have yet to be utilized.

Inhibiting culture and conditions still exist that need to be addressed and remedied. Compelling economic reasons for changing the situation abound, such as the recently reported underutilization of trained engineering talent and the clear increase of well-educated women.

The key question is “What must be done to speed cultural change and make workplaces more inviting, productive and satisfying for both men and women?”

What strategies have worked for you?

What do you suggest others try?