How are your companies improving retention efforts for women in the workplace?

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CSO5 months ago

Once, as head of sales of a large organization, I was hiring for a coveted VP position in our organization. 10 highly qualified men applied. My CEO said to me, "David, you have excellent candidates; however, I want you to diversify your candidate pool before you make a hiring decision." He told me to choose the best candidate ultimately. I contacted several highly qualified diverse candidates, asking them to consider putting their names into the ring. One of them was a woman. When I interviewed her, she was by far the best candidate.

According to Sheryl Samberg, men will put their names forward for a promotion before they are fully ready, whereas women tend not to put their names in the hat until they are more than ready. Reaching out to this particular woman to apply was the best hiring decision I ever made.

Encourage women in your organization to consider higher-level positions before they think about it themselves. Others will notice, and retention will follow.

B2B Marketing in Media2 months ago

We all come to the table with various unconscious biases—the key word being unconscious. You might be the best human being possible, but you still have these biases that come to the surface. A good way to keep those in check, so you don't do a disservice to yourself or your clients, is to step back and ask, "Do I have a diversified pool of candidates, or am I just looking in one pod?" Often, we pick things that are familiar, gravitating towards those who went to the same school or grew up in the same area—some of the most common sources of unconscious bias. Being purposeful about diversifying your candidate pool to include people of color and diverse genders, while still performing your due diligence to hire the best candidate, is a crucial step in ensuring you serve your clients well.

Founder and Head of Sales in Services (non-Government)2 months ago

Men and women need to be coached. When it comes to hiring women, it looks like diving deep into your organization and looking for people who might not necessarily be in a sales role, but you could see their potential. Oftentimes, we know women need to feel like they check off 99% of the qualifications. I think the data for men in that situation is around 60%, so there are a lot of women who might say, “Oh wow, I don't know if it's the right fit for me.” They need to see that someone sees the potential in them. So looking at who's already in your organization that might be a good fit to move into a sales role is an effective strategy that I found.

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VP of Sales2 months ago

In terms of retention, women in senior leadership roles should definitely dedicate time to mentor other women employees in the company. At my previous companies, I've had women leaders very involved in offering their time one-on-one. Sometimes, they can offer a shadowing opportunity—just a day in the life of a woman leader. Women employees can look up to these mentors and get motivated, thinking, "If I do this, I can get to that level." There is no glass ceiling, so if that's not in any of the companies or clients you're working with, that would definitely be a good way to encourage and motivate women employees.

VP Sales Enablement in IT Servicesa month ago

We have recently launched a formal mentoring program. For high performers, we also offer executive coaching. We also encourage everyone to engage in an employee resource group, and have robust senior leader engagement, to include a women's employee resource group.