On International Women's Day: Going from lip service to empowerment

By Bryan Kaus

Today is International Women’s Day. While I may have managed to forget my purple shirt, I could never forget all the important women in my life who have enabled me to become the person I am today. There are so many to thank, family, friends, colleagues, and casual acquaintances – heck, perfect strangers.

One of the great concerns of the COVID pandemic shutdown, as I discussed in 2020, was the overarching concern that the systemic shock would have on women’s participation in the workplace; one in four women considered downshifting their careers during the pandemic. The worry was that we would see a precipitous fall in participation from women in the workforce, as they reset, stepped back from careers to take care of children out of school and remote learning. And the fear that many of the gains toward equity in the workplace that had been hard won over decades would be set back a generation.

To some extent we have seen that happen, but we’ve also seen a paradigm shift on some level, that could potentially offset that and that is the rise of remote and hybrid work. The flexibility that that offers is the necessary compromise employers must make if they are truly committed to the women in the workplace. This is a fundamental fact that it would seem the management of some companies don’t necessarily seem to grasp. I don’t necessarily blame them; they may simply not be aware of that reality and are rooted in a different understanding of the world. That needs to evolve if only to remain competitive and relevant in the future.

To be clear, I personally find value in the in-office engagement of conventional work, but I’ve also worked with remote teams in disparate locations across the country and around the world to get business done, before the pandemic, during it, and now, in whatever limbo this is. Whether those people were in the room with me or not, didn’t really matter.

Providing flexibility, be that hybrid, full-remote is swiftly becoming a new essential for any company wishing to attract or retain top talent, female or otherwise. Those that don’t are finding above average attrition and will have to either offer a premium on compensation or compromise on talent (or inevitably both) and a compromise to long-term enterprise resilience and shareholder value, plain and simple.

Any business truly supporting the Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) component of Environment Social Governance (ESG), [which is an actual Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reporting requirement under Item 101 of Regulation S-K, not just a nice to have by the way.] they must go beyond lip service and recognize what the data shows.  

Forcing women, who handle the vast majority of parenting responsibilities, to choose between career and family is not an inclusive option. Asking women to take a leave to raise their children is a big contributor to wage gap, missed advancement, lack of representation at senior levels; this is known as the “broken rung” on the career ladder. Flexibility for all workers, regardless of gender better enables co-parenting (this includes paternal leave). Employees shouldn’t have to choose between taking care of a child or working if they can be afforded the opportunity to do both.  

The different working models coming out of the pandemic have the potential to be the great silver lining for employees and employers alike if we only choose that path. Flexibility as needed, perhaps someone works remote when their children are in pre-school years and then returns to the office. Perhaps it is all remote. The right balance will vary. In life, there isn’t any such thing as “fair” by virtue of the fact that no practice or policy is perfect, but we can try to do better.

If you are concerned that your workers will not work or you will lose efficiency, you may have the wrong people to begin with. Quality talent is talent regardless of physical location. I say this as a white male, with no children.  So on International Women's Day, let’s all embrace this opportunity and strive to do better; for our mothers, wives, sisters, friends, daughters, and yes, even strangers. Let's amplify voices and unlock potential. For that we will build a more resilient and capable workforce to build a better future for us all.

For more insights:

• Women in the Workplace Report 2021
• Flexible work programs can help retain working women if designed thoughtfully - Fast Company, Feb. 19, 2021
• The Pandemic Hit Women Hard; Here's What Leaders Must Do Next - Gallup, Mar. 4, 2022

Disclaimer: Mr. Kaus holds a degree from Pennsylvania State University, certifications from The University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School and Northwestern University and is a member of the American Economic Association. Opinions represented here are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views of any persons, companies or entities referenced within the content or otherwise referenced.

All information, contained within this article, including quotes, is/are sourced from publicly available information (i.e. press releases, regulatory filings, published interviews etc.). Specific attention has been paid to accuracy, however, the author makes no guarantees as to the complete accuracy of the content. Additional attention has been paid to ensuring compliance with all policies, guidelines and laws. This should not be construed as investment advice and represent the views of the author.

Note: Mr. Kaus is an employee of Phillips 66 and Principal Partner of nüEvo Development Corp., however, opinions represented here are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views of any persons, companies or entities referenced within the content or otherwise referenced. All information is public and in compliance with policies, regulations etc. Any and all inquiries relating to this matter should be directed to the company(ies) referenced and its appropriate and authorized person(s).