Unconscious bias, fewer women leaders hinder diversity: Report

Unconscious bias, ineffective implementation of policies, less number of women in leadership roles and lack of awareness about the benefits of gender diversity are some of the major challenges to the progress of diversity and inclusion (D&I) initiatives, a report said on Wednesday.

The report, launched by the Confederation of Indian Industry's (CII) Indian Women Network (IWN), in association with EY, revealed that 16 per cent of the respondents reported having no women on the Board and 47 per cent reported that there were no more than five per cent women in senior management roles.

"The Future is HERe" report presented insights on the current maturity level of Indian organisations and how the benefits of D&I can be optimised for all stakeholders.

 

The extensive survey conducted across Indian organisations constituted of responses from over 17 states covering multiple sectors like services, manufacturing, IT, pharma, healthcare and education.

It reveals that 69 per cent organisations have been unable to understand the financial benefits of diversity. "Promoting women's participation is deeply connected to establishing economic stability," said Ryan Lowe, Partner, People Advisory Services, Ernst & Young.

"Through this report, we hope to raise awareness of the key barriers to gender diversity and encourage organisations to build an environment that is inclusive and gender equal. To achieve this, companies must adopt diversity as a policy and not as an organisational practice," said Lowe.

Pallavi Jha, Chairperson, CII IWN Western Region and Managing Director, Dale Carnegie India, said: "This is the tipping point, we need to walk-the-talk on gender equality and women's empowerment."

"India fares rather poorly on the Gender Disparity Index, which is extremely worrying. We have to create more pro-women policies to impact the misogynistic currents in Indian society and workplaces."

CII's IWN, a platform that provides learning, knowledge enhancement and networking opportunities, is an environment of like-minded career women to share experiences, provide solutions and overcome challenges.

--IANS

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