How individuals and organisations can keep progressing towards gender balance, in our profoundly disrupted world.
Crises can be unflattering mirrors. The initial shock of Covid-19 accentuated long-standing gender imbalances (among other social inequities) across several dimensions, appearing to threaten hard-won development of gender equity. On the other hand, the emergency situation also produced hopeful signs, such as the destigmatisation of remote working, while highlighting examples of outstanding women leaders. With most developed economies eagerly yet cautiously reopening, we may have a chance to kick-start women’s advancement as we move towards a new normal.
Zoe Kinias, INSEAD Associate Professor of Organisational Behaviour, and Dirk Luyten (INSEAD MBA ‘89J) discussed where gender-balance efforts should focus from here, during a recent webinar that was part of the INSEAD series Navigating the Turbulence of Covid-19. As a jumping-off point for the conversation, Kinias shared the results of a survey on gender balance completed by 290 business leaders (mostly INSEAD alumni, about two-thirds female). Asked whether Covid-19 had affected women’s advancement positively or negatively, the clear majority (57 percent) chose the latter, with 24 percent saying no change and only 19 percent believing it had a positive impact on women. Regarding the post-Covid future, 41 percent of respondents anticipated that things would get worse for women compared to life before the pandemic. Some 34 percent expected positive changes and a mere 25 percent believed the status quo would continue.