The Paradigm for Parity® coalition provides our member companies with the tools, insights, and best practices needed to close the gender and racial gaps in their corporate leadership.
The plan enables companies to secure the best talent to become future leaders.
Companies are encouraged to track the following metrics: the percentage of women hired each year, the number of women hired/total number of new employees, the number of resumes received each year from women versus men.
Companies are encouraged to track the following metrics: the percentage of women promoted, the number of women promoted/the total number of women, the total number of men promoted/total number of men, the percent of women in the promotion candidate pool, the percent of women in the pipeline for senior leadership role consideration and the percent of women in the senior leadership succession plan.
Companies are encouraged to track the following metrics: the percentage of women in the company, the number of women/total number of employees, the attrition gap (percent of men total attrition compared to women attrition), the number of retained women/total number of women compared to the number of retained men/total number of men.
Companies are encouraged to track the following metrics: the percentage of women in senior leadership roles (Board position, C-Suite, Senior executives) and encouraged to rate their current progress in terms of giving women of potential sponsors as well as mentors.
Companies are encouraged to measure progress against their baseline. Metrics should be looked at holistically with the overall goal of improving the gender mix. Where companies may fall short in one area, they may exceed in others. The common goal, however, is to continually make progress internally.
Companies are in the best position to identify the most appropriate metrics to track their progress on gender parity. P4P will offer measurement best practices so that companies can learn from one another, but there will not be a standard set of metrics imposed on participating companies.
Each company’s agreed-upon metrics should be communicated internally so that the organization can work towards parity goals together. While transparent reporting on progress is encouraged, communicating progress on gender parity externally is entirely at the discretion of the participating company.
Measurement should be simple and integrated into the existing company (metrics need not be exclusively focused on gender if the participating company has broader inclusion goals).
P4P will measure its own progress in achieving gender parity by referencing publicly available information and/or voluntary self-reporting (e.g. % increase in women at the C-suite).
Initiate unconscious bias training. Engage women and men at all levels, starting with the CEO and senior leadership. Ensure that your company leaders comprehend, own and address the conscious and unconscious biases that prevent women of all cultures, races and backgrounds from succeeding.
Make gender parity your goal at every level of leadership, from the Executive Management Group downward.
Set aspirational goals then measure to hold yourself and your senior team accountable. Communicate results to your wider organization
and board. Expect meaningful progress each year, with the aim of parity within 15 years. Paradigm for Parity has metrics and a survey
to measure and monitor representation progress. Share statistics with other CEOs and consider publishing results over time.
Give women and men flexibility of where and how they work, whenever practical. Acknowledge the needs and expectations of
various generations as important talent pools. Find ways to work more flexibly to meet the needs of all employees. Create cultural
change so that working flexibly is embraced, and not an underused and over talked about benefit.
Meritocracy is an often used, and more importantly misused, belief because our biases affect our view of performance and merit. Women need career sponsors and access to networks of influence. Men, who are still the majority of leadership, have a critical role to play in advocating for women, both internally and in the wider corporate world. Look for the best within your organization and help them to succeed by assigning each woman a sponsor.
