女性领导力：女性领导后备力量不足的原因和对策

Today, more women are breaking through to the top of the leadership ranks. These are hard-won achievements, but they are overshadowed by the fact that women remain acutely underrepresented in the middle management tiers, jeopardizing the prospects for a healthy pipeline of future women leaders.

This is worrisome, and not just for women. When organizations create systems enabling individuals to thrive, the entire organization flourishes. Gender equity and inclusion are net gains for the business as a whole. It’s not just the right thing to do—it’s the smart thing to do. However, as our study finds, real change, and real benefits, only come when organizations build systems to embed and sustain necessary behaviors, accountability, and action.

And right now, our research suggests these systems are broken. To fix them, organizations need to be willing to go beyond well-intentioned but basic measures that aren’t going deep enough, fast enough.

Now is the time to drive real progress by reimagining leadership tracks, improving pay transparency, and setting representation goals. Now is the time to challenge deeply entrenched biases and to ask women, specifically and directly, what they need to thrive as leaders.

Hope alone will not move the needle on women’s advancement, but it can inspire the bold and decisive actions that do. With this in mind, we encourage readers to hold fast to their optimism even as the report reveals a multitude of barriers yet to be overcome. If we can capitalize on this moment, we can create a path for women in leadership that is forever brighter.