Toolkit for Gender Diversity

INTRODUCTION

Congratulations!Youwanttocreateamore inclusiveboard,andyouareintheright placeforthis.

Throughinterviewswithindustry professionals,extensiveresearchanda paneldiscussion,thistoolkithasbeen created.Itsaimistogivecompaniesa holisticideaofwhattheycandotohave moregender-inclusiveboards.Yes,itistrue thatgendernormsaredeeplyrootedin culturesandsocieties,andthatthistoolkit cannotovercomeallobstacles.However,itis astartingplaceandaimstogivepractical adviceforcompanieswhowanttobecome moreinclusivebutwonderhoworwhereto start.Inthistoolkit,youcanfindagradual build-upthataimstochangetheway businessisbeingdone.Theresearchfound thefourmostbeneficialpillarstogetmore womenintoppositions.

Theyincludeopencommunication, collaboration,embracingchangeand radicalempowerment.Afterreadingthis toolkityoushouldhavesomekeyelements tostartingaculturechange.

Keepinmindthatthistransitionwillbemost effectiveifitisanintrinsicdesireratherthan onedrivenbymoneyorbecauseyoufeel forcedto.Beforestartingthisjourney,think aboutwhyyouaredoingthis,howthiscan bebeneficialonahumanandethicallevel, andinternalisethis.Alsoconsiderthe numberofwomenyouwantonyourboard (hint:foraminorityvoicetobeheardthey needtomakeup30%ofthegroup).

Enjoythereadandgoodluckonthisjourney toimprovethewaywedobusiness!

WHATPURPOSEDOESTHISSERVE?

● Setthenormforallfuturegenerations

● Haverolemodelsforyounggirls

● Takemorestakeholdersintoaccount indecision-making

● Themoreyouareconfrontedwith diversity,themoreyouembraceit

● Differentperspectivesleadtomore innovativeideas

● Employeeretentionthankstobetter organisationalpractices

● Becauseyouthinkitistherightthing todo

● Toattractdiversepeople

Photo1:Emptyboardroomchairs

1. CREATE AWARENESS

Sometimesitisveryhardtoseewhatisin plainsight.Thatisperfectlynormalandis oneofthereasonswhyitisusefultoeither getanexternalperspectiveortohave self-imposed,scheduledcheck-ins.Itisthen theperfectopportunitytotakethatfirststep andbecomeawareofyourowntop positions.Thefirststeptochangeisbeing awareoftheneedtochange.

Isthereabalancedpoolofmenandwomen tochoosefromwhenpromotinginternally?Is therealeakinthepipelinethatneeds mending?

Otherwise,ifyourcompanyisblindedtothe phenomena,orifitneedsanextrapush,seek anexternalpointofview.Thatcouldbefrom aclientcompanyorfromaconsultancyfirm, butthatexternalperspectivemightmake yourealisetherealityofyourcompany.Once thisfirststepisdone,youcangetaheadwith therest,becauseifyouarenotawareofthe needtochange,thenthereisnothingyou cando!

Onewaytodothatistomeasuregender diversityatdifferentlevelswithinthe organisation.Thenumbersareveryhardto comeby,anditishardtocreateanaction planifyoudonothaveanideaofthecurrent stateofthings.Wearealsoallproneto biasesandmeasuringitobjectivelywillallow youtoseethepictureasitis.Solookatthe differentlevels:employee,middle management,seniormanagement, executiveboardandsupervisoryboard. Whatproportionaremen?Whatproportion arewomen?Wheredoyouneedtoimprove?

Thenonceyouhavethestartingpointyou cansetgoalsandkeepyouandyourteam accountable.Wanttoreallykeepyour companyaccountable?Makeitapublic commitment!Thiswillmakesureexternal partiesalsoholdyoutoyourpromise.Italso ensuresmoretransparencyatawiderscale, whichgeneratestrustbetweenall stakeholders.

WHATGENDERDOYOUREMPLOYEES

SELF-IDENTIFYAS?

Department:HumanResources+headsofdepartment

Barriertackled:lackofawareness

Goal:havingaccuratefigurestoholdtheorganisationaccountable

NONEXECUTIVEBOARD

EXECUTIVEBOARD

SENIORMANAGEMENTTEAM

MIDDLEMANAGEMENTTEAM

EMPLOYEES

2.HIRINGPROCESS

Themostobviousanswertothequestion “Howcanwegetmorewomeninexecutive boardpositions”is“Hirethem!”.Fromthe paneldiscussionandinterviews,thatproved tobeeasiersaidthandone.Herearesome tipstohelp!

Lookbeyondtheobvious candidate

Firstofalllookbeyondtheobvious candidate.Ifyoukeepsearchingfor candidatesasyoualwayshave,itislikely thatthispersonwillbeamanduetooldboys clubdynamicsandtheroleofnetworking.So challengeyourselfandyourteamtogo beyondtheobviousmalecandidateyou haveinyournetworkandmakeaneffortto lookformorediversity.

Lookacrossindustries

Lookacrossindustries,thinkaboutthesoft andhardskillsyouwantthatpersontohave, getintouchwithagenciesspecialisedin recruitingunderrepresentedgroups.Itiseasy togoforpeopleinthesameindustryor domain,butitisalsobeneficialtogeta differentperspective.Trytohaveabalanced poolofcandidates,andnotstopatjustone femalecandidate.

Takeacriticallookatthejobpostingsyou currentlyhaveandthelanguageyouuse. Thinkaboutthetoneofvoiceandterms,are theylikelytoattractmasculineorfeminine qualities?Itisimportantthatyoulookforthe qualitiesyouaremissingandnotjustpost anystandardvacancyposting.

Ifyouneedhelpwithit,thereareanumberof agenciesouttherewhocanhelpcreatethe rightjobpostingsanddistributetheminthe rightnetworks.

Adaptthelanguageofthe jobpostingtofittheskills Trainyourrecruiterson unconsciousbiases

Donotstopatthefirsthurdle.Ifyoureally wantawomantofillyourvacantboard positionitmightbethatyouneedtoputin moreeffortthanyouareusedtobutyouwill findone.Therearesomanycapablewomen outthere!Onceyouhavefoundcandidates, makesureyourrecruitersaretrainedon unconsciousbiases.Weallhavebiases,but theimportantelementistobeableto recognisethemandputthemasideto assessthecandidateobjectively.Thinkof LinkedInlearningcoursesforinstance!

HOWTOIMPROVEYOURHIRINGPROCESS

Department:HumanResources-learninganddevelopment+recruitment

Barriertackled:accesstonetworks

Goal:helporganisationsdevelopinclusivehiringpractices

Specialisedagenciesfordiverserecruitment:

https://www.talentnaardetop.nl/

https://www.ser.nl/nl/thema/topvrouwen

https://ten.nl/

Companiestohelpwithjobpostinglanguage:

TheXGen:https://thexgen.nl/

CatalystConsulting:https://www.catalystconsulting.nl/

Trainingonunconsciousbiases:

LinkedInLearning

OcculusAgency:https://ocullus.nl/en/

Ravilok:https://www.ravilok.nl

RoseStories:http://www.rosestories.nl/

3.RETHINKYOUR REPORTINGLINES

Withoutempowermentandflexibility,it leavespeoplefeelingunheardandtrapped despitetheirdevotiontothecompany. Ultimatelytheyleavethecompanyoreven theindustry.

Rethinkthereportinglines

Ifanorganisationwantstoensuretheirbest talentsclimbupthecareerladderwithout feelingdiscouragedandunwanted,the hierarchystructureshouldbereconsidered tobemoreinclusive.Havingtheseelements givesmoreagilityinworkingmethodsand possibilitiesinadaptingtoeachemployee's circumstances.Therearenobureaucracies slowingdownanyprocess.Thinkabout makingshorterlines,createmore self-steeringteamsandletgoofthetall hierarchicalorganisation.

Bygoingovertheauthorisationflowsyoucan reconsiderwhatcanstillbeusefulto decentralise.Alreadycreatingflatter organisationsisanexcellentstart.Butby takingitonestepfurtherandfocusingon radicalempowermentcompaniescan ensuredesiresofchangecanbeputinto actionseamlessly.Itcanbefaster,more personalandadaptivetoanysituation.This isgreatforemployees,butalsofor companiesastheybecomebetterat adaptingtounexpectedchangesboth internallyandexternally.

Makethenecessary adjustments

Thinkingaboutyourorganisationandits structureisgreat.Actingonitisbetter.Now thatyouhaveseenhowyourcompanywith itsownchallengesandopportunitiescan empowerteams,actuponit.

Perhapsthismeansredesigningthe organisationalchart,makingsome technologicalinvestmentsorhaving discussionsbetweendepartmentsonbest practicesforempowerment.

Forcompanieswhoalreadyconsider themselvesflat,theideaistorethinkthe authorisationandinformationflows.Whatdo youneedtoreport?Whodoyouneed approvalfrom?Whatishinderingyouragility onaday-to-daybasis?

AUDITWORKSHEET

Department:Organisationwide

Barriertackled:lackofflexibilityinorganisations

Goal:createmoreagileworkstructuresandembracechangeeffectively

Technology:aimforaligned,relevantinterfacesandeasytoaccess database

WhatITinterfacesareused?

Aretheinterfacesaligned?

Howistheaccesstoinformationorganised? Isiteasytoaccessandup-to-date?

Processes:aimforefficientdecision-making,experimentationand clearlydefinedprocessestoensureagility

Howisthedecision-makingprocess?

Isthereroomtofailinthecompany?

Aretheprocessesclearandensurespeed?

Structure:aimfordecentralisationandempowered,self-steering teams

Istheredecentralisedpower?

Aretheteamsempowered?

Arethereclear,accountableroles?

Isthestructuretransparent?

4.0BRAVESPACE INTERVENTION

Creatingtrustisthemostimportant commondenominatorforgettingtothefinal desiredcompanyculturetonaturally promotewomentotoppositions.Indeed,you cannothaveopenness,collaboration, empowermentorchangewithouttrust.For theretobetrustyoualsoneedtheideaof psychologicalsafety.However,some practitionersnotethatthisisanunreachable ideal.You,asanindividual,cannotensure everyonefeelssafe,regardlessofyourbest efforts.Everypersonhasadifferentjourney, differentexperiences,andalthoughitisgreat toaimtowardspsychologicalsafety,itisalso realistictoacknowledgethedifficultyofit, especiallyinlargeorganisations.

Butdonotlosehope!Onesteppingstoneto thisiscreatingbravespaces.Theconceptis adevelopmentfromsafespacesandaims tocreateabetterunderstandingofhowto navigatepotentiallyupsettingcontent.Our researchshowedthatbusinessiscurrently beingconductedinamale-centricway, withoutreconsideration.Asaresponseto this,itisimportanttotackletheproblemat thebudandmakeitokaytotalkaboutit ratherthanfeelingforcedtoleavethe workplace.Bravespacesprovidethespace forlearningaboutdiversity.

Theaimistocreatetherightenvironment wheresupportisprovidedtofeelbrave enoughtospeakourowntruths.

Thisstartswithfacilitatingaconversationin agroupwherethereisrespect,apromiseof noattacks,achoicetochallenge(ornot), havingindividualsowntheirintentionsand impacts,andcontroversywithcivility.By havingthesebravespacesinterventions,you knowwhatchallengeseveryindividualis confrontedwith,andwhatisimportantto them.Itisimpossibletoembracechangeif youdon'tknowwhatchangesaregoingon. Throughregularsessions,theorganisation knowswhattheyneedtoanticipate,have empathyandrespectforthesituationand actsaccordingly.Thismayseemvery daunting,havingtoadapttoeveryindividual intheorganisation,butthemoreyoudoit, themorenormalitwillbeandultimatelywill makeyouabletoreactveryrapidly.Itisalso ahealthywayofmakingeveryoneawareof theother'scapabilities,skillsandrecognise themasanequalsparringpartner.

Asyoucanimagine,needschangeover time.Sothekeyistocarryoutthese interventionsregularlysothattheystay relevant.Thefrequencycanvarybasedon theneedsofindividualsandgroupswithin theorganisation.

4.1PREPARATIONOF BRAVESPACES

Thisinterventionrepeatedovertimeshould hopefullyfosterculturechangeintermsof opencommunication,embracingchange andcollaboration.Assuch,thepreparation ofachangeplanisjustasimportantasthe interventionitself.

Fromtheleadersidentifiedperteamchoose onetobepartofthecoalitionteamasa facilitator.Sincetheyalreadyarerecognised byothersasleaders,thiswillthenfacilitate theadoptionandminimisetherisksof resistance.Itisimportanttoalso,in combinationwiththenextstep,prepare themfortheemotionalloadthebrave spacesmaycreate,andfacilitator"how-tos".

Thefirststeponceyouhavedecidedto conductthisinterventionistoidentifythe leaders.Let'spausehereforasecond.By leaders,wedon'tjustunderstandformal leaders,butalsoinformalones.Withthis intervention,itisimportanttoidentifywho theinformalleadersareinyourcompany.To dothisrigorously,youcanchoosetomakea sociogram.Youcandothisthroughonline programs,byaskingeachemployeeto nametwopeopletheywouldliketoworkon aprojectwith.Fromthis,youcanseewhois excludedfromthegroupandwhoismost soughtafter,potentiallyyourinformalleader.

Itisalsoimportanttorecognisethemat differentlevels,andbasedonthescaleofthe interventionyouwishtoconduct.

Oncethatisdone,trytogetthemonboard andbecomealliesinthebravespaces.You candothatbyhavingone-on-one conversationswiththem.Itisimportantthat yousharethevisionofcreatingacompany culturethatpromotesgenderdiversitywith themandtheircontributiontothepressing issue.Byhavingthemsharetheurgencyand thepositiveoutcomesofthebravespaces, otherswillalsobeonboardandthelast preparationneededis:

Identifytheformaland informalleaders

Getleadersonboard

Identifytheformaland informalAppointleaders afacilitator

Haveeachfacilitator scheduleabravespace

4.2CONDUCTTHE INTERVENTION

Culturecanbecapturedinemployee handbooks,presentations,codeof conducts...butintheend,howpeopleactin acompanyisdowntotheactionsofothers. We,ashumans,areverygoodatmimicking thewaysothersbehavetofeelpartofthe in-group:actionsspeaklouderthanwords.

Createwithineachteam thegroundrules

Firstandforemost,itisimportantthat everyoneagreesongroundrulesforthe sessionconsideringthepotentialintensityof storiesthatwillbeshared.Thiscanbeleftup tothegroupitself,buthereareafewpointers ofthegroundrulesofbravespaces:

● Treatoneanotherwithrespect

● Confidentiality

● Itisokaytomakemistakes

● Apromiseofnoattacks

● Controversywithcivility

● Ownyourimpacts

● Listenwithanopenheart

Theideaisnotjustforgrievancestobe expressed,butalsofornormstobe challengedconstructivelythroughdialogue. Thefacilitatorshouldmakesurethey addresseveryonepresenttocheckwhat theywouldneedtofeelbraveinthat moment.

Identifytheformaland informalleaders

Beingwillingtoopenupandbebrave themselveswillencourageotherstodothe same.Theyshouldalsoexpressthanksand gratefulnesswhenothersarealsowillingto sharedifficultmoments.Throughthisfirst step,italsosetsthetoneofhowdeepyouwill bedivingduringthesession,andwhat grievanceswillbeshared.Thiscanbevery powerful!

However,itisimportanttoalsocheck yourselfasaleader.Youcannotknowwhat everyoneisgoingthroughorhasgone through.Butyoucanlistenandyoucan strivetounderstandtheviewpoints.Takea stepback,listenactivelyandlearn.Itmaybe uncomfortable,buttheideaistobebrave.As aleader,beanallytomarginalisedgroups, recognisewheretheprivilegesareand whoseviewsarecurrentlybeingdisregarded. Thisisbeneficialforcreatingasenseof belongingsinceitgiveseveryonethe opportunitytoexpresstheiropinionsfreely andcantrulybethemselves.

Needsomehelptofacilitatethe conversation?Use23Plusoneasamethodto createconversations.

4.3NEEDHELP? USE23PLUSONE

23plusoneasamethodwascreatedbyPhD KimCramerandAlexanderKoeneto understandwhatmakesabrandattractive.It incorporatesthe24humandrives,whichalso happentomakepeoplehappy.These elementswereregroupedintofivedifferent groups:basicneeds,self-development, ambition,vitalityandattraction.

Consideringthatallhumanshavethese drives,andthatgenderequalityis about....equality,the23plusonemethodcould beusedasatooltohelpcompaniesdiscover theircommonalities,createtrustandopen communication.Throughthis,itwouldbe possibletocreatemeaningfulconversations betweencolleaguestogetmutualrespectof allandbeabletohaveashiftinculture basedonthat.

Oncewestartunderstandingeachother,our emotions,ourneeds,ourbackground,itis hardtoignoretheneedtosupporteach other,understandeachotherandbe transparent.Theideawouldbetousethe 23plusonemethodtofacilitatethe conversationandovercomecertainbarriers whichmaystillbepresent.Thiscanget individualstoalreadystartconnecting, makingthebravespacesconversations easier.Facilitatetheconversationbyasking individualswhowishtospeakuptochoosea cardtheirgrievanceconnectsto.Thenuseit asastartingpointoftheconversation,and asawayofcommunicatingyourindividual needs.Guidingquestionscanbe:

● Whatcardrepresentsastrugglefor yourightnow?

● Whatcardismostimportantforyou inliferightnow?

● Whichcardareyoumissinginyour liferightnow?

● Whichcardresonatesmostwithyou?

Photo3:Displayof23plusonecards

4.4KEEPINGTHE MOMENTUM

Welldone!Organisingsuchawidespread interventionofopen-hearted communicationthroughthebravespaceis quiteafeat!Nowitisamatterofactingupon itandmakingsureitbecomespartofthe commonpracticesandthatgrievancesare addressed.

Theaimistomaketheseopenconversations apartoforganisationalculture,soalthough oneinterventionisgood,moreisbetter.

Eachteamwillhavegonethroughdifferent topicsbasedoneachindividual'sown background,familysituation,journeyinthe companyetc…thelaststepiscommittingto changeswithempathytoenableallareable togrowandflourishwithintheorganisation. Hereiswherewealsoseethatgender diversityisnotjustawoman'sthing.The systemasitstandsrewardsaspecificgroup ofmenwhobenefitfromit.Thebravespaces willexposecertaingrievancesmenalso encounterduetothelackofrecognitionof privatelivesintheworkenvironment. Althoughthisisinitiallyintendedtobenefit women,intheend,mostwillreapthefruitsof acknowledgingandembracingpersonal changestocreatetherightwork environmentforall.Ultimately,themental healthofemployeeswillimprovetothe benefitofemployeeengagementand performance.

Weencouragehostingbravespacesevery twomonthsonaverage,tobeginwith,to makeeveryonemoreaccustomedtothem andfeelmorecomfortableinbeingbrave. Thentheycanbecarriedoutatthe discretionoftheteamsthemselvesbasedon theirownneeds.Itisalsoencouragedto rotatethefacilitatorstomakesureeveryone feelsheard,andthatalltopicsarecovered duringthesessions.

Andremembertocelebrateeverysmallstep intherightdirectiontomakingthecompany culturemoreopenandbrave!

Basedonthegrievances shared,committochanges

Measuretheactualnumbers

Makethenecessary adjustments

Getanexternalpointofview

Identifytheformaland informalleaders

Makeitapubliccommitment

Appointafacilitator

Lookbeyondtheobvious candidate

Getleadersonboard

Lookacrossindustries

Adaptthelanguageofthe jobpostingtofittheskills

Trainyourrecruiterson unconsciousbiases

Rethinkthereportinglines

Haveeachfacilitator scheduleabravespace

Createwithineachteam thegroundrules

Getfacilitatorstoleadthe way

Basedonthegrievances shared,committochanges

Audittheinformationflow

Makethesebravespacesa regularmoment

CONCLUSION

Byimplementingtheseelementsrigorously,thestartofa companyculturechangeshouldbetriggered.Byhavingregular bravespacesinterventions,andalsoensuringthatthesepractices arecarriedoutbytheleaders(formalandinformal), communicationshouldbecomethenorm,withmorepeople feelingheard.

Theaimistoovercometheone-size-fits-allapproachwhichwe currentlyexperienceinbusiness.Differencesshouldbetakeninto account,andequityshouldbeimplemented.Thecurrentstatus quomayfittheonesinpower,butitalsomaintainstherestofthe populationinaninferiorposition,maintainingsystemsof inequality.

Thereisaneedtogetthissystemtochange,onepersonatatime. Itishardworkbutbygettingleaderstoshowthewayandactively takepartinthebravespacesandimplementculturechanges themselves,themomentumwillgrow.

Noonewantstofeellikethetokenwoman,noonewantstofeel liketheyaretherebasedontheirgenderovertheirskills.This toolkitoffersanalternative,awayofembracingeveryone's journey,recognisingtheskillstheybringtothecompany,and beingopentocreatingthechangeseveryoneneedstoflourishin theircompany.Asacompany,italsoincreasestheoverallhealth, byreducingtheamountofstressemployeesmaybeexperiencing intheirpersonallives.

Althoughthistoolkithasbeencreatedwithwomeninexecutive positionsinmind,theelementscanbetransferabletodifferent elementsofdiversity.Itisalsonotonlylimitedtowomenbutcan alsobenefitmenwhodonotrecognisethemselvesinthe stereotypesthemaleleaderneedstoembody.

INTERESTINGSOURCES

GenderDiversityinExecutiveBoards

Lückerath-Rovers,M.,2020FemaleBoardIndex2020,TilburgUniversity. Nguyen,T.H.H.,Ntim,C.G.andMalagila,J.K.,2020Womenoncorporateboardsand corporatefinancialandnon-financialperformance:Asystematicliteraturereviewand futureresearchagenda.InternationalReviewofFinancialAnalysis,71,pp.1-24

CreatingAwareness

Markarian,G.,Parbonetti,A.andPrevits,G.,2007TheConvergenceofDisclosureand GovernancePracticesintheWorld’sLargestFirms.CorporateGovernance:AnInternational Review,15,pp.294–310.

Virick,M.andGreer,C.,2012Genderdiversityinleadershipsuccession:Preparingforthe future.HumanResourceManagement,51(4),pp.575-600

HiringProcesses

Consul,N.,Strax,R.,DeBenedectis,C.M.andKagetsu,N.J.,2021MitigatingUnconsciousBiasin RecruitmentandHiring.JournaloftheAmericanCollegeofRadiology

Ross,H.J.,20153WaystoMakeLessBiasedDecisions.HarvardBusinessReview.Availableat: https://hbr.org/2015/04/3-ways-to-make-less-biased-decisions

ReportingLines

Kristensen,S.S.,andShafiee,S.2019.Rethinkingorganizationdesigntoenforce organizationalagility.In11thSymposiumonCompetence-BasedStrategicManagement.

BraveSpaces

Wasserman,J.A.andBrowne,B.J.,2021OnTriggeringandBeingTriggered:CivilSocietyand BuildingBraveSpacesinMedicalEducation.TeachingandLearninginMedicine,pp.1–7. BraveSpaceGuidelineexample:https://ccc.ucsd.edu/_files/brave-space-guidelines.pdf

Obrenovic,B.,Jianguo,D.,Khudaykulov,A.andKhan,M.A.S.,2020Work-FamilyConflict

ImpactonPsychologicalSafetyandPsychologicalWell-Being:AJobPerformanceModel. FrontiersinPsychology,11,pp.1-18

23Plusone

www.23plusone.org

www.br-ndpeople.com

DianeLereculey-Péran

DianehasrecentlygraduatedfromHotelschooltheHague, withherfinalthesisonthetopicoffemaleexecutivesin theDutchlodgingindustry.Herpassionforhospitalityis combinedwithherdrivetohaveapositiveimpactonthe worldaroundher,regardlessofthescale.Thatcouldbe simplyputtingasmileonsomeone’sface,orchallenging thegenderednormsinindustries.

Dianeisactiveandeagertoexploredifferentplaces, thankstohavingbeenbroughtupinseveralcountries.If sheisnotoutdoingsports,youcanprobablyfindher makingsomecalligraphywithanicecupoftea.Forthe foreseeablefuture,DianewillbecallingTheHaguehome, beforenewadventurescallhertoanothercountry.

BR-NDPeople

BR-NDPeopleisaconsultancythatsupportsorganizations withstrategictransformationsthrough"emotivebranding". Wemaketheworldabetterplacebydeveloping culture-drivenbrandsthatcontributetoabetterworld. Suchbrandsdirectpositivebehaviorandleadto innovationandresponsiblegrowth.

BR-NDPeopleisaBCorp.