Such a sudden revolution would have been unthinkable just two years ago, but in fact the pandemic has accelerated a series of changes in the world of work, which now require immediate responses guided by a vision of the future. In this scenario, the managers are facing the moment and also “the extra work that comes with it”, as the McKinsey study points out “Women in Workplace 2021“. Compared to men of the same level, female managers are taking more concrete actions to support their teams, from helping employees manage their workloads to regularly monitoring their overall well-being.
In particular, the study highlights how senior-level women spend twice as much time as their peers dealing with diversity and inclusion issues, albeit outside their responsibilities. The returns are tangible – employees are happier, less at risk of burnout, and less likely to consider quitting their jobs. In a period defined as “the great resignations” this becomes a crucial point for companies that want to retain the talents they have invested in in recent years.
The problem is represented by the fact that companies rarely formally recognize the work done on these “soft” issues, which go beyond the areas of competence of managers. Failure to value what is done within the organization of work for the well-being of employees, however, brings negative consequences: for women, who “are investing disproportionate time and energy in these priorities”; for companies and all employees, because “progress is rarely made on efforts that are underestimated,” the study points out.
“If companies do not recognize and reward the efforts of leaders to support employee well-being and promote diversity, equity and inclusion, this core job is at risk of being relegated to” housekeeping “- work that it contributes to the business but is not taken into account in performance reviews, does not lead to advancement and is not rewarded, ”McKinsey researchers write.
The challenges of the managers
The more women make a career, the more often they will be the “only ones” (women) in the room, whether it be manager meetings, trade meetings or conferences in their financial or industrial sector. In this sense, McKinsey’s report underlines how the burden of leadership roles weighs more on the daily experiences of managers. “They are also more prone to dealing with micro-aggression, which tests their skills, such as being interrupted during a speech, hearing comments about their emotional state or having their judgment questioned. These are much rarer daily challenges for managers.