The Broken Rung Phenomenon: A Threat to Workplace Diversity and Inclusion

Forget about the glass ceiling — the Broken Rung phenomenon is causing women to fall off the corporate ladder in droves. The 2022 Women in the Workplace Report from McKinsey & Company shows that women progress from entry-level roles to managerial positions at lower rates than men.

Meanwhile, women leaders are switching jobs at unprecedented rates. Companies that otherwise could retain top female talent are instead falling short when it comes to gender equality in the workplace.

Women seeking Career Success in their chosen fields need to take action if they wish to find job fulfillment, but what are the options? Below, we take a closer look at the Broken Rung phenomenon and how companies can help women advance in their careers despite the challenges.

What is the Broken Rung?

The McKinsey study found there is a broken rung” on the corporate ladder for women trying to take the first step up to managerial roles. Men outnumber women at the manager level, with 100 men promoted to management positions for every 87 women.

Meanwhile, only 82 women of color get promoted. The Broken Rung is not new, either. The findings echo the previous eight years of McKinsey’s findings.

As a result of the Broken Rung phenomenon, women are less likely to progress to senior leadership roles. Gender equality is all but a foregone conclusion in workplaces where women never have the opportunity to move up in their careers.

How does this affect Career Success?

In Uvaro’s Career Success Guide, we spell out the meaning of Career Success. Career Success means experiencing financial health and work you enjoy, while feeling fulfilled in your peer community and life choices.

The idea is to combine education, job enjoyment, and career support in a way that supports individuals at all stages of their careers. From the moment you accept your first job to the day you retire, we want you to feel fulfilled.

In the context of the McKinsey study, we have a lot of work ahead if we want to achieve our goal of enabling Career Success at every level. If companies are falling short in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), then it’s up to us to make positive changes.

How can you take action?

The first step toward enacting change is embracing the idea that someone else might actually want us to succeed. At Uvaro, we are working to change the workplace landscape in a way that Career Success is possible for people of all genders, races, and stages of their careers. Read on for ways that leaders can take action to support DEI within their organizations.

Support DEI initiatives

When it comes to building an inclusive culture, many leaders believe that they have already done their part. But they’re wrong, according to the McKinsey study. Women are 1.5 times more likely than men to leave a job in pursuit of a DEI-focused company.

In addition, 40 percent of women leaders report that their DEI efforts go unnoticed in performance reviews. Overworked and stretched thin, 43 percent of women leaders experience burnout, compared with 31 percent of men at their level.

To be a champion for DEI, companies need to show support for DEI initiatives by:

• Conducting DEI training. Don’t assume everyone understands what DEI is or how to incorporate it into the workplace.
• Encouraging transparent career paths and compensation. Give everyone a fair shot and equal pay.
• Creating opportunities for advancement through Mentorship programs. Employees should be able to learn new skills and get feedback on how they're doing in their roles.
• Supporting flexible working arrangements. Offer work-life support resources such as parental leave, remote work, and flexible hours.

Provide career progression support for women

It’s important to provide career progression support for women through Mentorship and Coaching programs and leadership development opportunities. And don’t just check the box” when creating such initiatives. McKinsey notes that low-quality programs can do more harm than no programs at all.

Forbes further reports that diversity programs fail due to poor implementation. People of color wind up feeling not like changemakers, but like isolated props” with no clear direction.

To avoid failing in DEI efforts, companies must take specific steps to fix the Broken Rung. Identify the biggest gaps in promotions for women, and work to qualify equal numbers of women and men for management roles. Take a hard look at the evaluation process to root out bias, and review practices regularly for opportunities to provide more support.

To learn more about offering opportunities for Career Success, download Uvaro’s Career Success Catalog.

Train managers to recognize gender disparity

Women ask for promotions at comparable rates as men, according to McKinsey. So the disparity in promotion rates is not due to a lack of women expressing interest.

Fixing the Broken Rung involves acknowledging that it exists, so people can take accountability for their actions. It also means taking responsibility for our own biases and acknowledging when we have made a mistake. This is the only way that we can move past this harmful behavior.

It's important to note that DEI does not just happen. Companies create and sustain it through repeated behaviors and attitudes. Training can help managers identify the unconscious biases that lead them to favor men over women.

For example, a manager may view a woman who asks for a raise as "pushy" or not confident enough in her own abilities. At the same time, they might view a man with similar behavior as confident and assertive.

PRO TIP: To overcome these biases, managers need training that focuses on specific techniques like asking open-ended questions, listening without judgment, and avoiding interruptions.

In addition, they may need to give workers more frequent feedback so they can improve their performance. These strategies will help create an environment where employees feel included and supported at all levels.

How can you succeed with the Broken Rung still in need of repairs?

No doubt, commitment to DEI is a top concern for today’s women in the workplace, according to the McKinsey study. Companies and individuals who are navigating gender disparity in the workplace shouldn’t face the search for equality solo.

With Uvaro, you have access to a wealth of resources to support Career Success and achieve fulfillment in all areas. This includes our Career Success Catalog with an overview of everything Uvaro has to offer, and our Career Change Guide with tips and tricks that can help you break into a career in tech sales.

No matter what your goals are, Uvaro is here to provide the help you need, whether it’s a new Course, Workshop, Career Coach, or Career Success tools. We’re with you every step of the way and move past the Broken Rung phenomenon, one ladder rung at a time.