Women's advancement. Why is support from colleagues an essential element of career development?
Traditional thinking about talent development is based on the master-disciple relationship. A Yale analysis of MBA graduates from 2000 to 2018 found that women 24 percent they are less likely than men to be placed in higher-level positions. At the same time, it was enough for the share of women in the student group to increase by only four percentage pointsso that women's chances for promotion increase by over eight percent The promotion gap has decreased by a quarter. It was not mentors from the management board, but peers who became the source of key information, ambition and support.
— Mentoring programs certainly contribute a lot to the development of employees, including women, who need role models and examples of women leaders – emphasizes Dagmara Seliga-Krawczyńska, an organizational psychologist. — What is characteristic of these programs, however, is the hierarchy: the mentor is usually much more experienced, often in higher positions, which is why this relationship may be burdened with limited openness of the mentee, questioning his own point of view in the face of the mentor's authority.
According to the expert, having other women around you – friends with whom you can talk and exchange experiences – is a great support, direct and actually at your fingertips. — What I notice during workshops or action learning sessions, when women reveal their challenges and pains, is a very quick search for common areas of support. It turns out that we all have similar problems, we all have difficult times. Such relationships are informal, set in the context of everyday life, so there is more honesty and compassion.
Informal networks – a strategic development tool
The Yale study provides scientific proof of what women leaders have long been saying: Informal networks are one of the most effective and at the same time most underestimated development tools. They contain information about the hidden rules of the game, management styles in individual departments and real – not declared – chances for promotion. Their strength is that they offer something that no formal program can: trust, authenticity and a sense of community.
HR departments should therefore stop thinking about individual programs and start thinking about them design entire work environments. The Yale study, which used a quasi-experimental setting of randomly separating MBA students into sections, suggests that maintaining a balanced gender ratio on project teams and departments may have similar benefits. Instead of another mentoring program, a strategic move may be to consciously shape the architecture of teams.
These conclusions correspond to the Polish business reality: simply increasing the number of women on management boards (e.g. under the EU directive on quotas) does not always automatically translate into an improvement in culture or a decrease in the pay gap – this requires systemic changes at all levels of the organization. And the power of grassroots peer networks can be as important as top-down directives.
Equality and wellbeing
However, the “peer group” effect does not operate in a vacuum. The greatest benefits from women's networks were recorded in companies that the study describes as women-friendly – those that offer flexible working hours, a generous parental leave policy and a culture that does not penalize career breaks.
— From my experience, I know what a huge difference regulations, policies and internal regulations supporting women make in the so-called the “second shift”, i.e. taking care of children, parents or simply in duties related to life outside of work – says Dagmara Seliga-Krawczyńska. — It is inevitable that women will recommend companies that recognize these everyday challenges. They will recommend organizations that have DEI not on posters, but in actual solutions for employees.
The expert draws attention to the mechanism, which the Yale study scientifically confirms: – Just ask women what happens when they have a sick child again, no support in care and a project due yesterday. Most often, it is high-class acrobatics, which in the long term causes stress, tension and decreasing effectiveness. There is a difference when there is more than one woman in the team, because it affects the way talent, development and promotions are managed. I have often witnessed situations in which women on maternity leave were left out of the talent pool simply because mainly men were at the decision-making table.
Investing in women's networks without changing the organizational culture is like sowing seeds on concrete. For HR departments, this is a strong argument to treat equality policy and well-being strategy as one connected vessel.
This principle works everywhere
The MBA program was an ideal laboratory for scientists, but the mechanism described can be transferred one to one to the realities of any company. Managers and HR departments can use this mechanism by creating peer support groups in companies – inspired by the terminology of the Yale study, they can be called 'peer networks' – or by connecting women with similar experience in informal development programs.
Promoting gender balance in groups should become an element of the quality and competitive advantage of MBA and business programs. Equality doesn't start in boardrooms, but in the rooms where women learn together – and in the teams where they support each other's development every day.
– That is why mentoring programs alone, although valuable, are not enough – sums up Dagmara Seliga-Krawczyńska. — We need organizations that, instead of just “inspiring” women to act, will actually remove systemic obstacles and create an environment in which women do not have to choose between ambition and private life.
