Compliance Safety Training

According to Catalyst’s latest report, “Cascading Gender Biases, Compounding Effects: An Assessment of Talent Management Systems,” gender biases and stereotypes can be unconsciously embedded into talent management systems when leadership characteristics reflect traits exhibited by a company’s top, predominately male executives. Even organizations with the most sophisticated talent management systems are vulnerable to gender bias which can ultimately impact long-term corporate success, the report says.

This latest study highlights the influence of roadblocks to advancement at 110 leading companies across 19 industries, and offers a rare assessment of talent management systems. The report shows that executives set the tone and employees mirror those traits that have made senior leaders successful. When perceptions of leadership are described by masculine stereotypes, employees are viewed as less competent if they demonstrate qualities, characteristics, and skills that are considered atypical. According to the research, this results in a perpetual cycle that can overlook and under-utilize women high performers.

This potential talent loss may have a profound impact on an organization’s performance and sustainability, since consistent evidence shows that teams with diverse leadership outperform those with less diversity.