Three Tools to Measure Gender Equality at Your Company and Drive Change

As CEO of the Female Quotient FQ I39m in the business of equality and have traveled the world from the World Economic Forum in Davos to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas to Mobile World Congress in Barcelona connecting with global leaders and the CEOs of Fortune 500 companies to help close the gaps and change the equation on gender equalityWith a focus on actionable solutions my team created the FQ Toolkit an equality conversation starter backed by data It serves as a diagnostic resource for conscious business leaders who want to take the temperature of their organization39s equality health and benchmark their progress Here39s where we39re at here39s where we need to be and here39s how we get there The tools serve as a reminder for users to revisit regularly to track the progress they39ve madeFQ Equity IndexTo start I recommend the FQ Equity Index a tool for anyone looking for a quick assessment of how their industry or company measures on the DEI diversity equity and inclusion index Performance is assessed based on a holistic DEI spectrum that includes subdimensions such as gender race ethnicity sexuality disability age family and education Gaps are determined by comparing individual company performance to those of industry peersFQ39s Equity Index is powered by the Denominator an organization that pulls in data from more than 15 million public and private companies 88 industries and 203 countries on 175 DEIspecific data variablesquotData creates accountability and knowledge to design the right solutions You need to measure something over time if you want to improve itquot said Anders Rodenberg CEO of Denominator quotIf you don39t track it you39re basically driving blindfoldedquotThis data and analytical insight drives one of the most comprehensive DEI rating models and indices creating the global standard for measuring DEI performanceAdvancing Equality CalculatorTo see where your organization stands in terms of pay equity refer to the Advancing Equality Calculatoramp8482 This tool helps organizations calculate their raw pay gap showing where you rank compared to your country and global average It provides a deeper understanding of how closing the gap can benefit your bottom line and contribute to global economic growthThe calculator analyzes data input by your team39s HR department and sorts it by gender aggregate annual salary by gender median salaries and company revenue It39s designed to provide sustainable data on your organization39s journey to equalitySpeaker Equity AccessorIf diverse representation on speaking panels podcasts or at conferences are part of your DEI initiatives they should be use the Speaker Equity Assessoramp8482 With this tool companies and event organizers can input their speaker diversity data from a multitude of panels and get an indepth look into their event composition In just a few steps users can understand how diverse their events really are how they measure up to race and gender benchmarks and learn where they are lacking in diversity so that they can better plan and prepare for future eventsThe Speaker Equity Assessor interprets and analyzes speaker diversity data based on criteria that includes gender race age religion education job function panel topic and more The Speaker Equity Assessor tells you where your event39s speaker gaps are according to benchmarked data around race and gender Go further by inputting past events and tracking how your progress evolves over time or use the Assessor when you39re still in the planning stages for an upcoming eventHow To Use This Data to Create ActionWhy should companies be measuring these things It39s simple it39s good for business It leads to stronger partnerships and greater employee retention According to Boston Consulting Group a global management consulting firm organizations with more diverse leadership experience 19 higher revenues due to innovation Companies want to work with other companies that are doing goodSara Wechter global head of human resources at Citi made the impetus clear quotIt really comes down to transparency and accountability If you want everyone to be accountable for making change they all need to know what they39re solving It39s great if the board knows It39s great if the senior management team knows But at the end of the day you need to make sure the entire company understandsquotIt boils down to pay policy and pipeline and collecting data is fundamental to achieve this Once you have visibility into these metrics here are a few ways to get started enlisting supportMake gender equality a leadership priority With insights and data inhand you have the quotwhatquot now add the quotwhyquot and the quotwhenquot to move the needle forwardBe transparent companywide It39s on leadership to take the plunge and open the lid on topics that are usually reserved for smaller circlesCreate open dialogue and ask for feedback Commit to regular pay gap progress reports and company surveys perhaps anonymous to discuss pay equityReview your hiring practices benefits compensation and company culture This is where many of the underlying issues may stem from What changes can be made today and what can be improved within the next six months 12 months etcMake gender equality a company priority Integrate equity into everything you do Ensure that all voices are heard during internal meetings Place more women forward as experts If you39re creating an event ensure a diverse slate of speakers participateYou can39t treasure what you can39t measure As a business leader hold yourself accountable By taking proactive steps to advance gender equality we could add 13 trillion to the global GDP by 2030 Use the FQ Toolkit as a resource to start the conversation because it39s on all of us to help close the gapsClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of 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Three Tools to Measure Gender Equality at Your Company and Drive Change

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Shelley Zalis

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