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Fortune 1000 companies for a three-year period indicated that of a total of

nearly 150,000 employees, 37.2 percent were women and 15.5 percent were

minorities. Of 31,184 management-level employees, 5,278 (16.9 percent)

were women and 1,885 (6 percent) were minorities. At the executive level,

women represented only 6.6 percent and minorities an even smaller 2.6

percent. Other studies identified similar statistics, another factor thatreinforced other findings and eventually led to greater DOL involvement. In a

separate study, the Catalyst also identified a glass wall, a restriction on

women's lateral mobility, so necessary for gaining relevant corporate

experience. The organization studied employment and advancement trends

for women in financial services, manufacturing, food and beverage industries,

fashion retail merchandising, and high-technology corporations. Women face

this glass wall early in their careers and miss opportunities for progressive

training. Following the wall, the glass ceiling naturally limits upward

advancement.

THE GLASS CEILING INITIATIVE

The glass ceiling spreads beyond the corporate environment. Among the first

institutions to recognize the existence of the invisible barriers was the federal

government. Recognition of dramatic changes in the economy and the

workforce appeared in a formidable report published by the DOL in 1987.

Workforce 2000 was a 117-page document that helped to increase

awareness of the role of women and minorities; it also defined the so-called"glass ceiling" with its various barriers. Out of Workforce 2000 developed the

Glass Ceiling Initiative, a DOL program intended to survey corporate America

to identify the problems, causes, and solutions to the ceiling. The driving

force behind the initiative was Elizabeth Dole, secretary of labor in the

administration of President George Bush. The Glass Ceiling Initiative called

for an investigation to begin in the fall of 1989. Nine Fortune 500 companies

(representing a broad range of businesses) would be selected at random for

review. Independent compliance reviews were conducted to explore the glass

ceiling fully. Stated goals were to promote a diverse workforce; to promote

corporate conduct conducive to cooperative problem solving; to promote

equal opportunity; and, to establish a DOL blueprint for future reviews at all

management levels. The department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance

Programs (OFCCP) was charged with conducting the reviews.

The initiative had four major components: (1) educating DOL officials; (2)

conducting reviews; (3) promoting efforts to remove barriers to minority


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advancement; and (4) rewarding contractors who demonstrated exemplary

efforts. The program was designed to produce specific resultsincluding

identifying barriers, eliminating the problems, and increasing awareness of

these barriers and the resulting discrimination. In February 1991 Lynn Martin

replaced Elizabeth Dole and inherited the leadership of the Glass Ceiling

Initiative. The first report from the extensive studies was issued on August 8,1991.

None of the nine companies under review were cited for discriminatory

practices, but a number of them failed to comply fully with all affirmative

action requirements. The DOL realized that a review of such a small sample

was not an especially scientific study but found ample evidence that the

progress of women and minorities in management positions was blocked by

considerably more than qualifications and career directions. The initiative

found organizational and attitudinal barriers as strong obstacles to minorityadvancement. These barriers included three major categories. First was

recruitment practices that centered on word-of-mouth and referral

networking. Additionally, executive search firms and job referral firms used

by the companies ignored many affirmative action/ equal employment

opportunity requirements. Secondly, several career advancement

opportunities were often unavailable to women and minorities. These

included credential-building experiences such as advanced education,

developmental practices, and assignments essential to career enhancement.

The report went further to conclude that if there was not a glass ceiling, there

was a point beyond which women and minorities had not advanced. Minority

advancement was seen as more restrictive than that of women. Corporations

generally ignored responsibility for monitoring equal access and opportunity

for advancement as well as compensation systems. Research data did not

generally support placement patterns and, finally, there was a serious lack of

adequate record keeping. The report also found that the ceiling existed at a

lower level than previously assumed. In summary, the barriers to

advancement for women and minorities created a glass ceiling, and the DOL

was determined to ensure promotion of advancement opportunities

guaranteed by law.

Response to the Glass Ceiling Initiative was predictablecriticisms of flaws in

methodology and the small sample size. But the DOL stood by the

conclusions and urged change and compliance. Almost immediately, the

department continued the compliance reviews in a second round of follow-up

reviews. The report of this series of OFCCP, Pipelines of Progress, was

published in August 1992. Pipelines of Progress had a good news/bad news


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approachnumbers of minorities and women participating in higher levels of

management had shown an increase, but the future of change was still

limited by the ever-present ceiling. Corporations had adopted diversity

training and equal opportunity had received a renewed emphasis. Yet the

same employers had failed to recruit for top management from a diverse

candidate pool and had not provided training for minorities and women.Women with equal or superior educational attainments earned less on

average than men in top level positions. Corporate leadership lacked a firm

commitment to organizational responsibility for equal employment

opportunity. Women expressed concern over access to mobility cited as

necessary for climbing the corporate ladder and being held to different

expectations of performance measures. Finally, Pipelines of Progress

identified creative measures that worked. These included tracking the

progress of women and minorities with advancement potential, ensuring

equal access to corporate developmental opportunities, creating an

environment for a bias-free workplace, and making a conscious effort to hire

qualified women and minorities in entry-level professional positions. The DOL

once again confirmed its commitment to identify and eliminate the glass

ceiling.

In the same year, a second edition of Morrison's Breaking the Glass Ceiling

was published, citing progress made in hurdling the barriers but still

criticizing corrective measures not yet enacted. But the most significant

event after the work of the Glass Ceiling Initiative was the passage of the

sweeping Civil Rights Act of 1991 that included legislation designated the

Glass Ceiling Act of 1991. Sponsored by, among others, Kansas Senator

Robert Dole, the Glass Ceiling Act followed up on the initial findings of the

initiative by creating the Glass Ceiling Commission.

THE GLASS CEILING COMMISSION

Taking impetus from the Glass Ceiling Initiative, the Glass Ceiling Commission

was established to study how businesses filled management and decision-making positions, corporate policies intended to provide career- and skill-

enhancing opportunities, and current compensation programs and packages.

The purpose of the studies was to develop recommendations aimed at

eliminating the barriers to furthering the careers of women and minorities

simply stated, to break the glass ceiling. Almost unnoticed were two facts:

that there was increased awareness of the glass ceiling and that the U.S.

Congress had admitted that there was a glass ceiling. Membership of the


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commission included 21 members6 appointed by the President, 6 more

selected by a joint decision of the Speaker of the House and the Senate

Majority Leader, 1 member each appointed by the majority and minority

leaders of the House and Senate, and 2 House and 2 Senate members; it was

chaired by the secretary of labor. Consideration was given to appointing

representatives of women's and minority organizations, business leadersrecognized as having positive attitudes on equal employment opportunity,

and academics or others with expertise on employment issues, all intended

to create a workable balance. The commission was to hold at least five open

meetings in order to hear from a broad constituency base. These meetings

were set up for the purpose of information gathering on all employment

issues affecting women and men. The commission had no subpoena power,

but information from federal agencies was made available for its use.

Consultants and experts could be utilized within the budgetary power of the

commission. The act set a date of 15 months for submission of a report to the

president and Congress but at the same time gave the commission a four-

year life span. Considering the past history of a lack of sympathetic

understanding and awareness of the employment concerns of women and

minorities, establishment of the Glass Ceiling Commission was indeed a

remarkable event.

Even before the initial commission meeting, the scope of the body became

more clearly defined. First, the promotion of workforce diversity was

considered to be part of the group's function. As interviews for commission

members proceeded, the task was expanded to include small and medium-

sized businesses and a working relationship with the Small Business

Administration (SBA). Small business operations employed 54.3 million

Americans. Statistics showed that women had started new businesses at

twice the rate of men in the late 20th century, an indirect benefit of the glass

ceiling to women in business. Black-owned businesses had grown by about 40

percent, those owned by Hispanic Americans by 80 percent, and Asian

American-owned businesses had increased more than 90 percent. Pipelines

of Progress had identified a trend that women and minorities were judged on

what they had done, while men were evaluated on what they could do. The

findings of the Glass Ceiling Initiative combined with the data and various

hypotheses as the basis for the work of the commission.

By September 1992 commission members appointed included blacks,

women, a Hispanic American, and Henry Tang, an Asian American and vice

president of Solomon Brothers in New York. Two of the more outspoken

members were Carol Cox Wait, president and chief executive officer of the


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Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget and head of a consulting group,

and J. Alphonso Brown, founder of Brown Consulting Group. Senator Dole was

also a member. Prior to the first commission session, Secretary of Labor

Martin, as chair, sought input from the management of media outlets such as

the New York Times Company, Time Inc., and 20 college presidents. She also

indicated a third round of OFCCP compliance reviews would target a mediaorganization and an institution of higher education.

The initial meeting was held in Washington on October 2. Brown immediately

questioned the balance, whereby women's issues outweighed minority

concerns. Before an audience of mostly white women, Martin assured him the

commission would attempt to be sensitive to all groups. Tang warned of the

far-reaching economic impact of the effects of the glass ceiling. Future

meeting sites included Kansas City, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Dallas, and New

York, with others possible. In November compliance reviews were expandedto include health care providers, financial services institutions, and law firms.

Following the presidential election of 1992, Martin resigned her cabinet post;

in the new administration of President Bill Clinton, the new Secretary of Labor

Robert Reich named Joyce Miller as executive director of the Glass Ceiling

Commission in April 1993. Miller had previously been vice president and

director of social services for the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers

Union, and she aggressively continued to expand the commission's focus. In

June a wider range of jobs other than top management positions was added

to the studies, especially those at the "mud floor," or dead-end, low-status,

low-wage jobs.

Other agencies and organizations held their own hearings or conferences on

the glass ceiling. In June 1993 the Small Business Committee in Congress

scheduled a hearing and, at the Women's National Democratic Club the same

month in Washington, a glass ceiling forum met with more revelations about

women in employment. For many women, stereotypes about female

employees, which led to a narrow band of acceptable behavior for women,

and differences in their work-related learning patterns contributed to the

ceiling. A survey showed that a greater percentage of women had a stronger

tendency toward personal development than men, but more emphasis was

needed in technical styles of learning. These and other conclusions moved

the ceiling beyond awareness and toward household recognition. Awareness

was seldom mentioned again as a problem.

The first commission meeting under President Clinton was held in late June


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1993. In addition to reiterating a commitment to eliminating barriers, the

commission recognized a subtle but meaningful change, based on the

premise that the glass ceiling was built first and lower for minorities than for

women. The wording of the phrase women and minorities was altered to

minorities and women to reflect this emphasis.

A pivotal hearing was held in Dallas in early December. Covenants were

introduced as a new strategy for penetrating and breaking the ceiling. The

covenant was a corporate organizational agreement to disclose how women

and minorities were advancing into top management positions. The city

government of Dallas had encouraged over 200 businesses with contracts

with the city to go public in relation to minority advancement, and a women's

covenant was the next target. Mentoring programs were cited as a working

solution to minority advancement. Other directions included summer intern

programs for minorities and women as well as recruiting at traditionallyAfrican American universities and colleges. While noting slow progress, the

commission heard from a broad range of businesses, from professional

basketball to law firms. Commission members did agree on one key

ingredient to successcommitment from top management. In a posthearing

interview, director Miller pointed to solutions, not the problem. She said the

focus had changed since initial DOL involvement to include anyone who

wanted to move up in the workforce. Native Americans and disabled workers

were part of the focus. Since 64 percent of new entrants into the job market

were women or minorities, the ceiling would eliminate a great many talents

and abilities of a large army of workers. Only a diversity program would

ensure the breaking down of barriers in employmentwhat Miller termed

"smart business." Although uncertain that new legislative proposals would

develop out of the commission's report, she did cite the need for increased

enforcement.

The April 1994 hearing was held in Cleveland, where the commission was told

that shattering the glass ceiling was indeed a daunting task. One witness

reported that the barriers were stronger than ever in retailing. Engineering

was seen as another area where progress lagged far behind expectations.

Minorities and women hired at the same entry-level pay as men rapidly fell

behind in a field (engineering) dominated by paternalistic attitudes. Evidence

was introduced that there was no equity in professional sports. The OFCCP

deputy director pointed out that generally chief executive officers now

understood the goal and that compliance reviews would number 40 in 1994

with an equal number primed for 1995.


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In June 1994 Miller resigned as executive director to become an adviser on

health-care reform to Labor Secretary Reich. Rene Redwood was named the

new director. Redwood's prior experience included work as a consultant and

district office director to District of Columbia Congresswoman Eleanor HolmesNorton. At the commission's August meeting in Atlanta, Redwood announced

that the commission would report by January 1,1995. She commented that

the report would be pragmatic and implementable and would not be shelved

away to ignore. At the final meeting in September, Secretary Reich repeated

earlier statements that the elimination of the glass ceiling had to start at the

top of organizations. He compared the ceiling to the imposing architectural

presence of the Capitol Dome in Washington. Despite the series of open

forums and various testimonies representing numerous minority interests,

many members of the Glass Ceiling Commission felt that they still lacked

substantial information necessary for their report to Congress on the causes

of discrimination. Member Carol Cox Wait expressed concern over wastingthree million taxpayer dollars by failing to identify the root causes of the

problem. Tang agreed, citing the lack of new knowledge. Several commission

members wanted to retain the January 1995 reporting date, but still be able

to provide additional materials and information at a later time.

During the fall of 1994, several important judgments against perpetrators of

the glass ceiling were announced. In September, Georgia Power, Marriott

International, and WordPerfect Corp. agreed to pay a total of nearly $500,000

to 68 women and minority employees who were paid a lower wage thanothers doing comparable work. The Atlanta-based Georgia Power agreed to

pay more than $210,000 to 23 individuals, Marriott awarded $167,000 to 40

top-level staff members, and WordPerfect made payments of approximately

$140,000 to just five employees. These awards followed upon a September

1993 settlement of almost $600,000 paid to a group of 52 women by Fairfax

Hospital in northern Virginia. Another significant jury award in November

1994 paid $343,000 to a woman employed by Hondo Inc., of Chicago, a

franchisee of Coca-Cola Co. The woman, an 18-year manager with Hondo,

had been passed over for promotions on numerous occasions and was, as her

attorney concluded, a victim of the "old boys network."

COMMISSION REPORTS AND

RECOMMENDATIONS


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On March 8, 1995, the commission voted to accept the final report. Nineteen

members voted in the affirmative, one did not indicate a vote, and another

withdrew from the commission due to time constraints. The report, Good for

Business: Making Full Use of the Nation's Human Capital, was released on

March 16. Criticisms of the ceiling dominated the report, which indicated that

60 percent of the country's population is represented in 7 percent of the jobs.The report labeled progress discouragingly slow despite recognition by

America's corporate leadership of the existence of a glass ceiling, a ceiling

the final report characterized as firmly in place as a barrier to the

advancement of women and minorities in upper management positions at

three levelsgovernment, business, and society. Minorities and women

expressed dismay and anger at the ceiling, despite corporate promises to

correct the problems. In order to provide positive examples of breaking the

glass ceiling, the report included brief descriptions of dozens of practices

used by some companies to advance minorities and women.

The initial report was disappointing to the extent that recommendations were

not included. The Glass Ceiling Commission, after four years, still faced the

task of agreeing on recommendations to eliminate the barriers. But the

subsequent events of 1995 did not bring a consensus among commission

members until November. In June the Glass Ceiling Commission met in

Williamsburg to develop draft recommendations and to address the "women

only" concept, which ignored blacks. The commission surprised no one with

the finding that 97 percent of senior managers at Fortune 1000 industrials

and Fortune 500 companies are white or that 95 to 97 percent are male. The

fact that the remaining 3 to 5 percent are white females further reinforced

the decision to group blacks with women as those affected by the ceiling.

Commission members fell short of agreement on recommendations at the

Williamsburg session but did produce a working copy of proposals and

recommendations. The proposals included grouping women and blacks as

victims of discrimination and the elimination of what were referred to as"

twofers," or black women counting in two categoriesblacks and womenof

those climbing the management ladder. More radical among the commission

proposals was a call to require the Securities and Exchange Commission

(SEC) to disclose the race and ethnicity as well as the salary of all board

members and officers of publicly held companies. Other proposals centeredon a media campaign to present the positive aspects of women in the

workplace and to hold a national conference annually to promote and discuss

glass ceiling ideas and progress.

The draft recommendations that were developed were sweeping


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generalizations such as eliminating the use of the word "minority" and

providing sensitivity training in the educational system. Others called for zero

tolerance of stereotyping and discrimination in the workplace, and for the

selection of executives committed to diversity. Another recommendation was

that incentives tied to breaking the glass ceiling should be related to salary.

Educational targets included incorporating the concept of diversity inbusiness school programs, reflecting more diversity in internship programs,

and using community business leaders as role models in the schools. The

general feeling was that there was little chance for reaching agreement on

any recommendations. A June meeting was planned.

June turned into July and the commission met in Washington, D.C., on July 21

and 22. Again, there was little accord on recommendations, but there was

consensus on several fronts. Commission attempts to address affirmative

action were relieved in part by President Clinton's endorsement of affirmativeaction on the day prior to the commission meeting. There was agreement on

the need to review the Equal Pay Act and update OFCCP guidelines to reflect

15 years of change since the program began. The issue of the SEC releasing

gender and race information on officers and board members still created a

split among commission members. By the end of August 1995, the

commission had backed away from the SEC issue, and a draft list of

recommendations was circulating among its members. The commission did

develop a clear definition of affirmative action: "Affirmative Action is about

opening up the system to all and providing a climate where everyone has a

chance to succeed according to their efforts and abilities." The commission

also encouraged retaining women and minorities when companies downsized.

On November 22, 1995, the final report was released. Entitled A Solid

Investment: Making Full Use of the Nation's Human Capital, the report

included 12 recommendations, 8 aimed at businesses and the rest at the

federal government. Most were predictable but the simple fact that the

recommendations were now in final form and ready for publication was a

relief to the commission. Several business leaders, consulting firms, and

women's advocacy groups reacted with a mixture of approval, relief, and

concern.

The recommendations were sweeping generalities but all pointed to the

necessity of shattering the glass ceiling. The report urged business and the

government to work hand-in-hand to increase public awareness of

information on race and gender in the workforce. The federal government


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was called on to "end systematic discrimination" by bringing pattern-and-

practice class action suits and expanding the investigation of federal

contractors.

The eight recommendations targeted at business predictably included the

recruitment and training of women and minorities and the incorporation of

diversity into strategic planning. The commission recommended that

corporate executives be educated about the strengths and weaknesses of a

diverse workforce and the challenges the future of the workplace presented.

Corporations were encouraged to initiate family-friendly policies and adopt

high performance standards for employees. All companies were also

encouraged to release data related to the gender and ethnicity of their

officers and board members. These recommendations did not represent new

thinking in the eyes of most observers but their incorporation into a report to

the president did lend legitimacy to the commission's findings.

Government recommendations included looking for ways to increase access

to diversity data; updating antidiscrimination policies to reflect current

workplace and social trends, practices, and laws; and closely examining those

OFCCP practices that were hindering the hiring and advancement of

minorities and women. A final commission recommendation focused on

government agencies that collected data on gender and race, calling on them

to discontinue the practice of double counting, whereby a black woman was

listed in two categoriesby race and by sex.

REACTIONS TO THE COMMISSION'S

WORK AND SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

A sampling of reactions from several affected and interested groups indicates

a mixed review. The collection of data, which was not clearly specified, and

some of the final recommendations aimed at the federal government wouldrequire legislation. The business recommendations were generally consistent

with current practices and policies and did not represent any realistic long-

term solutions. Edwin Bowman of Organization Resources Counselors, Inc.

called the recommendations balanced, realistic, and good blueprints for

action. Kelly Jenkins of the National Committee on Pay Equity felt the release

of gender and race information for upper level management personnel was

useless without accompanying salary data. Nancy Kreiter of Chicago-based


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Women Employed approved of the report and its greater use of affirmative

action and the enforcement of discrimination laws. Gary D. Browne, director

of equality programs at New York's Interfaith Center on Corporate

Responsibility, was disappointed with the mild nature of the

recommendations. Browne was especially critical when it came to the OFCCP,

feeling that the recommendations did little to strengthen its role. Overall,only time will tell if the final commission recommendations prove effective.

Since the Glass Ceiling Commission issued its recommendations, several

events help to illustrate the level of commitment to breaking the barriers

facing women and minorities in employment. Although these selected

instances do not represent a sweeping change in corporate practices and

attitudes, they are examples of how some employers have responded to

diversity, discrimination, and promotion issues. In January 1986 a Richmond

health carrier, Trigon Blue Cross/Blue Shield, agreed to pay more than$500,000 to minority applicants and women employees under an OFCCP

settlement. The Miami Herald received a glass ceiling award, the Francis

Perkins/Elizabeth Hanford Dole National Award for Diversity and Excellence in

American Executive Management. Announced in March 1996, the award was

given for the newspaper's sustained commitment to promoting women and

minorities. Unfortunately, it was the last Perkins/Dole Award granted.

Nearly a year after the commission recommendations were announced,

Catalyst, a nonprofit research and advertising organization supported bycorporations, professional firms, and nonprofit foundations, published the

Catalyst Census of Women Corporate Officers and Top Earners. The report

concluded that only 57 of 2,430 top corporate titled positions were held by

women and that only 50 (2 percent) of the top corporate earners were

women. A December 1997 study by the International Labor Organization

concluded that internationally, more women were in middle management

positions but the glass ceiling still denied promotions to top positions. Women

in Canada and the United States had fared better than most in the world, and

the report was especially critical of Japan and the countries of the European

Union. Finally, a study completed for the United States Postal Service (USPS)

applauded USPS diversity efforts but concluded that the glass ceiling still

exists. National trends still support the findings of the USPS study.

For women and minorities, the glass ceiling is still a barrier to jobs in middle

and upper management. Like many government commissions, the Glass

Ceiling Commission spent considerable time, money, and effort providing


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guidelines for businesses and government agencies in breaking the glass

ceiling. Unfortunately, too little has happened to stop trends that block

upward mobility for many Americans in the workplace, and the glass ceiling

remains firmly in place as an obstacle to advancement for women and

minorities.

SEE ALSO : Gender Discrimination ; Women in Business

[ Boyd Childress ]

FURTHER READING:

Bureau of National Affairs. Daily Labor Report. Washington: Bureau of

National Affairs, 1990-1999.

Catalyst Census of Women Corporate Officers and Top Earners. Catalyst

Corp., 1996.

Moore, Dorothy P. Women Entrepreneurs: Moving Beyond the Glass Ceiling.

Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1997.

Morrison, Ann M., and others. Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Can Women Reach

the Top of America's Largest Corporations? Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley,

1987.

. Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Can Women Reach the Top of America'sLargest Corporations? 2nd ed. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1992.

Stith, Anthony. Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Racism and Sexism in Corporate

America. Orange, NJ: Bryant & Dillon, 1996.


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U.S. Department of Labor. Pipelines of Progress: An Update on the Glass

Ceiling Initiative. Washington: GPO, 1992.

. A Report on the Glass Ceiling Initiative. Washington: GPO, 1991.

U.S. Employment Standards Administration. The Glass Ceiling Initiative: Are

There Cracks in the Glass Ceiling? Washington: GPO, 1997.

U.S. Federal Glass Ceiling Commission. Good for Business: Making Full Use of

the Nation's Human Capital. Washington: GPO, 1995.

. A Solid Investment: Making Full Use of the Nation's Human Capital:

Recommendations of the Glass Ceiling Commission. Washington: GPO, 1995.

Available from

www.ilr.comell.edu/library/e_archive/glassceiling/Recommend2.pdf.

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User Contributions:

1

Amelia De JesusMay 30, 2010 @ 9:21 pm

Evening, over 20 years since the Civil Rights Act of 1991, with a few minor

differences but everything looks the same as it was. This article has

important information.
http://www.ilr.comell.edu/library/e_archive/glassceiling/Recommend2.pdfhttp://www.y-jesus.com/JesusGodhttp://www.y-jesus.com/JesusGodhttp://www.ilr.comell.edu/library/e_archive/glassceiling/Recommend2.pdf


15/26

It is 2010, maybe it is time to re-look at every piece and organizations

mentioned in this article and ask, "Where are they now"?

"What has changed since Many surprises may present themselves like;

we are just where we were. Nothing has changed.

What has the Glass Ceiling Commission done since 1995? Does it still exist?

Ha! "Glass ceiling" was the term used to describe barriers that

prevent women and minorities from advancing to management positions in

corporations and organizations. The phrase was first used about 1985 or

1986. The term means the same thing today, starting with federal agencies

such as the Postal Service and all across the federal government agencies.

Hispanics is currently the largest minority group and growing, where are we?

I am a Hispanic, physically challenged woman, work for the federal

government and can attest, not one senior executive looks like me.

Comment about this article, ask questions, or add new information about this

topic:

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case study

NZ Post: Cracking the glass ceiling

A disproportionately small number of women in senior leadership positionsled the New Zealand Post Group to ask women staff what would help them

thrive and progress at work. The Women in Leadership initiative won the

Group the EEO Trust Work & Life/Diversity in Action Award 2008.

New Zealand Post Group CEO John Allen believes that intellectual curiosity is

inherent in good leadership. But it is not just curiosity that motivated New

Zealand Post Group to find out why it was missing out on leadership potential

through not having more women at senior levels.

"We had already made a commitment to quality employment practices in

order to achieve the business benefits of a versatile workplace," he says.

"This naturally extended to wanting to understand and address any obstacles

facing women who are in, or wish to pursue leadership roles here."

Video Clip: Work & Life/Diversity in Action Award Winner New Zealand Post

Group >>

New Zealand Post Group directly employs more than 10,000 people, 61 per

cent of whom are women. But as seniority increases, the proportion of female


17/26

employees decreases.

Three of the Post Group's directors are women .

Three women report directly to the CEO as part of the New Zealand PostGroup Executive Team of 10. Just over a quarter of senior managers reporting

directly to that Executive Team are women. Of all employees at senior

manager level, just 20 per cent are women.

Such gender disproportion is commonplace in New Zealand organisations,

but Post Group's response was far from commonplace. John Allen and his

Executive Team were determined to try and redress the imbalance through a

Women in Leadership programme across the Post Group.

Manager of HR Policy, Vicki Bazalo, explains the thinking behind the

programme. "We first wanted to adopt a systematic and rigorous approach to

gathering information which would enable us to lay a firm foundation for

developing appropriate initiatives that would make a difference," she says.

"It was important to gain insights from as many Post Group women as

possible, at targeted levels in the organisation. This included those who, for

whatever reason, were not yet in, or had actively decided not to pursue,

leadership roles."

As an appropriate survey mechanism was not available, Vicki worked with the

EEO Trust to develop an online survey which would access the views and

experiences of a broad cross-section of female employees across the Post

Group of companies.

Vicki says that an online survey offered a number of potential advantages.

"We could assure people that their responses and views would be

anonymous, so they could be completely frank. It also enabled us to obtain

hard empirical data which we could readily analyse and use to guide our

future programme of initiatives."


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In May 2007, John Allen encouraged more than 800 Post Group women

managers, specialists and team leaders to complete the survey, saying, "I

trust you will take this opportunity to give your open feedback and raise any

issues you and other women face when it comes to taking your careers

further within Post.

Vicki says that John's support has made a huge impact on senior women

across New Zealand Post Group. "He's so very passionate and genuine about

building up the numbers of women at leadership levels - and it's not just lip-

service; he genuinely believes that it's a good thing for the organisation and

that we're missing out on a lot of opportunities if we don't have a better

representation of women in senior roles."

"It's been proven time and time again that it's good business sense to have

diversity - including women - at senior levels. Because John has led this

initiative from the start, people really knew that he was listening, that he was

interested in the results warts and all, and that some positive initiative would

result."

The survey explored women's experiences in seeking promotion, their views

on the organisation's support for men and women seeking leadership roles,

and their ideas on how to encourage more women to aspire to leadership

roles.

More than 500 women completed the survey, a response rate of 62 per cent,

indicating the survey topic's relevance. A number of reasons emerged as to

why women chose not to apply for leadership roles across the Post Group.

They included the lack of encouragement received, lack of individual

confidence, and the behaviour of some leaders.

In terms of what would help them, the most common themes women raised

were the need for encouragement with career development, including

networking and support, a mentoring programme and mechanisms to help

build their confidence.

The survey results were released in staff publications, a move that Vicki says


19/26

was important, as it demonstrated Post Group's commitment to transparency.

"We openly acknowledged that New Zealand Post Group businesses could do

a lot better in supporting women who wanted promotion to a senior

leadership role."

As a direct result of the women's requests for support and encouragement, a

number of initiatives were then developed and subsequently endorsed by the

Executive Team.

Vicki explains that the initiatives were agreed by the Executive Team as a

priority throughout the business. However, the company deliberately steered

away from setting targets for women's representation at senior management

levels.

"We didn't want it to be a quota system which could turn people off," she

says. "Furthermore, New Zealand Post Group is made up of a number of

businesses which are all very different, so having an across-the-board target

wouldn't be appropriate.

"It's more important that the businesses are visible in supporting the

development of women into senior leadership roles, than for them to meet agender representation target."

The key initiative Post Group has introduced so far is women's networking

sessions. The aim is to build a professional, thought-provoking and supportive

network across New Zealand Post Group to enable women to make contacts,

establish and extend working relationships and share ideas, advice and

success stories.

Vicki says that the initial sessions were so popular that extra sessions had to

be held. "As word spread to the South Island, we quickly responded to a plea

for a South Island session. The women attending that session brought the

total number of attendees at the first four forums to 135.


20/26

"We've scheduled further sessions in the main centres and are working out

how to meet the demand from those in provincial centres."

The feedback from the sessions has been overwhelmingly positive. One

woman wrote that it encouraged her "to look at my career frontier and

recognise this is an organisation that gives opportunity. What I'm doing

differently as a result is believing more in myself as a leader, being more

courageous and determined, and looking at taking up leadership

opportunities."

Another wrote: "I found this very relevant as I'm a working mother. It was

extremely encouraging to know that you can still be successful in the

workforce even though you have children."

The Women's Network meetings will increasingly focus on addressing specific

skills or information gaps identified by women such as networking

techniques, confidence building, work-life balance and career planning.

Vicki says the Women's Network benefits the New Zealand Post Group by

providing an opportunity for women from different parts of the business to

meet and share ideas and inspiration.

New Zealand Post Group CEO John Allen believes that intellectual curiosity is

inherent in good leadership. But it is not just curiosity that motivated New

Zealand Post Group to find out why it was missing out on leadership potential

through not having more women at senior levels.


21/26

"We had already made a commitment to quality employment practices in

order to achieve the business benefits of a versatile workplace," he says.

"This naturally extended to wanting to understand and address any obstacles

facing women who are in, or wish to pursue leadership roles here."

Video Clip: Work & Life/Diversity in Action Award Winner New Zealand Post

Group >>

New Zealand Post Group directly employs more than 10,000 people, 61 per

cent of whom are women. But as seniority increases, the proportion of female

employees decreases.

Three of the Post Group's directors are women .

Three women report directly to the CEO as part of the New Zealand Post

Group Executive Team of 10. Just over a quarter of senior managers reporting

directly to that Executive Team are women. Of all employees at senior

manager level, just 20 per cent are women.

Such gender disproportion is commonplace in New Zealand organisations,but Post Group's response was far from commonplace. John Allen and his

Executive Team were determined to try and redress the imbalance through a

Women in Leadership programme across the Post Group.

Manager of HR Policy, Vicki Bazalo, explains the thinking behind the

programme. "We first wanted to adopt a systematic and rigorous approach to

gathering information which would enable us to lay a firm foundation for

developing appropriate initiatives that would make a difference," she says.

"It was important to gain insights from as many Post Group women as

possible, at targeted levels in the organisation. This included those who, for

whatever reason, were not yet in, or had actively decided not to pursue,

leadership roles."


22/26

As an appropriate survey mechanism was not available, Vicki worked with the

EEO Trust to develop an online survey which would access the views and

experiences of a broad cross-section of female employees across the Post

Group of companies.

Vicki says that an online survey offered a number of potential advantages.

"We could assure people that their responses and views would be

anonymous, so they could be completely frank. It also enabled us to obtain

hard empirical data which we could readily analyse and use to guide our

future programme of initiatives."

In May 2007, John Allen encouraged more than 800 Post Group women

managers, specialists and team leaders to complete the survey, saying, "I

trust you will take this opportunity to give your open feedback and raise any

issues you and other women face when it comes to taking your careers

further within Post.

Vicki says that John's support has made a huge impact on senior women

across New Zealand Post Group. "He's so very passionate and genuine about

building up the numbers of women at leadership levels - and it's not just lip-

service; he genuinely believes that it's a good thing for the organisation and

that we're missing out on a lot of opportunities if we don't have a better

representation of women in senior roles."

"It's been proven time and time again that it's good business sense to have

diversity - including women - at senior levels. Because John has led this

initiative from the start, people really knew that he was listening, that he was

interested in the results warts and all, and that some positive initiative would

result."

The survey explored women's experiences in seeking promotion, their views

on the organisation's support for men and women seeking leadership roles,

and their ideas on how to encourage more women to aspire to leadership

roles.

More than 500 women completed the survey, a response rate of 62 per cent,


23/26

indicating the survey topic's relevance. A number of reasons emerged as to

why women chose not to apply for leadership roles across the Post Group.

They included the lack of encouragement received, lack of individual

confidence, and the behaviour of some leaders.

In terms of what would help them, the most common themes women raised

were the need for encouragement with career development, including

networking and support, a mentoring programme and mechanisms to help

build their confidence.

The survey results were released in staff publications, a move that Vicki says

was important, as it demonstrated Post Group's commitment to transparency.

"We openly acknowledged that New Zealand Post Group businesses could do

a lot better in supporting women who wanted promotion to a senior

leadership role."

As a direct result of the women's requests for support and encouragement, a

number of initiatives were then developed and subsequently endorsed by the

Executive Team.

Vicki explains that the initiatives were agreed by the Executive Team as apriority throughout the business. However, the company deliberately steered

away from setting targets for women's representation at senior management

levels.

"We didn't want it to be a quota system which could turn people off," she

says. "Furthermore, New Zealand Post Group is made up of a number of

businesses which are all very different, so having an across-the-board target

wouldn't be appropriate.

"It's more important that the businesses are visible in supporting the

development of women into senior leadership roles, than for them to meet a

gender representation target."


24/26

The key initiative Post Group has introduced so far is women's networking

sessions. The aim is to build a professional, thought-provoking and supportive

network across New Zealand Post Group to enable women to make contacts,

establish and extend working relationships and share ideas, advice and

success stories.

Vicki says that the initial sessions were so popular that extra sessions had to

be held. "As word spread to the South Island, we quickly responded to a plea

for a South Island session. The women attending that session brought the

total number of attendees at the first four forums to 135.

"We've scheduled further sessions in the main centres and are working out

how to meet the demand from those in provincial centres."

The feedback from the sessions has been overwhelmingly positive. One

woman wrote that it encouraged her "to look at my career frontier and

recognise this is an organisation that gives opportunity. What I'm doing

differently as a result is believing more in myself as a leader, being more

courageous and determined, and looking at taking up leadership

opportunities."

Another wrote: "I found this very relevant as I'm a working mother. It was

extremely encouraging to know that you can still be successful in the

workforce even though you have children."

The Women's Network meetings will increasingly focus on addressing specific

skills or information gaps identified by women such as networking

techniques, confidence building, work-life balance and career planning.

Vicki says the Women's Network benefits the New Zealand Post Group by

providing an opportunity for women from different parts of the business to

meet and share ideas and inspiration.

A qualitative case study on the glass


25/26

ceiling and African-American women in

banking

by Simmons, Leola, D.M., UNIVERSITY OFPHOENIX, 2009

Abstract:

African-Americans rank second among majority groups in the

U.S. (Wallace and Villa, 2003), representing a significantnumber of employees available for hire. In 2005, African-

American women occupied 9,014,000 positions in the labor

force, of which 2,483,000 were administrative and

managerial positions (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2005).

African-American women occupied only 1.6% of the 10,092

corporate office positions within Fortune 500 companies

(Catalyst, 2004a). African-American women are over-

represented in service professions that include clerical and

sales positions, and limited in positions such as officers,

managers, professionals and technicians (Catalyst, 2003).

The problem is that African-American women occupy less

than 3% of all managerial positions and only 0.9% of senior

positions in the U.S. (Bell, 2004). This qualitative case study

explored why African-American women are

underrepresented in senior level positions by interviewing 20

African-American females occupying or pursuing executive

level positions within the banking industry in the Dallas-Fort

Worth Metropolis. The following themes emerged from in-

depth interviews: career advancement; leadership styles;

glass ceiling; corporate culture; networking and mentoring;

relocation and recommendations. The results from the

individual interviews and patterns from the collected data


26/26

revealed perceived personal and professional factors

responsible for enhancing and hindering the career

advancement of women, particularly African-African women.

Results of this study suggest that there are actions women

and organizational leaders can implement to increase the

number of women executive leaders in the banking

industry.

varun glass ceiling

Documents