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Women in Leadership- Inclusive Leadership .pptx.pptx

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Article: Why Diversity and Inclusion Matter

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Article: Why Diversity and Inclusion Matter

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Research from Catalyst and around the world has found that diversity and inclusion benefit individuals, organizations, teams, and society. The following data and findings are selected from a vast body of research on the benefits of diversity and inclusion in the workplace, with an emphasis on studies published in the last few years. This list is not exhaustive. For a selection of earlier research on this topic, see: Catalyst, Why Diversity Matters (July 23, 2013).

Catalyst has organized these findings into four areas in which diversity and inclusion have significant impact: talent, innovation and group performance, reputation and responsibility, and financial performance.

Companies with higher levels of gender diversity and with HR policies and practices that focus on gender diversity are linked to lower levels of employee turnover.

59.1% increase in creativity, innovation, and openness.

37.9% better assessment of consumer interest and demand.

Diversity is a key ingredient for better decision-making among teams. Homogenous groups may be susceptible to groupthink, while diverse teams can leverage a greater variety of perspectives and are likely to consider information more thoroughly and accurately.

Teams that include different viewpoints or thinking styles (cognitive diversity) solve problems faster and produce more and higher-quality intellectual property such as patents.

Overall experiences of inclusion explain:

49% of team problem-solving.

18% of employee innovation.

Gender-diverse corporate boards are associated with:

Effective risk-management practices. Adding women to a board can improve investment efficiency and prevent risky overinvestment decisions as well as reduce the overconfidence of male CEOs.

Increased engagement among board members, including behavior like requesting additional information or updates on subjects being discussed and acting on specific tasks after board meetings.

Fewer financial reporting mistakes and controversial business practices such as fraud and earnings manipulation.

Investment in higher-quality audits.

A Note About the Business Case and Financial Performance

Instead of trying to seek that elusive "proof" that diversity causes improved business performance, companies should focus on diversity as a talent issue, and recognize that to be an industry leader, it is critical to tap into the full talent pool. By hiring a limited group of people, companies are missing out on significant segments of talent, so they should be putting energy and resources toward recruiting and retaining diverse employees and creating inclusive workplace cultures where everyone has an equal opportunity to contribute and succeed.

For more information about financial performance research, see: Catalyst, Why Diversity and Inclusion Matter: Financial Performance (June 24, 2020).

Cash flow return on investment

Earnings Before Interests and Taxes (EBIT) margins

Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) margins

Gross and net margins

Internal rate of return

Investment performance

Market value

Operating profit margin

Return on Assets (ROA)

Return on Equity (ROE)

Return on Sales (ROS)

Revenue

Sales performance

Stock returns

Tobin's Q

Next Steps
Catalyst, Creating a D&I Strategy: Ask Catalyst Express.

Catalyst, Microlearning: Knowledge Bursts.

The New York Times, " From Inclusion to Support: How to Build a Better Workplace," June 17, 2019.

Frances Taplett, Matt Krentz, Justin Dean, and Gabrielle Novacek, " Diversity Is Just the First Step. Inclusion Comes Next," The Boston Consulting Group, April 24, 2019.
Research
Catalyst, The Business Case for D&I: Ask Catalyst Express.

Catalyst, Buying Power: Quick Take.

Catalyst, Turnover and Retention: Quick Take.

Catalyst, Webinar Recording: First Steps-The Business Case for Diversity: Is This a Silver Bullet? (2018).

Catalyst, Why Diversity Matters (July 23, 2013).

John M. Amis, Johanna Mair, and Kamal A. Munir, " The Organizational Reproduction of Inequality," Academy of Management Annals, vol. 14, no. 1 (2020): p. 1-36.

Sundiatu Dixon-Fyle, Kevin Dolan, Vivian Hunt, and Sara Prince, Diversity Wins: How Inclusion Matters (McKinsey & Company, May 19, 2020).

Katherine W. Phillips, " How Diversity Makes Us Smarter," Scientific American, October 1, 2014.

Sodexo, Sodexo's Gender Balance Study 2018: Expanded Outcomes Over 5 Years (2019).

Steven Turban, Dan Wu, and Letian (LT) Zhang, " Research: When Gender Diversity Makes Firms More Productive," Harvard Business Review, February 11, 2019.

How to cite this product: Catalyst, Quick Take: Why Diversity and Inclusion Matter (June 24, 2020).

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Why Diversity and Inclusion Matter (Quick Take) | Catalyst

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Research from Catalyst and around the world has found that diversity and inclusion benefit individuals, organizations, teams, and society. The following data and findings are selected from a vast body of research on the benefits of diversity and inclusion in the workplace, with an emphasis on studies published in the last few years.

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Five Ways To Become A More Inclusive Leader

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Five Ways To Become A More Inclusive Leader

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The events of the past 12+ months have made it very clear that organizations and leaders within companies are looking to foster a more inclusive work culture. While this isn't something that can happen overnight, it can happen - by resetting workplace dynamics and implementing inclusive practices.

A recent article from McKinsey & Company notes that workplace changes introduced in response to Covid-19 provide an opportunity for organizations to introduce new habits. Since working remotely could be a permanent part of the next normal for some employees, organizations and teams, companies should seize this opportunity to build more inclusive habits. The article states that a shift in workplace dynamics "can, and should, serve as a catalyst to embed more inclusive practices and more effective leadership skills." I couldn't agree more.

One thing is undisputed: People want to be part of a more inclusive culture wherever they work.
What can leaders do to help foster an inclusive culture?
Leaders must first demonstrate inclusive behaviors. Leaders must remember that not all employees have the same perspectives, experiences or opportunities as others within the organization. To be inclusive, leaders must seek out and embrace these diverse perspectives. An inclusive environment is created by the behavior of individuals - leaders and peers - who make deliberate decisions and take deliberate actions mindful of inclusion as a daily practice.

Founder of Leading Women Susan L. Colantuono has said, "Leadership is using the greatness in you to achieve and sustain extraordinary outcomes by engaging the greatness in others." This 21st-century definition of leadership is the cornerstone of the research we do at Leading NOW. Use this definition of leadership to help ground and inspire you to be the best leader you can be, regardless of your title or position.
Everyone can be an inclusive leader.
Use your personal greatness to lead and engage the greatness in others to demonstrate your inclusive mindset. Together, you will achieve extraordinary outcomes and help develop the culture of inclusion you strive to be part of. To help get you started on becoming a more inclusive leader, I've put together a list of the top five things every individual leader can do to help their team, their department or their organization work toward being more inclusive.
Five ways you can become a more inclusive leader today.
1. Ask questions. Be curious about others' experiences in the workplace. Ask them for a 1:1 conversation to learn more about what they do and how they experience the organization. A recent article in Harvard Business Review says, "a humble and curious question goes a long way toward building better empathy and situational awareness" and will hopefully result in you becoming an ally to others within the company.

2. Invite employees from all backgrounds to meetings. Make sure you include everyone in the conversation and ask for their thoughts and suggestions during the meeting; don't just include them, engage them. Consider that many employees have varied perspectives that may have been gained from experiences that differ from your own. Ask questions that help ignite their input. Most important, you need to be authentic when you invite them into the meeting. Really listen to what they have to say and consider how you may incorporate their perspectives and ideas.

3. Consult with people outside your own circle. Surround yourself with people who are different from you. When seeking different perspectives, ask colleagues to recommend who they think might have a new perspective. A diverse team works smarter and delivers better results.

4. Invite employees to shadow you. Have them join you in meetings and discussions which allow them to have exposure to something they would not normally have exposure to. After the meeting, debrief with them on what the meeting was about, what decisions were made and why they were made.

5. Purposefully seek others' perspectives. Look for different perspectives whenever you're doing your job. Whether you're looking for new vendors or creating a new product, or if you're in HR and you're trying to build an inclusive culture, why not make your first priority to get different perspectives? Ask people who are not like you for their input and ideas to expand your own knowledge of different ways of doing things.

Building a culture of inclusion isn't like turning on a light switch. It takes deliberate actions, starting with you demonstrating inclusive leadership behaviors. If you do your part and follow these five steps, you won't just be talking the talk, you'll be walking the walk - and inspiring others to follow suit. That's what inclusive leadership is all about.

Forbes Human Resources Council is an invitation-only organization for HR executives across all industries. Do I qualify?

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Council Post: Five Ways To Become A More Inclusive Leader

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The events of the past 12+ months have made it very clear that organizations and leaders within companies are looking to foster a more inclusive work culture. While this isn't something that can happen overnight, it can happen - by resetting workplace dynamics and implementing inclusive practices.

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How To Be an Inclusive Leader: 6 Steps To Follow

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How To Be an Inclusive Leader: 6 Steps To Follow

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There are many different types of leadership and you can consider what kind of leader you want to be to optimize workflow in your team. Inclusive leadership is one such type and it's important for any business or organization. Inclusive leadership can help an organization grow over time. In this article, we review the traits of inclusive leaders and how to become one.

What is an inclusive leader?

An inclusive leader is someone who encourages bringing new ideas to a team. They are aware of their own personal preferences and biases and work to minimize these. Inclusive leaders see diversity, whether it be in nationality, socio-economic background or ideas, as a competitive advantage for their organization.

Also, an inclusive leader is someone who not only wants a diverse workforce but wants them engaged with the business. They actively take steps to involve everyone and encourage the sharing of new ideas.

Related: What Is Inclusive Leadership?

Why be an inclusive leader?

While many workforces are diversifying, not all of them are taking advantage of their diverse talent. Inclusive leaders help their organizations in many ways, including:

Giving a voice to everyone on the team

Increasing employee happiness by making them feel valued

Helping their team adapt to changes quickly

Employees are more likely to show up to work

Increasing efficiency by utilizing everyone's best abilities

Inclusive leaders are people who work to get everyone on the team involved. They not only like hearing new ideas from different people but they are willing to try them out. This makes for a more enjoyable workplace, as every team member feels more valued and like they are part of the team. Diverse workplaces can lead to better businesses, but only if there are inclusive leaders at the top to encourage and implement best practices.

Read more: Diversity Leadership: How Inclusive Teams Achieve Success

How to be an inclusive leader

To become an inclusive leader and improve your organization, there are six steps that you can follow:

1. Create a supportive environment

An inclusive leader needs to create a supportive environment. Each member of the team should feel emotionally supported. To do this, you should engage in active listening and encourage your team to share their current struggles. This isn't only about the struggles they are facing at work, but in their personal lives as well. Creating a warm environment for your team helps them to feel more at ease with their leader and like they are included in a group.

2. Diversify the team

A big part of inclusive leadership is having a diverse team. To get a diverse team, you need to actively strive for it. If you look around you and everyone on the team is from the same background or has a similar way of thinking, then you need to do some work to diversify. You can do this by changing your hiring and promotion practices, and also encouraging those already on your team to think differently. You may already have a diverse team, but because of the environment, they are reluctant to share their opinions.

Read more: How To Increase Workplace Diversity: 9 Steps

3. Establish clear communication

Clear communication is essential in any inclusive team. There should be a communication process in place so that everyone involved finds out information at the same time. You can start by talking to your team members and learning their preferred method of communication. By brainstorming ideas together, you can figure out a process in which you can quickly give out information to those who need it.

4. Encourage collaboration

Once you have your diverse team you need to encourage them to share their ideas. As an inclusive leader, you need to actively encourage everyone to share their ideas and to work together. A good way to start doing this is by asking for some help on something you're working on. Pick out a teammate and ask them to collaborate with you on the task, explaining the benefits for both of you. If you lead by example and encourage team collaboration, others begin to follow.

5. Educate yourself

To become a better and more inclusive leader, you need to regularly educate yourself. Adding in one or two inclusivity methods isn't enough. You should always be on the lookout for new information that can make you a better leader. Read blog posts and books, attend seminars or listen to podcasts. As you learn more about the best ways to be an inclusive leader, you can keep putting those lessons into practice.

6. Have the right attitude

The attitude of the leader impacts those below them. An inclusive leader needs to show up every day with an attitude that is positive and energetic. If the inclusive leader can remain positive and encouraging, the rest of the team will do so as well. Also, inclusive leaders need to remain humble. If someone knows a better way of doing things, embrace it. The point of gathering a team of diverse individuals is because the leader doesn't know everything and wants to learn.

7. Ask for feedback

The last thing you need to do is ask for feedback. One of the hardest parts of being a leader is recognizing our own biases and preferences. You must get feedback from your team and ask how you can be more inclusive. Schedule regular meetings with your team where you ask for feedback or send out a survey. Team members appreciate being asked for their feedback.

Related: How To Demonstrate Leadership Skills at Work

Exclusive vs inclusive leaders

An exclusive leader is the opposite of an inclusive one. Below are some common traits of exclusive leaders:

Decision-making

An exclusive leader is someone who does all of the decision-making. While they may ask for input from others, the final decision is theirs alone. The reason for this is typically to make faster decisions at the cost of making the best decision. Inclusive leaders are more likely to take the time to gather suggestions from their team and factor these into their decision-making process.

Growth potential

Working under an inclusive leader offers more potential for growth. Since exclusive leaders do not seek out new opinions, their employees do not always get the opportunity to push themselves and take on new responsibilities. Without an environment that encourages their input, employees must look elsewhere to grow their skills.

Resistance to change

Inclusive leaders thrive on new ideas, whereas exclusive leaders are more likely to get stuck in their old habits. If a better method comes along for doing something, an inclusive leader is more likely to hear about it because they are always seeking input from others. Organizations with exclusive leaders may find that they are slow to adapt or falling behind their competition.

Communication

Since exclusive leaders rely on themselves more, they may overlook communication. Inclusive leaders want to hear more from their team members and as a result, put effective communication systems in place. An exclusive leader may not have a system in place for notifying team members of important information, or they may simply forget to do so.

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How To Be an Inclusive Leader: 6 Steps To Follow

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There are many different types of leadership and you can consider what kind of leader you want to be to optimize workflow in your team. Inclusive leadership is one such type and it's important for any business or organization. Inclusive leadership can help an organization grow over time.

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Liz Duffy Presentation - Key Patterns & Strategies

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Liz Duffy Presentation - Key Patterns & Strategies

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Women in Leadership: Key Patterns & Strategies | ISS

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Each year, over two dozen leaders from international schools around the world assemble for the annual ISS Mary Anne Haas Women's Symposium to discuss the context for women leadership in international schools, network, and further their own professional development in a stimulating series of workshops and conversations.

Since 2002, this annual symposium has helped to advance women educators in leadership in international schools - as well as provide important role models to future generations of women leaders.

In recent years, symposium alumni have organized workshops at regional conferences for both male and female leaders. In 2020-21 we are adapting to virtual settings.

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Women's Leadership in International Education | ISS

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Each year, over two dozen leaders from international schools around the world assemble for the annual ISS Mary Anne Haas Women's Symposium to discuss the context for women leadership in international schools, network, and further their own professional development in a stimulating series of workshops and conversations.

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Uncharted situations call for unprecedented collaboration. By consciously working to create an inclusive culture, one in which people feel supported, comfortable speaking up, and brainstorming together, your organization will be more able to adapt and innovate.

Lorraine Hariton

President & CEO
Catalyst

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Catalyst: Workplaces That Work for Women

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Uncharted situations call for unprecedented collaboration. By consciously working to create an inclusive culture, one in which people feel supported, comfortable speaking up, and brainstorming together, your organization will be more able to adapt and innovate. Lorraine Hariton President & CEO Catalyst

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Join our new community hub and access expert content on relationships, self, work, society, money, and health.

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Because we know that when you need it the most, information and advice can be hard and expensive to access. And EVERY woman deserves an opportunity to succeed.

Your subscription not only gives you access to boundary-breaking content but seeds a donation to help us to continue to provide resources and information to young girls and women around the world as an educational charity.

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The Female Lead is an educational charity dedicated to making women's stories more visible

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Article: Why Inclusion Unlocks the Power Of Diversity

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Article: Why Inclusion Unlocks the Power Of Diversity

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Diversity in the workplace isn't just a "nice-to-have" - executed properly, it's a proven driver of better performance.

The key phrase there is "executed properly."

"Diversity without inclusion leads to a revolving door of talent," says Khalil Smith, Vice President of Consulting and Practices at the NeuroLeadership Institute.

While it might seem easy to hire more minorities or women and call it a day, the reality is that diversity only succeeds as a business priority when leaders also make it a priority to promote inclusion. This, it turns out, is much harder to get right at a diverse organization. People may come work for you because the role sounds interesting and fulfilling, but if they don't feel like they belong, don't expect them to stay.

"Inclusion absolutely is the device that unlocks diversity," Smith recently told the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

Diversity is valuable on its own because more diverse organizations can draw on a fuller range of experiences to think more creatively and avoid biased decision-making. However, as Smith pointed out for SHRM, leaders must first create "an environment of inclusive behaviors where people genuinely feel and believe and see it demonstrated that the way that they think, the way that they act, the way that they approach problems, their background and who they are" are valued.

That's how diverse employees come to feel engaged: Repeated behaviors from others demonstrate that their ideas and contributions are welcome.

The fact that inclusion is what unlocks diversity is also why we at NLI advocate for cultivating inclusion first, before tackling matters of diversity. Human beings are all but wired to notice differences in others, as multiple studies have shown. We aren't so great at finding the similarities. It's up to leaders to unite employees around shared goals and foster other habits of inclusiveness before doing the work of diversifying their team.

We can think about it like baking a cake. If the cake goes into the oven before the oven has gotten a chance to come to temperature, the cake won't turn out right. Likewise, employees should first be given the tools to form smarter teams if leaders want new, diverse talent to feel engaged.

If teams don't equip their staff, they won't collaborate effectively and those who feel left out may leave for good.

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Here's Why Inclusion Unlocks the Power Of Diversity

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Diversity in the workplace isn't just a "nice-to-have" - executed properly, it's a proven driver of better performance. The key phrase there is "executed properly." "Diversity without inclusion leads to a revolving door of talent," says Khalil Smith, Vice President of Consulting and Practices at the NeuroLeadership Institute.

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Project Implicit- Take a test: Do you have a bias?

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Project Implicit- Take a test: Do you have a bias?

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Preliminary Information

On the next page you'll be asked to select an Implicit Association Test (IAT) from a list of possible topics . We will also ask you (optionally) to report your attitudes or beliefs about these topics and provide some information about yourself.

We ask these questions because the IAT can be more valuable if you also describe your own self-understanding of the attitude or stereotype that the IAT measures. We would also like to compare differences between people and groups.

On the IAT, you may find it easier to pair certain attributes with one group of people compared to another. Your IAT results may depart from your personal beliefs.

Note: This site is designed for adults, aged 18 or older.

Data Privacy: Data exchanged with this site are protected by SSL encryption. Project Implicit uses the same secure hypertext transfer protocol (HTTPS) that banks use to securely transfer credit card information. This provides strong security for data transfer to and from our website. IP addresses are routinely recorded, but are completely confidential. For research purposes, data without directly identifying information is made publicly available. You can find more information on our Data Privacy page.

Important disclaimer: In reporting to you results of any IAT test that you take, we will mention possible interpretations that have a basis in research done (at the University of Washington, University of Virginia, Harvard University, and Yale University) with these tests. However, these Universities, as well as the individual researchers who have contributed to this site, make no claim for the validity of these suggested interpretations. If you are unprepared to encounter interpretations that you might find objectionable, please do not proceed further. You may prefer to examine general information about the IAT before deciding whether or not to proceed.

If you have questions about the study, please contact Project Implicit at questions@projectimplicit.net. To obtain more information about the study, ask questions about the research procedures, express concerns about your participation, or report illness, injury or other problems, please contact:

Tonya R. Moon, Ph.D.
Chair, Institutional Review Board for the Social and Behavioral Sciences
One Morton Dr Suite 500
University of Virginia, P.O. Box 800392
Charlottesville, VA 22908-0392
Email: irbsbshelp@virginia.edu
Website: https://research.virginia.edu/irb-sbs
Website for Research Participants: https://research.virginia.edu/research-participants

I am aware of the possibility of encountering interpretations of my IAT test performance with which I may not agree. Knowing this, I wish to proceed I am aware of the possibility of encountering interpretations of my IAT test performance with which I may not agree. Knowing this, I wish to proceed using a touchscreen OR using a keyboard.

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On the next page you'll be asked to select an Implicit Association Test (IAT) from a list of possible topics . We will also ask you (optionally) to report your attitudes or beliefs about these topics and provide some information about yourself.

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Leaders Should Be Striving Toward 'Optimal Inclusion'-Here's Why

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Most leaders-from those in large multi-national organizations to those in small, nimble companies-have gotten the word that diversity and inclusion are important. The research is overwhelming, and virtually impossible to miss. Diverse teams, and inclusive habits, are as close as you can get to a one-two punch of team performance and corporate responsibility.

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Case Study: If You Have a Brain, You Are Biased

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Case Study: If You Have a Brain, You Are Biased

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CASE STUDY: Splunk, a Global Tech Company, Learns to ‘Break Bias’

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At NLI, we like to say “If you have a brain, you’re biased.” Ever since November 2017, the technology company Splunk has taken that insight to heart.

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Invisible Women - by Caroline Criado-Perez 

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Invisible Women - by Caroline Criado-Perez 

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Episode 363

Snow plowing patterns seem an unlikely subject of a gender study conducted in a small town in Sweden. After all, the town's approach appeared logical and neutral enough on the surface: plow major roads first, particularly those leading into and out of town, followed by smaller local streets. It is the same sequence played out in many cities around the world.

As researchers dove into the subject, however, they discovered that male and female driving patterns were markedly different. While men mainly commuted to and from work, women drove all over to run errands and to take care of elderly family members. They also walked more, trudging across often-unplowed intersections, sometimes with kids in tow. Aside from health and safety, that labor, when tallied up, was found to be worth almost as much to the economy as paid work. "This work contributes hugely to GDP," explains Caroline Criado Perez, author of Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men, a book about how women are often left out of design.

In Sweden, the city council looked at the findings and reversed their approach, plowing side roads and sidewalks first. It had a huge impact, reducing the people admitted to emergency centers, women in particular, and had a corresponding economic impact from lower healthcare costs. Driving through a few inches, as it turned out, was less dangerous than walking through the snow, particularly if one was pushing something like a baby carriage as well.

Of course, the original plowing plan wasn't designed to harm women or to help men. It was seen as a neutral and obvious choice - a default strategy. Only by collecting and analyzing data did it become clear that men were the ones being designed around, which isn't an isolated problem. Males are often the default subjects of design, which can have a huge impact on big and critical aspects of everyday life.

The vast majority of medical research, for instance, is based on studies of men. Perez explains that heart attacks are more often misdiagnosed in women, in part because of the symptoms we're all educated about. For men, chest pain is a common, prominent symptom. For women, heart attacks often present as fatigue or what feels like indigestion, with chest pain appearing in just around one out of eight cases. As a result, fewer women overall seek medical help during heart attacks and even when they do they are often diagnosed poorly by professionals.

Car crash test dummies are also generally male, based on an average man, which of course means they feature different sizes and proportions than a typical female. The tacit assumption is that the 50th-percentile cis male is the average person, skipping over around half of the population entirely. This approach ignores anatomical differences, plus specific individual circumstances like a person being pregnant. These tests impact design, and are part of the reason women are far more likely to be injured or die in a car crash. Even in places where "female" dummies are brought in to test cars, these figures are often just scaled-down male dummies with the same basic shape. Sometimes, too, these dummies are only tested in passenger seats.

Even when women are the focus of design, their actual needs are still sometimes ignored. Consider the three-stone stove, a traditional cooking mechanism used by 80% of people in the developing world. It is a simple device consisting of three stones with a fire underneath and a pot above. This stove not terribly efficient and is often placed in poorly ventilated rooms, exposing women in particular to the equivalent of multiple packs of cigarettes per day worth of harmful smoke. Alternatives have been developed by well-meaning groups, but adoption has been slow, in part because many designers have simply failed to consult the actual women for whom they are designing.

Some solutions increased cooking time or required more direct attention, which reduces the ability of women to multitask and manage other things. Other designs required more maintenance or chopping up smaller pieces of wood, which, Perez points out, are typically jobs men do, or in this case: don't do, presumably because they don't see the need to do extra work when there's already a "working" stove in the house. Of course, when these designs aren't adopted, the women are sometimes blamed for their failure to adapt to the design.

A few years ago, researchers in India developed a device that reduces wood use and smoke. It's cheap, made of recycled metal material, and it's been adopted in India and elsewhere. The design was created after its makers consulted women who were actually supposed to use the device. Instead of imposing a solution or expecting women to change their approach, the designers adapted to the actual needs of women. In some sense, the solution in this case was quite simple: gather data, consult women and include them in the design process. What remains is for other designers around the world to do the same more consistently, and, more fundamentally, to stop seeing just half of the human population as the default targets for good design.

99% Invisible's Impact Design coverage is supported by Autodesk. Autodesk supports the design and creation of innovative solutions to the world's most pressing social and environmental challenges. Autodesk Foundation is a proud partner of 60 Decibels. 60 Decibels makes it easy to listen to the people who matter most. Their Lean Data approach turns customer voice into high-value insights that help businesses grow and maximize their impact. They leverage the power of technology to communicate directly with marginalized communities which allows them to collect high-quality impact data efficiently and at a fraction of the time of traditional approaches. By putting the voice of the customer at the center of impact measurement, they help impact-oriented businesses better serve their customers. That means businesses providing everything from off-grid energy solutions to family health services can better understand their customers, and adapt to their needs - delivering greater impact. To learn more, you can visit 60decibels.com or go to Autodesk.redshift.com to explore more designing with empathy.

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Snow plowing patterns seem an unlikely subject of a gender study conducted in a small town in Sweden. After all, the town's approach appeared logical and neutral enough on the surface: plow major roads first, particularly those leading into and out of town, followed by smaller local streets.

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"It all started as a joke..." So begins the first chapter of Caroline Criado Perez's book, Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men. "At least snow-clearing was something those 'gender people' can keep their noses out of" an official in Karlskoga, Sweden, was reported to remark.

And so the Swedish gender equality initiative team began to explore whether snow clearing was sexist. Sure enough, they found the routine of clearing snow typically benefited men over women. In the winter, snow was cleared first on main roads leading into the city, benefiting commuters-who were mostly men. Foot- and cycle-paths were cleared last-not so good for pedestrians and cyclists, who were very often women traveling with children in pushchairs.

There was a cost to all this: 79% of pedestrian injuries occurred in winter, of which 69% were women. The estimated cost of these falls was SKr36m per winter, about USD$3.7m / £3m / €3.4m / Indian ₹279m. By clearing paths first, accidents decreased by half and saved the local government money.

So why were women in Sweden suffering a disproportionate amount of winter injuries? Was it because:

Policies and practices were designed without triangulating data sources from different public sector departments or utilizing sex-disaggregated data to highlight different experiences and outcomes of men versus women?

Decisions were being made by those in power that reflected only their experience and needs, namely those driving into the office on snowy days?

Deeply embedded values, biases, and mindsets that guide our daily interactions and views of the world, such as valuing paid employment over unpaid care work and working in office jobs in the city center over frontline service-sector and domestic workers?

As we enter 2020, shifting mindsets, power dynamics, policies, and practices will be vital for us to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 5 " Women's Equality and Empowerment."

Foundations and nonprofit organizations will need to bring a gender perspective to their strategic planning processes, data gathering activities, and learning practices. Companies must consider how their products and services serve the needs of women to derive competitive advantage, while also preparing for shareholders to demand more demonstrable progress towards gender equity across all levels of their workforces and supply chains.

As part of our commitment to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion, FSG is fiercely dedicated to supporting our clients to better serve the needs of women and men, and close the inequity gap. We are committed to bringing a pragmatic, holistic, and sensitive approach to exploring the role gender plays in contributing to the holding in place of seemingly insurmountable (or hidden) problems. We must co-create gender-responsive strategies and solutions that include men and boys and that offer more effective routes to achieving equal outcomes in women's and girl's education, employment, health, and ultimately economic empowerment.

In the coming months, we plan to share our insights, lessons, and approaches to advancing the field more broadly. In partnership with our dedicated and passionate foundation, corporate, and nonprofit clients, some of our most recent engagements include:

Working with the H&M Foundation to develop a collective impact initiative to improve the quality of life for waste pickers in Bengaluru, India. The foundation aims to build resilient systemic change in the waste management ecosystem through a long-term cross-sector collaboration. The initiative will work with local nonprofits to improve the living conditions for waste pickers by supporting them with economic opportunities, education, health, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), and access to finance. The initiative also includes a strong focus on gender equity, aiming to allow equitable access to interventions for women and girls in waste picker households.

Supporting Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV)'s Malaria in Mothers and Babies (MiMBa) team to explore how to make more medicinal options suitable in all trimesters of pregnancy and during breastfeeding available earlier than is the case today by making changes to the anti-malarial drug development process.

Partnering with Rhia Ventures to articulate the business case for reproductive health (RH). Through interviews and secondary research, our team found implications on talent attraction, retention, D&I commitment, public reputation, and cost. We examined corporate internal benefits for RH and public stances for reproductive rights to make recommendations about how companies can better support RH.

A project for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to research the changing landscape of menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) and identify opportunities for how different actors can work to improve the lives of ~500m women around the world who don't have access to good MHH-a report coming out of this work is forthcoming in April 2020.

FSG is committed to supporting our clients and partners to bring a gender perspective to our approach. We strive to contribute to the field with lessons and insights that help "keep things practical" and continue to deepen and evolve our internal capacity and learning from leaders in the field.

We would love to hear from you about your experiences, reflections, and ideas, or if you just want to have a chat. Let's make the 2020s count for moving towards gender equity together!
Learn more about our Gender Equity work >

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"It all started as a joke..." So begins the first chapter of Caroline Criado Perez's book, Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men. "At least snow-clearing was something those 'gender people' can keep their noses out of" an official in Karlskoga, Sweden, was reported to remark.

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Can snow-clearing be sexist? Caroline Criado Perez's excellent book Invisible Women starts with this seemingly innocuous question.

The book tells the story of a town in Sweden that decided to apply a gender lens to all policy. One official joked that "at least snow-clearing was something the 'gender people' would keep their noses out of". This got them thinking, is snow-clearing sexist?

Subsequent analysis found that the administration's approach to clearing the streets was indeed sexist, prioritising major traffic arteries rather than footpaths and cycle paths, which disadvantaged women because they disproportionately walk and use public transport. Women also tend to have more complicated travel patterns - dropping children off at school, taking a relative to the doctor, food shopping - than men whose main journey is a trip to and from work. It turns out - unfortunately for the official - snow-clearing was not gender neutral.

Applying the lessons from this analysis, the authorities prioritised snow-clearing of pedestrian and public transport routes. This switch did not cost any money - it just changed the timing - but through savings in productivity and healthcare, it saved the council money in other areas: the cost of pedestrian accidents in cold weather was estimated to be roughly double the cost of winter road maintenance. The policy therefore made sense not just from an equality standpoint, but an economic point of view.

Perez's book gives many more interesting and varied examples of the impact of viewing policy decisions with this different lens. She highlights that what these examples have in common is that they result from data gaps - decisions are made on incomplete datasets with an absence of data on women. The original policy was likely devised by men based on their travel patterns. If women had been involved in the decision, the policy may have been different.

As Nicole Badstuber points out, transport planning is often based on 'standard' travel patterns, which are overwhelmingly male: men are more likely to have direct, point to point daily journeys. Whereas women are more likely to walk or use public transport and their trips are more complicated, involving trip chaining - food shopping, caregiving, picking up children. Badstuber notes that, "by not collecting data on women's travel patterns, or only on commuting, the data tells an incomplete story".

This issue is not limited to gender. Other groups are missing from many data: it is harder to collect data about young people, local authorities can struggle to consult with some harder to reach members of society, older people find it harder to access the internet and are excluded from providing their opinion digitally.

This may therefore be better termed as a diversity gap. Without acknowledgement of this gap, datasets are incomplete and decision making is biased. Like many sectors and activities that rely on data for planning and delivery, the Mayor's Infrastructure Young Professionals Panel believes that the infrastructure sector could do more to account for this bias.

One example from one of the panel member's day job: investment in accessible transport is important. Access improvements not only benefit disabled passengers but many non-disabled people, such as those with young children or heavy baggage. The qualitative arguments for such investment are strong and established but the quantitative methodologies remain undeveloped because of the diversity gap. The benefits of accessibility improvements can be valued based on the value individuals place on improvements such as lifts or ramps. However, the appraisal of these improvements - which are a key part of the decision of whether to proceed - is based on surveys of existing public transport users, not the people who would have the most to gain from these improvements as many of these users cannot use the transport network without lifts or ramps. Any decision based on appraisal will therefore be incomplete as it does not account for the preferences of people with reduced mobility.

This is just one example but any decision that is made based on an incomplete dataset will be biased. It is vital that the diversity gap is acknowledged in decision making, otherwise these groups will be disadvantaged and inequalities will perpetuate.

Diversity issues on major infrastructure projects are currently addressed via Equality Impact Assessments. They are rarely addressed in any detail in infrastructure business cases. Equality Impact Assessments, which are required to fulfil the statutory duty of public bodies by ensuring that equalities are promoted in accordance in the 2010 Equality Act, seek to ensure that equalities are placed at the centre of policy development and review. There is however concern that these assessments are viewed more as a tick box exercise often within the planning application, when it should be assessed earlier in the process in order to inform the design and the actual choice of investment (ie should we invest in cycle lane or additional car parking spaces). Participants in a recent roundtable run by the panel also emphasised the need for Equality Impact Assessments to be informed by consultation. This raises the question about whether diversity considerations are given enough prominence in the planning of infrastructure.

The diversity gap means that infrastructure decisions are based on incomplete datasets. Unless these gaps are at least recognised, and ideally addressed, infrastructure will continue to not be suitable to large parts of society.

The YPP recommends the following:

o a diversity lens should be applied to policy appraisal and decision-making to ensure infrastructure projects are chosen to meet the diverse needs of the population. This should be done early in the planning to inform the options analysis. The planning submission stage is too late. Ideally, diversity considerations should be a major part of the choice of infrastructure investment in the first place.

o diverse views need to be sought at consultation. For example, this could include talking to under-represented groups, recruiting diverse consultation panels, engaging with schools and colleges, using social media platforms.

o consider guidance prepared by groups to promote diversity in designing spaces, such as this.

o review approach to Equality Impact Assessments - what can we do better? Are the recommendations from these assessments incorporated into the design of infrastructure? Commission an ex-post Equality Impact Evaluation to understand limitations of the current approach and create lessons for future assessments.

o perform audits to assess diversity data around London and obstacles to travelling to inform where to target interventions.

o increase diversity in the infrastructure sector, particularly in leadership positions.

The final recommendation, as Perez emphasises: collect diversity disaggregated data!

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Mayor’s Infrastructure Young Professionals Panel

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Can snow-clearing be sexist? Caroline Criado Perez's excellent book Invisible Women starts with this seemingly innocuous question. The book tells the story of a town in Sweden that decided to apply a gender lens to all policy. One official joked that "at least snow-clearing was something the 'gender people' would keep their noses out of".

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Watch minute 20:58-23:29

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Oprah's 2020 Vision Tour Visionaries: Tina Fey Interview

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Video: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO DO SOMETHING LIKE A GIRL?

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Video: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO DO SOMETHING LIKE A GIRL?

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