The republic of women leaders – time for a faster change

The necessity for diversity in business, including diversity in company management, as well as the advantages it brings and the challenges it presents, was a topic of a discussion at the Economic Forum in Karpacz. Participants in the debate titled, “The Republic of Women Leaders – Challenges in Management, ESG, and Social Change”, deliberated on this matter. Despite the growing awareness among companies and various campaigns supporting women’s careers, the current state of affairs does not instill much optimism. Polish women still earn significantly less than men (according to the EU data, the wage gap is approximately 11%) and hold a limited representation on the boards of large companies (17.2% in WSE-listed companies).

Anna Zejdler, who moderated the discussion and serves as the head of the newly launched platform kobieta.rp.pl, officially unveiled at the event in Karpacz, inquired about effective strategies to alter this situation.

The importance of inclusivity

– “It all depends on the conditions we create for women”, stressed Renata Prys, head of the People Department at McDonald’s Polska. She added that the company, which currently has 34,000 employees in Poland, is highly receptive to diversity, including gender diversity. They are committed to fostering the growth of their employees and offer well-defined career trajectories and development initiatives, including programmes focused on leadership development.

The effectiveness of these programmes is evident from the fact that at McDonald’s Polska, the representation of women in managerial positions has already reached 70%. Furthermore, women make up over 44% of the company’s management board, with four out of the nine members being women. Among franchisees, the proportion of women stands at 33%. Many women hold managerial roles within McDonald’s, where they are responsible for leading teams of 70 to 120 people. These teams often reflect significant diversity, with 59% of the company’s employees belonging to the young Generation Z. Additionally, McDonald’s boasts a workforce representing 30 different nationalities, and 7% of its staff comprises individuals with disabilities.

In light of these factors, Human Resources (HR) plays a vital role in cultivating an inclusive culture within the company, ensuring that everyone feels comfortable in their workplace. This is facilitated by the “speak-up culture” — a principle encouraging every McDonald’s employee to openly voice their opinions and address any issues.

Benefits of DEI

To establish an inclusive culture that promotes women’s career advancement, it’s crucial to ensure that managers are adequately trained and supported. Therefore, McDonald’s places significant emphasis on enhancing soft skills within its development programmes, particularly focusing on bolstering self-confidence for women.

Participants in the discussion unanimously highlighted that Polish women’s career opportunities are frequently hindered by a lack of self-assurance and belief in their abilities. – “Many women are reluctant to apply for higher positions because they do not believe in their own competences or because they fear that their work-life balance will suffer”, said Monika Klaus-Piskała, Director of Pharmacoeconomics and Health Policy at the pharmaceutical company MSD Poland. She emphasizes the importance of grassroots initiatives that promote diversity, especially concerning women’s careers. That’s why MSD Poland actively supports such initiatives, with a notable achievement of 80% of recent promotions going to women, and women holding a 60% representation on the company’s board.

Many companies are increasingly recognising the advantages of diversity on their boards and are responding to growing regulatory pressures in this area by setting targets for women’s representation in leadership positions. For instance, a global chemical leader, BASF, has committed to raising the proportion of women in management roles to 30% by 2030. Anna Tarasewicz, a board member and HR director for the EMEA region at BASF ECMS, highlighted that this goal has already been surpassed in Poland, where women constitute 50% of the managerial team. – “It is not about the rate itself, though. Diversity in the company is important”, emphasised Anna Tarasewicz, reminding that BASF, in an effort to break stereotypes, has been encouraging Polish women from 2021 to develop a career in the chemical industry as part of its social campaign, “Chemistry is a woman”.

The female managers participating in the discussion emphasised the increasing importance of DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) policies, which are now being adopted by a growing number of large companies, including nearly all multinational corporations.

Magdalena Brzezińska, Corporate Affairs Director at the Żywiec Group (which has five women out of eight members in its management team), highlighted the critical role that DEI policies, encompassing various aspects of business operations, such as compensation policies, play in modern companies.

However, it is essential to convince the entire management team about the benefits of diversity and inclusivity. To achieve this, by the end of the next year, all managers at the Żywiec Group will undergo DEI training aimed at increasing their awareness of negative gender and age stereotypes, among other objectives.

The power of diversity

Anna Durzyńska, who serves as a board member and HR director at Nestlé Poland, highlighted the importance of identifying Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). She emphasised that relying solely on mentoring and coaching to support women is no longer sufficient. Instead, there is a need for tangible metrics and well-defined guidelines. For instance, Nestlé has implemented a policy where succession plans for managerial roles must include female candidates to be considered valid. – “I believe in the power of diversity, not only gender diversity but also diversity of generations and different points of view”, said Anna Rulkiewicz, CEO of Lux Med Group, noting that she personally oversees the company’s DEI policy. She noted that 70% of Lux Med’s board is made up of women, with an 80% share of women among middle management personnel. She pointed out that employers should plan women’s career paths in such a way as to help them overcome the dilemma between career and family.

Reconciling work and personal life is facilitated by the flexible approach of companies, including flexible hours and remote or hybrid working options. Anna Durzyńska emphasised that the hybrid work introduced during the pandemic helped in reconciling. This was also evident at Nestlé, where, after the pandemic, a rule was introduced that office days are set within teams and not top-down.

An important part of the DEI’s policy is also to take care of wage equality, an obligation which will soon be imposed on large companies under EU regulations. Notwithstanding this, quite a few companies have been trying to combat wage discrimination against women for a long time. As Renata Prys pointed out, McDonald’s has had a global Pay Equity programme in place for several years, whereby the company examines the pay gap every year, ensuring that it is not caused by annual wage increases.

Tackle the pay gap

The analysis of wage increases in terms of equal pay was also discussed by Anna Durzyńska. She highlighted that Nestlé improves its performance every year in the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index survey, which takes into account as many as 70 different DEI indicators (the company has participated in the survey for five years). Monika Klaus-Piskała pointed out that MSD Poland, as part of its DEI policy, surveys employees’ opinions three times a year to assess measures and progress in this area. She also emphasised that the pay gap should be already tackled during recruitment, ensuring that new employees are not overpaid as compared to existing staff members.

Participants in the debate agreed that regulations play a big role in increasing women’s participation in company boards and combating the wage gap. As Anna Durzyńska emphasised, regulations help to bring about change more decisively. – “It is necessary to impose an obligation to a certain degree. The requirements placed on companies are essential”, agreed Anna Rulkiewicz. Monika Klaus-Piskała drew attention to internal, company-wide initiatives, such as MSD’s Women’s Network, which supports equality measures within the company.