It’s always the right time to consider what you can do to help cultivate and grow the impact of women in your workplace. All organizations have room for advancing their efforts to attract, grow, and retain female talent. Often, individuals inside an organization will really want to help drive progress in areas such as this, yet don’t feel they have the power or influence to do so. We believe there is action everyone can take (including you!) to create swells of progress in the workplace. So, we’re sharing some within-reach ideas around ways any one and every one can help create a company culture/reputation/vibe that empowers women to be understood, supported, and impactful in their roles. We’ve also highlighted a few things to be sure to AVOID doing because they will backfire! Scroll down to the role you find yourself in currently for some quick recommendations. If you are interested in additional ideas, we invite you to read on and see what resonates with you.

Things you might do if you are a senior leader inside your organization.

• Encourage other leaders inside your organization (especially those who report to you) to always seek out ways to include women. When ideas are beginning to be generated, when consequences are being considered, when risks and benefits are being assessed, when decisions are being formulated, when budgets are being reviewed, ensure that women (more than one) are always included in the process. Leveraging the value-add of the experience, expertise, and insight women possess is inclusive and strategic. You should want to hear from multiple women on a given issue (read up on the risks of ‘Group Think’ for more insight on why this matters).
• Stay connected to your peers both inside and outside your organization regarding the results they are or aren’t seeing as it relates to attracting, growing and retaining female talent on their teams.  Share any valuable insights with your own team members for exploration.
• Invite your HR partners to the table…frequently. Encourage them to share their recommendations and best thinking as it relates to opportunities to engage with this critical segment of your talent. Provide HR the level of support (guidance and time, financial resources) needed to develop more meaningful policies and programs that can help you really nurture the success of women in your workplace. Allow innovative ideas to take shape, expect mistakes, encourage lessons learned, and support shifts in thinking or plans as needed.
• AVOID: Don’t fall into the trap of deciding an idea or concept might not be worth investing in simply because one type of approach fails to get traction.

Things you might do if you are a people leader inside your organization.

• Ensure you have women on your team and that they are positioned to be successful i.e., don’t put a woman on your team simply for the sake of it – ensure she’s being set-up for success from the start by being qualified for the position and supported in the position with ongoing coaching, guidance, and training as needed; this is not to say women shouldn’t be given “stretch” assignments – they should – but do your part to ensure you’re not throwing someone in the deep end and then merely waiting for them to sink or swim.
• If you’re having trouble attracting and/or keeping women on your team, make it your mission to understand why and explore what needs to change. Prioritize partnering with HR to solve this. As a leader, be sure to discover what each of your team members is motivated by. Understand their top values. Be aware of how they like to receive feedback. Get curious about their short- and long-term goals. Be tuned into what is important to them outside of work (if they wish to share). You can best support your employees when you’ve established a meaningful connection with them and can apply situational leadership principles that help you garner their best efforts while leaving them feeling understood and appreciated.
• Ask your female team members for feedback and input often and do something with the insights you gain. What needs to stop? What needs to start? What is working well? When you do this, you don’t need to wait for the results of an annual employee engagement survey to have an accurate pulse on your team members. Make it your mission to have an open-door environment (even if it’s virtual!) where all team members, women included, are made to feel encouraged to come to you with questions, concerns, feedback, and ideas.

Things you might also do if you are a female people leader inside your organization.

• If you’ve made it to the leadership ranks inside your organization you can elevate your leadership impact quickly by reaching out to support the other rising female talent coming up around you. Have them on your radar screen. Know who is who and what they’re interested in and experienced in. Check in with them from time to time so they have access and exposure to more seasoned female talent in the organization. Offer them a safe place to share their feelings and thoughts. Consider mentoring someone. Make it a priority to help grow the female talent inside your organization. Informal support can be just as impactful as formal support.
• Prioritize your needs and be intentional about how you show up as a leader and role model in the business. Whether you realize it or not, others coming up around you are looking for cues from you. If you are feeling challenged in your current role, team, work dynamic, etc., seek out a mentor or leadership coach and be deliberate about navigating your feelings, perspectives, values, and actions. Evoke transformation. Don’t stay stuck – you don’t need to.
• Piggybacking on prioritizing your needs: keep growing. Ask for what you need for your development (time away, access to other leaders or projects, funding to undertake meaningful leadership development). If you have to make the business case for what you need, make it. You should not let other’s priorities, or the economy, or the time demands of work, or the needs of your team overshadow the importance of your continued growth. As a female leader your ability to leverage and evidence well-honed skills is going to serve you and allow you to continue to expand your impact.
• AVOID:  Don’t be one of “those” female leaders who believes that today’s up-and-coming women leaders must be expected to jump through the same hoops or hurdles that you once did as part of earning their stripes. This is utter hogwash (and unfortunately, it’s a sentiment I still hear from some women leaders in very influential positions). There is enough adversity in the workplace as it is. When you help remove obstacles for the women coming up around you, it serves them AND your organization. It makes it easier for them to focus their time, efforts, and energy on the things that really matter and add value to the business. You also stop perpetuating the workplace behaviors and cultural norms that are truly unacceptable in this day and age. What you had to do to get to your leadership position should not have to be the blueprint for what every woman in the organization must also do to succeed. Everyone’s paths are different. Choose to be an ally and make leading inside your company easier for all women.

Things you might do if you are a Human Resources leader inside your organization.

• You can absolutely influence the decision-making and action-taking that happens inside your organization. In your quest to support the attraction, growth, and retention of women, ask others powerful questions. Get curious about their thoughts and concerns around talent-impacting decisions. Share your best thinking with them keeping their perspectives in mind; anticipate their questions and have thoughtful solutions to offer them for their consideration.   
• Uncover and share best-practices often, especially related to recruiting, developing, and engaging female talent. Encourage stakeholders to explore new ideas by volunteering to pilot new programs or hold focus group discussions around potential changes. Share benchmark and cost analysis information early (before budgets are being finalized!). Help raise awareness and knowledge amongst stakeholders so they can make the most informed, strategic decisions possible.  
• Help your company offer outlets for the women in the organization that support their development and relationship building opportunities. This could include any number of possibilities including but not limited to learning events, guest speakers, a women-focused employee resource group, a mentoring program, or sponsorship of industry meetings geared towards women professionals.  
• AVOID:  Being caught unaware of the Employer brand employees are promoting. I recently saw a post on LinkedIn where an HR leader at a well-known company shared several pictures touting their pride in the leadership development event they were hosting for their senior leaders that week (executives-in-the-making). There were several pictures posted and the pictures depicted a leadership development cohort of several dozen participants. All but one individual pictured was a white male. The poster went on to describe their leadership program as “diverse.”  Huh? Diverse in what way we’ll never know… but what we can assume is that this post no doubt stirred up questions from individuals both inside and outside the company regarding what leadership diversity and representation means to this organization. The irony is that this post was shared by an HR leader who should have possessed great awareness for the powerful statement these images were actually making about the company. HR plays such an important role in helping shape diversity and inclusion inside organizations. As an HR professional, bring your A-game to address your Company’s diverse talent needs and help shape a genuinely inclusive Employer brand. Ensure other Company leaders know their role in doing the same.

Things you might do if you are a rising woman leader inside your organization.

• Align yourself to a more senior advocate/ally/sponsor inside your organization. This individual could be a male or female leader. Cull your list of potential prospects and ask for get-to-know introductory meetings with them if you don’t already know them well. Identifying someone who is respected by their peers and who enjoys supporting and growing the talent around them is key. If they have a track record for sponsoring and advocating for the careers of other rising leaders in the business, it is all the better. It’s important to have a leader in addition to your boss who you can turn to for added guidance. Someone who will get to know you and can speak to your interests and talents when opportunities arise. You will always want the support of your actual boss but you should never be in a position where, should they leave the organization for any reason, your career opportunities inside the company were hinged on their endorsement.     
• Identify a leadership development cohort you can join that offers participants a safe space to explore leadership challenges and opportunities. An outlet for ongoing learning with and from other peer leaders might be available internally or externally to your organization. As you look to expand your value as a leader in the workplace it’s critical to be intentional about your leadership mindset and perspective. Navigating leadership successfully requires tools and awareness that most leaders take years to acquire. A dedicated group focused on cultivating these things can accelerate one’s ability to lead effectively and confidently, sooner.   
• Ask for what you want and need. Is your company lacking a woman-focused employee resource group? Ask for it. Did your last company offer parent-friendly benefits or perks that you found incredibly valuable, and you miss them terribly at your new company? Have a talk with your HR Partner about it. Do you know you’d be more productive if you could navigate work differently? Perhaps you’d like a change in start time or end time or location? Inquire about your options. Companies would much rather know what you need so they have an opportunity to address those needs vs. not knowing and only finding out once you’ve provided feedback during an exit interview.

Things you might do no matter what role you hold inside your organization.

• Value the ideas and expertise of the women you work with just as you would anyone else.
• Become a trusted partner, collaborator, and advocate for women in your workplace.
• Take note of what the women you work with might be navigating outside of work. According to the recent US Census, working mothers account for 32% of the US workforce. Additionally, due to our country’s rapidly aging population and the effects of the recent Pandemic, millions of working women are currently responsible for juggling the care of an aging parent or other family member. Many women in Corporate today have lives outside the workplace that put high demands and strain on them, in part due to responsibilities related to caregiving. Many working women have no plans to off-ramp their careers until suddenly they do. According to the Harvard Business Review 37% of women report that they have left work voluntarily at some point in their careers. Among women who have children, that statistic rises to 43% and women who do off-ramp are staying out of work longer now. Retaining women, especially top talent, will continue to be a challenge if women don’t have the support and flexibility they need at work to feel effective at managing their work responsibilities alongside their lives outside of work. So, each time any of us ask a woman “What do you need?” and each time we really hear them and help them address their needs we are one step closer to empowering her. We can empower women in the workplace in the most meaningful of ways when we understand them as individuals (not just a segment of the workforce) and offer support that addresses their unique needs, goals, and opportunities.

Is it possible for companies to be brimming with talented women who share their brilliance, add immense value, and also tend to their well-being and see to their priorities outside of work? Yes. If we collectively want this to be the norm it requires that we all play a part in making this a more feasible reality. The possibilities around what we might do on this front are endless and this can feel like a big mountain to climb. Don’t be afraid to start out slow… but do start making progress. What will you choose to do to further empower the women in your workplace?