“Not all storms come to disrupt your life, some come to clear your path”, wrote Paulo Coelho. Now, Coelho wasn’t referring to the global coronavirus pandemic when he penned this, but it fits perfectly. Adversity disrupts and we can either exist in rubble or use it as an opportunity for change. 

This especially pertains to the gender gap in the workplace. A recent article from McKinsey found that nearly 1 in 4 women are considering a downshift, if not a full exit from the workplace entirely. This is a storm we need to avoid as it would unravel any advancement made for gender parity over the past couple decades. 

However, what this adversity also highlights is what was wrong with the workplace prior to the pandemic, and how we might use the pandemic to leverage a clear path and eradicate past discrepancies. One fault being the “broken rung”, or the gender gap in entry-level managerial positions. 

Women hold only 38% of entry-level managerial positions as opposed to men who hold 62%. This gap widens for Black women (only 58 Black women to every 100 men) and Latinas (only 71 Latinas to every 100 men). And, concerningly, if you dig into this discrepancy, the reasoning seems to come down to gender bias.

When you’re an entry-level worker you have a short track record at your company. You’ve likely spent under a year working at the company and some of that time was spent training. Entry-level workers also don’t have a developed expertise yet. However, these are the things that are evaluated when considering who to promote.

So, with a short track record, limited work experience and novice expertise, how do you decide who to promote from entry-level to managerial positions? Based on the numbers, it comes down to gender bias. As women spend more time in positions and grow in their careers, the bias gets to be expelled through proven experience. However, that first-step up and early on in their careers, gender plays a role in promotions. 

This is unacceptable as fewer women in entry-level managerial positions leads to fewer women in mid-level positions, and fewer women in senior-level positions and so forth. This “broken rung” needs to be addressed, and we can’t wait on turtle-paced corporations to make the change.

The pandemic has led to complete disruption, especially in the workplace. It’s important to recognize that disruption and not just return to the old “normal”, but to use it as a chance to right historic wrongs. As Coelho said, use the storm as a mode to clear a new path. 

Now, that’s abstract, but how can we tangibly amend this faulty rung in the corporate ladder? By taking a few empowered steps:

First, find a mentor. Having a mentor makes you five times more likely to get a promotion. So, get to scheduling those virtual meetings and preparing polished talking points because having a mentor will exponentially increase your odds of advancement in the workplace. 

Next, learn something new. Make continuous learning a hallmark of your professional career. Whether that’s attending an online business school or reading an industry book, bringing value to the table makes you indispensable. And more often than not, you can reap that value by learning something new. 

Then, take on the job. Before you get the title, do the job. Take on all the responsibilities of the desired position so that when it comes decision time there will be no doubt that you’re qualified and deserving.

Finally, and most importantly, know your worth. This will carry you through it all. If you get passed up for a position you know you deserve, having a strong sense of self-worth will empower you to advocate for yourself. If bias plays a role in the decision, be able to call it out by knowing your worth and acting accordingly. 

While it’d be ideal to have an equal playing field for all demographics, corporations play into gender discriminatory patterns like the “broken rung”. By bringing an awareness to it, we can hurdle over the bias with an empowered mindset and faith that slowly, but surely, gender parity will be realized in the workplace. An optimistic indicator of the advancements women have made is the record-high number of women attending business school. This signals that maybe in a few years or decades, women won’t have a “broken rung” in there ladder. Instead, it’ll be as sturdy as any ladder a man would climb. 

Sources: McKinsey | GreatBusinessSchools | Guider