There is plenty more room for women at the top of companies – we all need to admit that, not just men

Researchers seem to love a building-related metaphor when it comes to talking about the world of work – from the “corporate ladder” to the “glass ceiling”; they find inspiration from all corners of your common-or-garden variety DIY shop. Therefore, it is only fitting that we meet the new term on the block: “the broken rung”.

Recent research reveals that a “broken rung” exists between entry-level and management positions for women, forestalling female talent from reaching the boardroom. The research also shows that the representation of women at the C-suite level has inched ever so slowly upwards in the last five years, from 17 to 21 per cent. There can be no doubt that it is a step in the right direction but the momentum could gather a bit quicker.

The Women in the Workplace report, carried out by management consultants McKinsey for Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In initiative, took place over five years, drawing in data from 590 companies, totalling 22 million employees – so it’s safe to say the research is a fair reflection of what is happening to a lot of women in work all over the world.

Assumptions and bias (eg “not hiring a woman of a certain age as she’ll probably vanish off to have a child soon”) have huge effects on women’s careers. The cry from companies that they are only paying men more because they are in senior positions is really starting to get old. Gender pay gap reporting data, required from UK companies with over 250 employees since 2017, has even, at times, been shown to be implausible – and if they thought no one would bother to calculate the sums and call them out, they were wrong.

“Female-related sectors” are often low-paid (such as childcare, cleaning, catering, clerical work) but even when women rise to the top of male-related sectors, they earn less – because women’s work is valued less. At the other end of the spectrum, it was discovered by Cornell University that while a janitor’s job (traditionally a male occupation) is low-paid, it’s still 22 per cent more than a cleaner’s job (traditionally a female occupation). One could argue a janitor and a cleaner is not exactly like for like, but we’re talking less apples and oranges than we are Braeburn and Pink Lady.

As the report mentioned, there are many more men at the top levels of companies. There are, in fact, more men named David or Dave at the helm of FTSE 100 companies than there are women. (In the US, the name’s John.) And another fun fact: those female FTSE 100 bosses? They’re paid on average £300,000 less than the 94 male counterparts.

It’s highly demotivating to think your efforts, your input, skills and expertise don’t merit that of a human who happens to have a different chromosomal coupling.

The report showed that while men are hired and promoted on the basis of their expected potential, women are often hired and promoted on the strength of their past achievements. Hence why many women don’t apply for jobs unless they meet every single criteria listed in a job description. We assume that it is necessary for us to fit perfectly into a particular slot described by a list of bullet points, as opposed to opening a potential employer’s eyes to the skills and experience we do have that could be invaluable to them. Women look at the world of work and wonder where they can fit into it; where can I cause the least disruption and help the most? Men, research suggests, mainly consider how they can change the world of work around them to suit their end goal.

But to be clear, this is not at all an exercise in men-bashing. In my own experience, my male bosses have been by far superior in terms of my personal and professional development when compared to the women for whom I have worked. Possibly this has been bad luck. But those in senior positions who do possess the double-X chromosome pattern could probably do better at helping a sister out as well.

The male-dominated corporate world – in fact, the world in general (also, mainly dominated by men) – has cultivated the “queen bee syndrome” whereby women in a senior position treat their female subordinates in a harsher manner than they would a man. Not only can senior women be tough on their junior colleagues but also, according to Harvard’s Professor Robin Ely, junior women can judge their senior females equally harshly due to their bosses’ failure to live up to high expectations as trailblazers.

Women’s experiences in the workplace will only ever improve if everyone – male and female – recognises that biases and challenges still remain, and that we all need to work together for change. Ethnic and gender diversity leads to competitiveness and a healthier bottom line – so there can be no denying that mending the “broken rung” will not only help pull more of us up the ladder, but it makes good business sense too.