Despite all they have to overcome, women still make better bosses than men
Alex Ekong
A study has revealed that women make better bosses to employees than men do.
Yup, you better believe it. Not only are women taking leadership positions in their stride, they’re absolutely smashing it. That’s despite everything you’ve heard about maternity leave and yes, that nasty pay gap.
According to a 2015 report, which was based on over 40 years of research, women are more likely to focus on building employee engagement in their workplace than men, which leads to them being better bosses.
More than 27 million workers were interviewed over the course of time it took to gather this research. Of those workers who were polled, the survey found they were more likely agree with the following statements if their managers were women:
- “There is someone at work who encourages my development”
- “In the last six months, someone has talked to me about my progress”
- “In the last seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work”
Additionally, female managers eclipsed their male counterparts in numerous other areas. These included setting basic expectations for their employees, building relationships with their subordinates, encouraging a positive team environment and providing employees with opportunities to develop within their careers.
So, no more excuses for poor representation
I know all about the benefits of being managed by women, working under two of the best any company has to offer here at Debut. But despite this well-documented evidence proving it, the vast majority of people will not get the experience due women being badly represented in management positions.
Women made up just over a third of managers in the UK last year and there are genuinely more men called John than women of any name at the head of FTSE100 companies.
Yet, there is more call for engagement in the workplace than ever before. According to Gallup, 87% of employees worldwide report feeling disengaged at work. And let’s not forgot, it’s young people and millennials that suffer the most from disengagement from their jobs.
It’s time to stop thinking of this as a coincidence any more. It’s been said time and again, that diversity and gender parity has clear economic benefits. Companies with highly engaged workers outperform their competitors by 147 per cent in earnings per share. So the message to CEOs from this report is clear. If you want your company to do well, promote more women.
