7.3 Develop promotion processes to counteract bias in promotions
Content
Description of Best Practices
Follow successfully proven practices that include:
- Once a year all managers are invited to submit proposals on a set number of employees for promotion
- The committee assesses all candidates based on their potential to successfully perform in a new role
- Promotions are granted consensually
- In case no consensus can be reached, the best candidates are invited to participate in an application process, where assessment of these candidates can be done by an external party
Establish a promotion committee with equal representation of female and male high-level leaders who meet on a regular basis to evaluate current talent pool and potential of individuals for promotions
Challenges of Implementation
Company politics may influence decisions on promotions
Women may not be in visible functions and therefore not as known to committee members
May be difficult to nominate female committee members when they are underrepresented in leadership roles
What Success Looks Like
Promotion committee is functional and used for all promotions
Resources and Tools
Guide: A Toolkit for Recruiting and Hiring a More Diverse Workforce (University of California, Berkeley)
Guide: Tailoring Organizational Practices to Achieve Gender Equality: A Best Practice Guide (Chapter 4: Promotion and Succession Planning) (Gender Equality in Decision-Making, GEM)
Article: Why Do So Many Men Become Incompetent Leaders? (HBR)
Article: How to Make Unbiased, Merit-Based Employee Promotion Decisions with Data (Toolbox)