www.aurora50.com Open in urlscan Pro
3.28.162.156  Public Scan

Form analysis
0 forms found in the DOM

Text Content

 * ABOUT
   * OVERVIEW
   * Partners
 * SERVICES
   * NOORA
   * INCLUSION SUMMIT
   * Fixing the bAIs
 * Pledge
 * BROCHURES
 * Events
 * Insights
 * MEMBERSHIP
 * CONTACT

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER EMAIL
 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 




WELL-NETWORKED WOMEN RISE WITH STRONG TIES 


Suzanne Locke 26 April 2023
Editor's picks, Insights
Share
 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 


 
Encouraging your women employees to forge external ties may not sound like the
missing piece of a retention strategy. But studies show that women climb the
career ladder when they have a strong network – and that they network very
differently to men.
With the world of work traditionally set up for men, networking has historically
served men better than women.
Yet women do well when they have an ‘inner circle’, according to studies. They
look for organic relationships forged by shared experiences such as gender or
career stage.
Men network more strategically, forming alliances rather than relationships.
Quote from Adam Grant, organisational psychologist, professor and author,
writing in Give And Take: A Revolutionary Approach To Success. “If we create
networks with the sole intention of getting something, we won’t succeed. We
can’t pursue the benefits of networks; the benefits ensue from investments in
meaningful activities and relationships.”



LIMITED OPPORTUNITIES MAKE EMPLOYEES QUIT

After salary, limited opportunities for promotion is the top reason given by
staff for leaving, according to recruiter Robert Half.
More than a fifth (22 percent) of executives they surveyed in 2014 cited limited
opportunities as the thing most likely to make them quit. A slightly higher 28
percent said an inadequate salary and benefits would make them walk, while
another 12 percent said it was a lack of recognition.
What would make you quit your job?
 * Inadequate salary and benefits 28%
 * Limited opportunities for advancement 22%
 * Unhappiness with management 14%
 * Overworked 12%
 * Lack of recognition 12%

Source: Robert Half, 2014


REPLACING STAFF IS EXPENSIVE

Retention is not only good for business, though, it’s cheaper. The Society for
Human Resources Management (SHRM) estimates that it costs six to nine months of
an employee’s salary to replace them.
And resigning staff persuaded to stay with higher salaries left within two years
anyway, Robert Half found.
SHRM also found that female managers were less likely to feel included in key
company networks than male managers. Up to 65 percent of women felt excluded.


‘IMPERATIVE THAT LEADERS LOOK AT GENDER GAPS’

“Organisations with a higher proportion of women in leadership positions
experience improved business outcomes, including greater innovation and
productivity,” says Emily Dickens, SHRM’s chief of staff and head of government
affairs.
“Yet women are still under-represented in the C-suite.
“In a climate where it’s harder than ever to source and retain talent, it’s
imperative that business leaders take a closer look at the gender gaps that
exist across their organisations to see that every employee has the opportunity
to realise their full potential.”


STUDY 1: THE INNER CIRCLE


In a seminal study on women and networking, Brian Uzzi professor of leadership
and organisational change at the US Kellogg School of Management, analysed
millions of emails sent by 728 MBA graduates (a quarter of whom were women).
He found that male MBA students with a very broad network performed best in the
job market, securing jobs with more authority and pay.
Women, he found, needed an ‘inner circle’ of close female contacts to help them
achieve high-level executive positions – even though they had similar
qualifications and experience to their male counterparts.
Almost four-fifths (77 percent) of the highest-achieving women in the study had
strong ties with an inner circle of two to three other women.
Women who formed that strong inner circle were nearly three times more likely to
be promoted than women who did not have such a support system.
And women who tried to network like men actually did the worst in their careers.


STUDY 2: THE BENEFIT OF WOMEN-LED NETWORKS


Gender inequality in the workplace is partly caused by the networking gap,
according to research published in Human Relations in 2018 by Marjo-Riitta Diehl
and co-authors.
‘Structural exclusion’ such as evening networking sessions hit women harder,
they found, because of work-family conflicts.
But in any case, women were looking for a different type of network. Women tend
to seek emotional and social support from their networks, they said.
Men preferred a ‘cost-benefit analysis’. They sought an exchange of direct
benefits, such as promotion opportunities and job openings.
In interviews with 37 women business leaders at large corporations, the
researchers found that the sense of reciprocity bestowed by women’s networks was
empowering for members.
They also found that women felt a moral obligation to support junior associates
– and were therefore more likely to ‘network down’ by cultivating relationships
with lower-level colleagues.


STUDY 3: PEER NETWORKS OFFER STRENGTH


‘Organic’ networking was favoured by early-stage career women, over the more
‘strategic’ networking that men preferred, a 2016 paper written by Terhi
Nokkala, an education researcher at the University of Jyväskylä in Finland, and
co-authors found.
Studying women academics – a field low in gender equality – they concluded that
women wanted organic relationships from a shared experience such as gender or
career stage.
The women they interviewed all recognised the benefits of strategic networking.
As a result, they ‘blended’ their networking to achieve both career objectives
and professional and personal satisfaction”.


THE LEAKY PIPELINE: STATS ON WOMEN AT WORK

 * Women account for just 31 percent of senior roles globally – Grant Thornton,
   2021
 * One in four women in the corporate world is considering downsizing their
   career or leaving the workforce altogether – McKinsey, 2021
 * For every 100 men promoted, only 79 women are – McKinsey, 2018
 * Some 51 percent of mothers with children under 18 find it harder to advance
   their career as a mother, compared to 16 percent of working fathers – Pew
   Research Center, 2013


NOORA: THE MISSING PIECE


“Aurora50 spoke to many women before launching NOORA this month,” says
co-founder Diana Wilde. “We have provided networking opportunities for three
years to women board directors, with Pathway20 and Manarat. And we have offered
networking at scale with our summits.
“But now we want to widen the scope, to offer a UAE network to all senior
professional career women working in corporate environments.
[Contact us to discuss NOOR packages]
“We believe that women network well, when they are in the right network. As
Terhi Nokkala says, strong ties with peers offer strength. Meeting peers at the
same level but in different corporations provides an opportunity to talk openly
about shared issues. We want women to rise together, through the ranks.


‘WOMEN SHOULD START NETWORKING EARLY’

“Right now, we only offer corporate packages to organisations. You can buy
bundled membership for a dozen – or dozens – of your high-potential women
employees. (There’s a waitlist if you want to buy membership for yourself.)
“We think women should start networking early (before they get too senior and
realise they’re alone at the top), so we offer two levels: a lobby for
first-time managers and a mezzanine for more senior women who are already
managers of managers.
“Now is the time to make networking work for women. And to give your future
women leaders their future inner circle.”
Get in touch to buy NOORA for your organisation’s women managers.


RELATED POSTS


 * EMIRATI WOMEN’S DAY: A CELEBRATION OF GENDER BALANCE 
   
   28 August is a day to celebrate women in the UAE, with gender balance an
   integral part of the Emirati culture. 


 * THE INCLUSION SUMMIT HERALDS NEW ERA OF DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION
   
   Guinness World Record for most people pledging to undertake gender equality
   in the workplace broken.


 * THE BUSINESS CASE FOR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION – IN NUMBERS
   
   Statistics to take to your executive or board to help you persuade your
   business DEI training is worthwhile.



KHALIDIYAH PARK BUILDING, AL KHALIDIYAH, ABU DHABI
MAKATEB 4, DUBAI PRODUCTION CITY, DUBAI


PHONE EMAIL
 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 
 * 


ABOUT

 * PARTNERS


SERVICES

 * NOORA
 * INCLUSION SUMMIT
 * FIXING THE BAIS


PLEDGE


BROCHURES


MEMBERSHIP


OTHERS

 * CONTACT
 * INSIGHTS
 * EVENTS
 * IN THE MEDIA

Copyright © 2024 Aurora50. All rights reserved.
Terms & conditions   |   Privacy policy

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in
settings.

Close GDPR Cookie Banner
Accept Reject Settings Close GDPR Cookie Banner


X

Close GDPR Cookie Settings
 * Privacy Overview
 * Strictly Necessary Cookies

Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user
experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs
functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our
team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and
useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save
your preferences for cookie settings.

Enable or Disable Cookies

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This
means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable
cookies again.

Enable All Save Settings