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Two in three women in recruitment believe family impacts career progression

October 8, 2015  /   No Comments

Nick Elvin

Sixty-six per cent of females working in recruitment believe that family and caring responsibilities negatively impact on talented women’s promotion and career prospects. That is according to new research from Westminster Business School, University of Westminster, which was commissioned by the Women in Recruitment initiative.

Although family and caring responsibilities were found to have the most negative impact on career prospects, the study also revealed that other perceived contributing factors include lack of confidence (40%) and an ‘old boy’ network-style atmosphere (41%).

However, despite these perceived hurdles, there is some disparity between what respondents are seeing within their own organisation and how they view the wider sector. Respondents are significantly more positive about their own company than the profession as a whole. For example, only 11% said being a woman was an issue within their own organisation, but 26% revealed it was a problem sector-wide.

In terms of solutions, 63% of respondents believe flexible working opportunities would encourage more women to stay in the profession and 66% said mentors would have a significant impact on improving retention.

Commenting on the results, Ann Swain, APSCo CEO and Women in Recruitment board member, said: “This isn’t a box-ticking exercise. There is a clear business case for developing and retaining more women in our profession. Our talent pipeline continues to leak females – often at a time when they can add most value to the business.

“This new insight has helped Women in Recruitment to develop a range of compelling mentoring, personal development and networking services based on the needs of individuals and companies working in the sector.”

In response to the study’s findings, Women in Recruitment has already outlined a programme of support for individual and company members to address the issues that female professionals habitually face. The programme includes personal development opportunities, access to mentors and networking events. The personal development courses will touch on topics including self-awareness, assertiveness, self-management and career planning.

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