Women in business and management: Gaining momentum in Asia and the Pacific (2015)

In the Asia-Pacific region, women’s growing presence in the labour market is becoming a driver for economic growth and development. This report highlights statistics and information on women in business and management for countries in the region. Among other findings, the report demonstrates the lack of women in top management positions and the concentration of women in specific types of management and occupations. Women represent a mostly untapped pool of talent, crucial for business in an age where talent and skill shortages are limiting business growth. While there is still much to be done for women’s talent to be fully realized and utilized in the workplace, the report highlights the resources, good practices, organizational structures and networks that are already in place in Asia and the Pacific.

Background

The ILO has a long established record of promoting and advocating for gender equality in the world of work, through international labour standards coupled with policies and approaches that support female workers’ equality with men. At the global level, Women in business and management: Gaining momentum was released in January 2015, which shows that women’s participation in the labour market is ever-increasing and has been the engine of global growth and competitiveness. Building on the momentum created from the global initiative, the ILO took an additional step to examine the situation, statistics and company policies and practices to promote women in management in Asia and the Pacific.

The Report

Women in business and management: Gaining momentum in Asia and the Pacific provides an overview of the status of women in business and management in the Asia-Pacific region based on data collected in the ILO 2013 global company survey. The report illustrates that while some progress has been made, much remains to be done in the region in terms of gender equality in the workplace.

In around 55 per cent of companies surveyed, either women represented 10 per cent or less of senior managers, or no women were appointed at senior management level. Women make up little more than 5 per cent of chief executive officers (CEOs) of publicly listed companies. The data clearly illustrate the lack of women in top management positions and the concentration of women in specific types of management and occupations. Women represent a mostly untapped pool of talent, crucial for business in an age where talent and skill shortages are limiting business growth. Women today are better educated. In 11 of the 24 countries for which data were available women were the majority of all tertiary graduates and students. Yet, 50 per cent of businesses in the region reported that the retention of women in the workplace was a problem. This report highlights the double burden women face in balancing family and work responsibilities and battling gender stereotypes. Considerable strain is placed on women in the region given that they own or manage approximately 30 per cent of all businesses ranging from self-employed (or own account workers), micro and small enterprises to medium and large companies.

The growing engagement of women in the labour market has been a major propeller of regional and global growth and competitiveness, and utilizing the skills and talents of both men and women is beneficial for enterprises and society in general. While progress has been made throughout the years, women's labour market participation is still well below that of men in the Asia-Pacific region. Women tend to be concentrated in the lower ranks of management and in certain business functions. Gender equality in the workplace remains a global issue that needs local and regional solutions. The report serves to highlight the key role of employers’ organizations in supporting business and advocating for gender equality and women’s equal opportunity employment in the workplace and provides an overview of key actions for business.

The Conference

The Asia Pacific regional conference on Fostering female talent in the workplace: Women in business and management was held in collaboration with the ILO and the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF) on 3 July 2015 in Singapore. It brought together over 260 international experts, academics, company representatives, representative organizations of business and other stakeholders to provide an overview of opportunities and challenges faced in attracting and retaining female talent as well as sharing of trends and best practices.

Overall, the conference pointed out that while much progress has been made there is still a need for continued effort to promote change. These efforts should include addressing unconscious bias, focusing on female talent retention to prevent leaks, enabling better work life integration by extending flexible work arrangements to both women and men, taking company and country contexts into account, and ensuring company action while promoting regulatory and policy change. Given that women’s participation in the labour market is imperative for economic success companies and countries should capitalize on the momentum gained and accelerate the rate of change.