“There are two black women CEOs in Fortune 500 companies right now and there have only been three ever. So, what or where exactly is the problem? Black women are working hard but why aren’t they promoted to the top?”
Whenever gender and diversity are discussed, there is always this one question that is always raised: why are there so few women on the higher level? The representation of black women as CEOs is even less. There is no dearth of capabilities, experience, and talent but still, so many black women never make it to the top management roles let alone become Fortune 500 CEOs.
It isn’t startling to see that currently there are only two black women CEOs in Fortune 500 companies. Some of the evidence of this lack of place at the top for black women are as follows:
THE BROKEN RUNG FOR BLACK WOMEN
‘The broken rung’ in promotions is a phenomenon not one black woman is alien to. According to McKinsey’s Women in the Workplace Report, for every 100 men promoted, every 85 women were promoted, and this gap isn’t the same for all women. Only 71 Latinas and 58 black women got a chance to make their way up the top. As a result, only 38% of women were at the managerial level. This broken rung has a long-term impact on the organizational development pipeline. Since there are fewer black women to start with, it is seldom that anyone makes it to the C-suite or the CEO position.
The COVID-19 crisis could set back women’s progress in corporate America for half a decade. More than ever, black women were almost forced to leave their jobs because of the increased workload at home and more work-from-home expectations from the employers. When there are no proper steps for black women to advance up the ladder, how can we expect them to reach the top? If they do not falter and fall, it will take them a lot more time and battle the obstacles to reach the top.
THEY ARE LOSING GROUND EVERY DAY!
Fewer and fewer black executives are groomed for key and higher-level positions by their organizations. This means that while the rest of the similar level employees have higher chances to make their way to the top, the chances for black women are decreasing every day.
To have a leveled playing field, there is a need for black women to be there. They are not overlooked; it is just that they are not even looked at when it comes to considering promoting them to CEOs. With bias, lack of opportunities, decreasing chances to be noticed, and little to no mentorship, black women are excluded from the race of becoming CEOs even when they deserve it and work for it the most.
THEY ARE ON THE GLASS CLIFF
Black women are always on the glass cliff and at high risk of falling. When discrimination and bias aren’t directly at play, they manifest through these glass cliff assignments that keep black women from achieving high-level career positions. When they make it up to some position at the top, their actions are always highly visible, and the expectations are that the glass would break, and they will fall.
Now more than ever, the responsibility to succeed at every step of the way is prominent for black women. And it is not that they fear working on hard tasks and projects, but it is additional barriers like continued racism and isolation which is more than they can handle. This eventually leads to burnout, moving from one job to another, and problems in accomplishing the main goal of the task. This is detrimental in the long run as black women are always being watched and a single misstep is considered a failure and incompetence on their part.
“Black women have struggled to get a foothold at the top level through the years. It isn’t because they aren’t capable or deserve less. It is because nobody is ready to give them the position they are fighting day and night for.”
