Qatar topped the countries of the region in the representation of women in the workforce in the country. A new report issued by Bain & Company, the global consulting firm specialized in labor research, human development and management consulting, revealed that Qatar has maintained its leadership in the region at the level of female workforce participation, with women making up about 60% of the workforce, which is the highest employment rate for women. In the region, it is followed by the UAE with 55%.
The global report confirmed that the government in the State of Qatar has played a crucial role in stimulating gender equality in various sectors. This strengthened Qatar’s leadership in the region in terms of women’s participation in the workforce.
The company’s report added that the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council are witnessing an unprecedented change with regard to women’s representation in the workplace, calling for more standards of gender equality.
25 major institutions
The Diversity, Equity and Regional Inclusion report included the results of a survey of 1,150 men and women in various fields of business, diagnoses of 25 of the largest organizations in the GCC countries, as well as focus groups and interviews with 50 women in senior positions.
Despite these strides, the GCC countries still face one of the largest gender gaps in the world, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index.
The gap in leadership positions is evident. For example, women occupy approximately 7% of board seats in the GCC countries, compared to 20% of seats globally.
The study showed that gender-inclusive and geographically diverse teams make better business decisions 87% of the time and that 70% of the top-performing teams in the GCC countries have a higher proportion of women.
A change in the form of the workforce
Anne-Laure Malauzat, CEO of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Bain & Company Middle East, said: “Women have changed the landscape of the workforce in the GCC, with an increasing number of organizations reaching the 30% tipping point.
She added: Government pressure for gender equality has been a huge catalyst for this change, and more organizations have seen the clear benefits of gender diversity and added it to their agenda in the past five years as a result. Inspiring, she explained, many of these institutions are local and pioneer gender equality practices and policies globally in a way that uniquely reflects the cultural and societal context of the region.
Bain & Company has developed an approach rooted in research and experience that helps organizations understand their starting point and decide on the best practice path forward. This approach includes five main pillars:
(1) A comprehensive gender equality strategy, vision, and leadership commitment
(2) Workplace culture, inclusion and belonging
(3) Talent Journey
(4) Compensation and benefits
(5) External engagement with customers, suppliers, society, and governments, and clear, measurable goals supported by practical organizational policies and programmes.
Based on extensive research on these practices, three main patterns emerge along the different maturation stages of the gender equality journey:
Level 1: Emerging Adopters are organizations that are just beginning their equity journey.
Level 2: Determined learners are companies that are moving forward.
Tier 3: Entrepreneurs represented by the world’s foremost pioneers in gender equality practices.
A Bain report showed that 50% of GCC organizations are Level 1, while 40% are Level 2, and less than 10% are Level 3.
Lack of leadership positions
Karen Khalaf, Head of Women in Business, Bain & Company, Middle East said: “Women can add significant value to the workplace, but there are still very few women in leadership positions in boards and companies in the region. There are plenty of practices companies can adopt to start or advance their gender equality journey. And if all institutions contribute their roles, and learn from each other, it is possible to continue working on implementing equality and bridging the gender gap.
Bain & Company is a global management consulting firm that provides services to ambitious corporate clients seeking to define the future. Today, the company has a network of 64 cities and 39 countries around the world, and collaborates with its clients to form a single work team with a common ambition to achieve exceptional results, outperform the market competition, and redefine industries.
The company says: We complement our specialized and comprehensive expertise by working within an environment full of digital innovators in order to provide better, faster and more continuous results. Our 10-year commitment to investing more than $1 billion in pro bono services transfers our talent, expertise and insights to organizations facing pressing challenges in education, racial equality, social justice, economic development, and today’s environment. Since our founding in 1973, we have determined our level of success through the success of our customers, and we pride ourselves on maintaining the highest level of customer loyalty in the industry.
