Companies Should Not Sit Out the #MeToo Movement
Oped by Aditi Mohapatra, director of Women’s Empowerment, Business for Social Responsibility
With few exceptions, the world’s biggest companies and most influential business leaders have responded to the #MeToo moment with an uncomfortable silence — a far cry from their vocal and visible activism around issues including the Paris Climate Agreement and the U.S. immigration travel ban.
One has the sense that companies are unsure of how to proceed out of fear or tepidness.
At the same time, most companies have thus far avoided scrutiny in the era of #MeToo. According to data gathered over the last six months by Polecat, a technology company that analyzes online and social media trends, companies represent just a tiny proportion of the social media conversation, having been referenced in well under 1 percent of posts.
But that lack of attention in social media should not be cause for complacency. Smart companies have an opportunity and a responsibility to speak out loudly and boldly as advocates for the advancement of women’s rights in the workplace. We need leaders to raise their voices and companies to meet this moment with action at the individual, corporate and policy level, and create working environments that support and empower women.
When thinking through solutions, there can be a temptation to think about these challenges in silos — focusing purely on sexual harassment policies and training, for example. To truly meet the moment, however, companies should focus, with a renewed sense of urgency and effort, on their broader commitments to women’s empowerment and gender equality.
Many companies have made commitments to diversity and gender equality, with about 1,900 having signed onto the Women’s Empowerment Principles CEO Statement of Support. All companies need to revisit their current levels of ambition and deploy senior leadership to communicate these positions outside of the company, to customers, consumers, suppliers and policymakers.
Taking bold action is not just the right thing to do — it’s good business. Customers are increasingly voting “with their wallets,” rewarding companies that promote gender equity in leadership and are committed to women’s advancement.
To be made credible, however, highly visible public stances must be underpinned by concrete changes in corporate policy that empower women in substantive ways. Companies should start by addressing the severe power imbalance that exists inside many companies. Businesses that upend this dynamic with more balanced leadership structures are less likely to experience incidences of workplace sexual harassment than those that are male-dominated and extremely hierarchical.
Having more women serve on boards of directors can also improve the working environment for women. Female directors are more likely to have experience in risk management, human resources and corporate governance, and their inclusion demonstrates that the company values women as leaders and decision-makers.
Corporate policies start, of course, in the C-Suite and the boardroom. Achieving long-lasting changes that promote women’s advancement in the workplace must also include efforts to strengthen governance and accountability systems. To promote models of respectful workplace behavior, it’s important for companies to ensure that their policies and practices to manage sexual harassment incidents are well communicated, by making it clear what constitutes harassment, educating bystanders on how to support victims and training staff on required reporting tools and grievance procedures.
Boards of directors should also strongly consider adopting new due diligence procedures that enhance their scrutiny of potential CEO candidates in light of recent events. Companies should also explore making the human resources function directly accountable to the board of directors or mandating the report to boards of employee complaints. This type of change will send a strong and unambiguous signal that workplace sexual harassment is a priority issue and will not be tolerated.
Finally, companies should leverage their considerable skills and resources and use their voice to drive change at a systemic level. For example, companies selling consumer goods can use their marketing and advertising campaigns to challenge traditional gender stereotypes and social norms regarding the roles and abilities of women. Companies can also support policies and legislation to increase financial penalties for harassment and bring transparency to sexual harassment claims. According to the World Bank, one in five countries still do not have appropriate laws against sexual harassment in employment.
With so many opportunities for meaningful corporate action, every company should have a compelling response to how they are responding to this moment. Women have raised the volume on the challenges they have been facing across workplaces. Now we need companies to step up and make clear women have been heard.
By Aditi Mohapatra, director, Women’s Empowerment, Business for Social Responsibility
