It might seem like there isn't much of an overlap between Alicia Carpenter, Gretchen Carlson, Julie Roginsky and Nicole Kidman, but you'd be wrong. Despite their differing backgrounds, each is working towards the same goal — creating more inclusive workplaces for women.
Whether as the head of a production studio, a tutoring company or even a nonprofit dedicated to improving office cultures, the mission of increasing female perspectives across the working world is the same.
For this year's Women's History Month, and in advance of International Women's Day, reporters with Employee Benefit News dove into trends impacting women in the workplace, ranging from retirement preparation to the skepticism surrounding health issues and more.
Findings from Culture Amp, the Australia-based employee experience platform, show that while
"I would love to say that we're seeing progress across the board, but our data revealed that it's still not quite where we would want it to be," Julie Knight, chief marketing officer at Culture Amp, told EBN. "Because for women that are looking to advance in their career, the demands from their work and the demands on their time have really accelerated."
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Even when those efforts have an adverse effect on their health, women are more likely to prioritize work.
Data from MD Live, which is an Evernorth virtual healthcare provider, found that roughly 60% of women disregard when their bodies tell them something is wrong, regardless of the nearly 80% of respondents who say they trust when their intuition flags something wrong. More than 40% said that symptoms worsened after ignoring them.
Dr. Vontrelle Roundtree, associate chief medical officer at MD Live, told EBN that "gynecological, mental health, respiratory and skin issues" are the top areas that women hesitate seeking care in, leading to troublesome situations for the prompt treatment of underlying conditions.
"On average, women wait more than six weeks to seek care for gynecological and mental health concerns, while they wait more than three weeks for respiratory issues," Dr. Roundtree said. "This trend is especially concerning for conditions that may not present immediate or severe but could signal underlying health issues if left untreated."
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Dive into insights below on how women leaders are building better paths forward for future generations of talent.
New generations of women are doubling down on retirement prep
Establishing a comfortable future, building up emergency funds and caring for loved ones are all part of preparing for retirement — and older women are helping to ensure that younger generations start planning sooner than ever.
Data from Prudential found that while men between the ages of 55-75 have roughly $157,000 on average saved up for retirement, women have only around $50,000 put away for that same purpose.
"Unlike what I hear from some of the mothers who say, 'Wow, I regret how I ended up here,' the 20-somethings I'm talking to are [saying] 'Tell me that I'm on track, tell me what I need to do and help me do this,'" Liz Miller, founder and president of Summit Place Financial Advisors and chair of the Certified Financial Planner Board's Board of Directors, told Employee Benefit News.
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Work, misperception are major reasons why women put off health issues
Roughly 60% of women disregard instinctual signals that something is off with their health, even when more than 80% feel that their intuition is spot on when detecting health issues, according to data from MD Live.
Further research from MD Live, which is an Evernorth virtual healthcare provider, found that 45% of women push off addressing symptoms during the workday and 37% wouldn't leave work if they didn't feel well.
"On average, women wait more than six weeks to seek care for gynecological and mental health concerns, while they wait more than three weeks for respiratory issues," Dr. Vontrelle Roundtree, associate chief medical officer at MD Live, told EBN. "This trend is especially concerning for conditions that may not present immediate or severe but could signal underlying health issues if left untreated."
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How a founder of Forum Education balances being a mom and an executive
As the president and COO of Forum Education, Alicia Carpenter is no stranger to facing challenges head on. From her executive duties, to raising two children and even maintaining her role as a tutor, the balancing act of being a working mother is tough.
"From a personal standpoint, [accepting the role of CEO in 2022] was a stressful decision for our family, because it meant adding more hours into my day where I was away from my kids," Carpenter said. "But while it wasn't necessarily the ideal solution for my present, I could already see that it was the best solution for my future."
Between starting the company in 2014 and transitioning into her current position in 2024, Carpenter reflected on self worth's significance to building a work-life balance and how initial sacrifices can pay off big in the long run.
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Gretchen Carlson, Julie Roginsky work to build transparent workplaces
Gretchen Carlson and Julie Roginsky, both former Fox News hosts known for their groundbreaking sexual harassment lawsuits against controversial chief executive Roger Ailes, are raising awareness of the troubles that come with non-disclosure agreements.
Both Carlson and Roginsky work through their co-founded nonprofit Lift Our Voices, which
"People don't care about these things until something happens to them, [and by then] it's too late," Carlson said. "When you go to HR thinking that's the right place to go and that they're going to actually care about you and look out for your interests ahead of the company's, if you have an NDA or a forced arbitration clause, immediately that clicks in and there's no turning back."
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Nicole Kidman on what makes a workplace collaborative
Nicole Kidman, Hollywood actress and winner of numerous awards like an Oscar, Emmy, Golden Globe and many others, is helping foster a creative workplace through lessons learned as an artist and a mom.
Kidman, who has run the production company Blossom Films since 2010, centers her leadership style around core tenets like understanding each others' limitations, providing good food to fuel creativity and utilizing technology in the right ways to reduce workloads.
"We accommodate people's schedules and what they do, and everyone's got each other's back," Kidman said in a recent Q&A produced by Paycom, a cloud-based human resource and payroll software company. "And when people are ready to move into some other area, I'm here to support their dreams."
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