For International Women’s Day, did your organization challenge bias at work?
February 01, 2019
Bias continues to hold women and workplaces back, so this International Women’s Day help your organization to #BreakTheBias at work.
Women have made important gains in representation in the last few years. But we’re still a long way from equality.
Employers need to act now to support, retain, and advance women. Combating the biases women face at work is critical to getting this right. Research shows that bias contributes to women being passed over for jobs and promotions. Almost 60 per cent of women regularly experience microaggressions at work. And women of color, LGBTQ+ women, and women with disabilities face more acute biases. But fewer than half of employees say they've spoken out against biased behavior at any point in their career.
Knowing that bias exists isn’t enough. We all need to take action to #BreakTheBias — on International Women’s Day and beyond.
The collaborative International Women's Day / Lean In free toolkits include everything to help empower colleagues to speak up and drive change.
#BreakTheBias via the 50 Ways to Fight Bias program
The IWD / Lean In 50 Ways to Fight Bias program is designed to empower people to identify and challenge bias head-on.
In this one- to two-hour IWD 50 Ways to Fight Bias workshop (optimized for virtual sessions), teams can:
- watch a short video to learn about the most common types of biases that women face at work — including the compounding discrimination women face based on their race, sexual orientation, disability, or other aspects of their identity
- discuss, in small groups, specific examples of bias, brainstorm solutions together, and learn research-backed recommendations for what to do
- commit to one action they will take as individuals to #BreakTheBias this year
Need help getting started? Sign up to attend 50 Ways to Fight Bias Moderator Training to learn directly from the Lean In team how to run this workshop for IWD and beyond.
50 Ways to Fight Bias has been used by thousands of organizations, including Amazon, PayPal, Walmart, and the Wharton MBA Program. And it works: 95 percent of program participants are more committed to challenging bias, and 96 percent of managers feel better equipped to talk about bias with their teams.
Help women go farther, together, with Lean In Circles
Lean In Circles provide women in organizations with the peer mentorship and support they need to advance.
For many women, finding connection and support at work is a major challenge. Lean In Circles can help. Circles provide a space where women can come together in small groups across roles and levels to get peer-to-peer mentorship, connect with each other, recognize and combat gender bias, and build leadership skills.
In this 60- to 90-minute workshop (optimized for virtual sessions), teams can:
- get a snapshot of the latest data on how bias impacts women at work, from Lean In and McKinsey’s Women in the Workplace report
- Participate in an interactive connection activity (available in seven languages) where participants will experience the power of peer mentorship and support for themselves.
- Learn what Lean In Circles are and how participants can continue to #BreakTheBias this year by starting their own Circle.
Need help getting started? Sign up to attend the live training How to Bring Lean In Circles to Your Company to get advice directly from the Lean In team on how to get a Circles program going.
More than 62,000 Lean In Circles have been started in 190 countries and at over 3,000 companies — including P&G, Salesforce, and Medtronic. Companies of all sizes use Lean In Circles to help connect women with the peer support they need to reach their goals.
Further details
Sign up to stay up-to-date on Lean In’s research-backed DEI training programs that help women advance and organizations challenge bias. Or click here to learn more.