Things that make us go hmmm; one of those could be men leading the beauty industry. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t mean to perpetuate gender role stereotypes, and certainly men are welcome at Sephora, Ulta or any beauty supplier or service provider. Skin is skin after all, and we can all use a good face wash and moisturizer to set a good clean foundation for the day.
What made me go, hmmmm, was a recent article by Noor Lobad, Why Representation of Women in Beauty's Workforce Drops by Nearly 50% at the Senior
Management Level. According to the source Statista, women spend slightly more than men on beauty products and services. Women spend $3,756 a year compared to $2,928. This amounts to $225,360 and $175,000 over a lifetime! Despite the higher spend by women, more men hold management positions in the beauty industry.
The Double-Bind of Attracting Diversity
In the article, Lobad references a unique double-bind; the industry needs to see more women employees rise to the top while attracting more male employees at the entry level. Men are the minority of beauty’s workforce, but they are all concentrated at the top; women are the majority yet they are concentrated at the bottom. Women compromise about 70 percent of the workforce across 25 of the beauty’s largest publicly listed companies, but only 36 percent are in senior management.
It is a similar funnel that we see in the research done by consulting firm McKinsey, called Women in the Workplace. Here is what is meant by funnel; at the entry level, applicants are close to 50 percent male and 50 percent female; however, at higher ranks in the organization, including the C-Suite, the percentage shifts to 80 percent male and 20 percent female.
The Current Landscape
The beauty industry employs a significant number of women, with many brands and companies marketing predominantly to female consumers. Women are a driving force in this sector, contributing to creativity, innovation, and consumer insights, but not at the high management levels in the organization.
Why the Drop?
Several factors could contribute to this steep decline:
1. Unconscious Bias and Stereotypes
Unconscious biases and stereotypes about gender roles persist in many industries, including beauty. These biases can influence hiring and promotion decisions, often favoring men for leadership positions. Women are frequently judged more harshly for their leadership style, perceived competence, and even their appearance, creating additional hurdles for their advancement.
2. Lack of Mentorship and Sponsorship
Mentorship and sponsorship are crucial for career advancement. Women often lack access to these networks, which can provide guidance, opportunities, and advocacy necessary for climbing the corporate ladder. Senior male leaders may be less likely to mentor young women due to biases or perceived social risks, further limiting women's advancement opportunities.
3. Work-Life Balance Challenges
Balancing work and family responsibilities is a significant challenge for many women, especially in demanding senior roles. The beauty industry, like many others, often requires long hours and significant travel, which can be difficult to manage alongside family commitments. Without adequate support systems and flexible work policies, many women opt out of or are unable to pursue senior management positions.
4. Corporate Culture
The corporate culture in many beauty companies may not be conducive to promoting women into senior roles. A lack of diversity and inclusion initiatives, combined with a predominantly male leadership team, can create an environment where women feel undervalued and unsupported.
From Double-Bind to a Troubled Mind
What drew me to this article is the common idea that inspired my own book. Males and females are in relative agreement about the value of diversity to an organization’s competitive advantage; at the same time there is disparity between the workplace experiences and hurdles that men and women face. It is the latter that goes undiscussed, and when these topics remain below the surface, we don’t get to the root cause of the challenge. We don’t get to see the challenges that others face.
I share an example in the book, but I will provide a little more context here. I worked for a company early in my career where an unspoken, but understood rule, linked promotions and relocation; more specifically, if you wanted to be considered for promotion, you could only turn down a relocation option once. I moved at least three times and all four of my children were born in different states due to career moves that required relocation. That was my choice and fortunately my spouse was supportive of this.
At one point, I volunteered for an international assignment and management told me expat or expatriate – the name for a person living and or working in a country other than their country of citizenship – with a family is too expensive. The candidate they chose, however, was a man with three children, the same number of kids I had at the time. Now, I only knew what I saw and what they told me; perhaps he had more experience in a particular area that the company needed. The only feedback I got at the time was the expatriates with families are too expensive, and I did not understand why a man with a family was less expensive. It was a disparity. It was troubling to my mind, but I forged on.
Systems Run Deep
The research is pretty clear. Men are significantly more likely to feel a compatibility between having a career and a family, for example, while a survey among employees at the middle management level or higher shows nearly a 10 percent drop in the likelihood of women versus men to agree that their current assignments are preparing them for a key leadership role.
Lest any men reading this think this is a criticism, please let me be clear, I just want to talk about it. A few weeks ago, I wrote about privilege; it is not the absence of working hard, but the realization that there are things you don’t have to worry about that others do. When corporations were established years ago, we were in very different times. For the most part, women stayed home and managed the household and men went to the office. It make sense that the needs and expectations in the corporate systems were set up around men, benefits, time off, business travel and more. These ideas are so deeply engrained in the system, that some people don’t even realize there could be a different way, different challenges, different experiences. This is what people mean when they say systemic inequality.
Systemic inequality refers to disparities in wealth, resources, opportunities, privileges and practices that are deeply ingrained within the structures and institutions of society. The disparities are institutionally created and reinforced for some groups. The operative phrase is “some groups.”
It also explains why men and women can both acknowledge the importance and even financial benefits of diversity, equity and inclusion as well as support it. At the same time, however, they do not know how to fix it. We have to acknowledge the privilege in the first place, and then the need to having open conversation about. That is the key to change.
Breaking patterns for a new way
I share some personal experience, not to whine, but to open a dialogue about change. I started my career at a manufacturing plant in the rubber tire industry. I worked with a lot of great male leaders, and there were a lot at the top, at least above my pay grade. After that I went to the food industry, and I was excited to see more women. I shared my joy with one of the female Vice Presidents that I met. I remember her response when she said, well, it makes sense that we have more women, as women do most of the grocery shopping and therefore, we are a source of innovation and insights. She also told me that we still need more women in leadership.
This conversation happened nearly 25 years ago. Much like the beauty industry where the primary consumers are women, there are more men in leadership in the food/grocery industry. These are still things that make me go hmmmm, enough to initiate a conversation to set us on a path for a new way.