Women in Supply Chain: 26% C-Suite Roles Now Filled by Women: Gartner
Women have experienced gains at every leadership level in the supply chain workforce, according to a survey by Gartner, signaling a solid comeback for the sector.
Increases were prominently seen within the C-suite and executive level, with 26% of those roles now filled by women, a growth from 19% in 2022.
From February to March 2023, Gartner’s eighth annual Women in Supply Chain Survey questioned 225 supply chain leaders. The findings showed that women comprise 41% of the supply chain workforce, up from 39% in 2022.
“It’s particularly encouraging to see women make gains at the senior executive level, as we know that when a woman holds the top supply chain position, this has a positive correlation with more women in leadership and in all roles through that organization,” said Caroline Chumakov, director analyst in the Gartner supply chain practice, in a statement.
The study contained questions about the representation of women from underrepresented races and ethnicities, pay equity and transparency, frontline engagement practices for women in on-site roles, practices that increase the success of women in supply chain roles, and attrition challenges specific to women.
The study shed light on issues concerning frontline representation that continue to lag, with women filling only 31% of those roles. Chief supply chain officers have previously reported challenges concerning attrition for frontline positions in manufacturing and logistics, especially when compared to desk-based jobs.
Supporting initiatives to attract more women to frontline roles could provide a material, competitive advantage over those unable to do so. Flexibility was vital in attracting and retaining women in frontline positions, outperforming areas like benefits, focus on equal pay, and employee engagement programs.
However, supply chain leaders are slow to implement initiatives focused on workplace flexibility, with only 41% with one in place.
“There remains a mismatch between employers’ fears of chaos and instability as a result of workplace flexibility policies and the realities of what we see in our research and case studies of successful supply chain organizations. What we see in our research is that flexibility is benefiting both the organization and their female employees,” said Chumakov.
Since 2020, there has been an increase in organizational goals and supply chain-owned initiatives concerning gender equality that are having a measurable impact on the growth of women within the supply chain. Based on the findings, there is a clear correlation between women in senior-most roles leading to more leadership roles and other opportunities within the organization for women.
“This connection between female leaders and the effect on women in the workforce has positive implications for how supply chain leaders can better design their efforts to improve representation of women in supply chain,” said Chumakov.
The study was conducted in partnership with AWESOME, a U.S.-based nonprofit organization that focuses on the advancement of women within supply chain leadership, and boom!, a U.K.-based global community focused on supporting women with the supply chain profession.
