Publications

June 2016
Article

Task Segregation as a Mechanism for Within-Job Inequality: Women and Men of the Transportation Security Administration

By: Curtis K. Chan and Michel Anteby

What could explain inequality within a given job between groups of workers, particularly between women and men? Extant workplace inequality scholarship has largely overlooked as a source for inequality the job’s work content—the actual tasks workers perform. It is... View Details

Keywords: Inequality; Work; Mechanisms And Processes; Stratification; Labor Process; Qualitative Methods (General); Case Method; Field Research; Equality and Inequality; Working Conditions; Gender; Labor; Labor and Management Relations; Air Transportation Industry

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2016
Working Paper

Explaining the Persistence of Gender Inequality: The Work-Family Narrative as a Social Defense Against the 24/7 Work Culture

By: Irene Padavic, Robin J. Ely and Erin M. Reid

It is widely accepted that the conflict women experience between family obligations and professional jobs’ long hours lies at the heart of their stalled advancement. Yet research suggests that this “work-family narrative” is partial at best: men, too, experience... View Details

Keywords: 24/7 Work Culture; Hegemonic Narrative; Social Defense; Work-family Conflict; Systems Psychodynamic Theory; Work-Life Balance; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Equality and Inequality; Organizational Culture

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March 2020
Article

Explaining the Persistence of Gender Inequality: The Work-family Narrative as a Social Defense Against 24/7 Work Culture

By: Irene Padavic, Robin J. Ely and Erin M. Reid

It is widely accepted that the conflict between women’s family obligations and professional jobs’ long hours lies at the heart of their stalled advancement. Yet research suggests that this “work-family narrative” is incomplete: men also experience it and nevertheless... View Details

Keywords: 24/7 Work Culture; Hegemonic Narrative; Social Defense; Work-family Conflict; Systems-psychodynamic Theory; Work-Life Balance; Personal Development and Career; Gender; Equality and Inequality; Organizational Culture

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April 2019
Case

Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn: The Power of Writing to Launch and Sustain a Movement (Abridged)

By: Julie Battilana, Lakshmi Ramarajan and Michael Norris

In 2018, New York Times writer Nicholas Kristof and his wife, former Times writer Sheryl WuDunn (HBS ’86) who worked in finance, were planning for their next book. The couple’s earlier books had given rise to social movements around gender equity and poverty issues.... View Details

Keywords: Social Movement; Gender Equality; Writing; Social Issues; Gender; Equality and Inequality; Poverty; Books; Change; Leadership

14 Apr 2014
Research & Ideas

Difficulties for Women Bridging Racial, Generational, and Global Divides

one reader in the comments section of Oprah.com. "Oprah—you should be ashamed of yourself!" “Let's replace our judgment with curiosity” Among scholars, it's called "intersectionality"—the obvious yet complex idea that gender interacts... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

Research Summary

Overview

For the past several decades, income inequality in the United States has steadily increased. The extent of this inequality is exacerbated when making comparisons between the very rich and poor or men and women. Professor Exley’s research is driven by a desire to better... View Details

29 Aug 2018
Working Paper Summaries

How Much Does Your Boss Make? The Effects of Salary Comparisons

Keywords: by Zoë B. Cullen and Ricardo Perez-Truglia

26 Jul 2023
Research & Ideas

STEM Needs More Women. Recruiters Often Keep Them Out

research suggests that gender bias seeps in before women even apply to these programs, undercutting the goal of broadening applicant pools and bolstering equity in business—particularly in technology. It’s happening as universities lean... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

08 Mar 2022
Research & Ideas

Representation Matters: Building Case Studies That Empower Women Leaders

when they think through a decision point or reflect on the leadership journey described in the case. But who are these “model” leaders? Since 2015, the HBS Gender Initiative has been analyzing gender... View Details

Keywords: by Colleen Ammerman and Boris Groysberg

18 Jun 2024
Research & Ideas

What Your Non-Binary Employees Need to Do Their Best Work

When Katherine Coffman presents her research findings about how gender stereotypes shape the behavior of men and women in the workplace, she is often asked: What about non-binary individuals? “People understandably keep asking, ‘What... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

13 Apr 2021
Book

How Inclusive Managers Create Glass-Shattering Organizations

also attempting to raise awareness about gender inequality for early- and mid-career professionals as well as women at the senior executive level. Although significant progress has been made over the past 50... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

Research Summary

Dissertation: Is the Ideal Worker Still Real? Sources and Consequences of Men's Professional Identities

My dissertation examines the implications of men's changing lives for their work identities and for gender inequality in organizations. Current theories of workplace gender inequality hinge upon the widely-shared cultural image of an "ideal worker,"... View Details

05 Mar 2010
Working Paper Summaries

Will I Stay or Will I Go? Cooperative and Competitive Effects of Workgroup Sex and Race Composition on Turnover

Keywords: by Kathleen L. McGinn & Katherine L. Milkman

August 2021
Case

Zoom Video Communications: Building a Culture of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion During COVID-19

By: Karen G. Mills, Scott Duke Kominers, Christopher Stanton, Andy Wu, George Gonzalez and Gabriella Elanbeck

Keywords: Diversity Management; Diversity Training; Cultural Change; Cultural Diversity; Inclusion; Inclusive Growth; Inclusive Hiring; Hiring; Hiring Of Employees; Recruiting; Performance Management; Change Leadership; Race And Ethnicity; Racial Bias; Racial Disparity; Racial Injustice; Racial Tensions; Racism; Organization; Organization Process; Organization Structure; Structural/institutional Racism; Leadership And Change Management; Leadership And Managing People; Leading; Gender Bias; Discrimination; Inequalities; Inequality; Social Change; Employee Attitude Development And Empowerment; Employee Bonding; Employee Empowerment; Employee Engagement; Employee Fairness; Employee Morale; Employee Performance Management; Employee Relations; Company Culture; Company Values; Values; COVID-19 Pandemic; Demographics; Diversity; Age; Ethnicity; Gender; Business Processes; Change Management; Change; Race; Human Capital; Human Resources; Compensation and Benefits; Employees; Employee Relationship Management; Recruitment; Retention; Selection and Staffing; Jobs and Positions; Job Interviews; Leadership; Leading Change; Management; Management Teams; Business or Company Management; Crisis Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Style; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Organizational Design; Organizational Structure; Organizations; Mission and Purpose; Culture; Happiness; Prejudice and Bias; Satisfaction; Equity; Identity; Leadership Style; Values and Beliefs; Technology Industry; United States

September 2011 (Revised November 2011)
Case

Liberté, Égalité, Sororité: How Should France Achieve Boardroom Parité?

By: Boris Groysberg and Hilary Fischer-Groban

The French government is considering mandating a gender quota for corporate boards. Other countries have approached the question of gender equity in corporate governance in various ways; which model might best work for France? View Details

Keywords: Equality and Inequality; Governing and Advisory Boards; Gender; Corporate Governance; France

September 2022
Case

HPP: Tapping the Netherlands’ Potential

By: Brian Trelstad and Idelès Kaandorp

Stichting Het Potentieel Pakken (HPP) was launched to solve a systemic problem in the Dutch Labor Market: gender inequity that was leading to a large number of women to work part-time in fields that were in desperately short supply of labor, like health care, child... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19 Pandemic; Grants; Scaling And Growth; Nonprofit Organizations; Opportunities; Gender; Income; Employment; Health Care and Treatment; Human Capital; Mission and Purpose; Motivation and Incentives; Growth and Development Strategy; Employment Industry; Health Industry; Education Industry; Consulting Industry; Europe; Netherlands

Forthcoming
Article

On Why Women-owned Businesses Take More Time to Secure Microloans

By: Goran Calic, Moren Lévesque and Anton Shevchenko

Examining gender differences in business financing reveals important dimensions on which women- and men-owned businesses differ. Although considerable progress has been made in understanding gender differences in mobilizing resources, the role of time in business... View Details

Keywords: Microfinance; Gender; Financing and Loans; Equality and Inequality; Risk and Uncertainty; Decision Choices and Conditions; Entrepreneurship

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December 2019 (Revised December 2021)
Case

Negotiating for Equal Pay: The U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (A)

By: Christine Exley, John Beshears, Manuela Collis and Davis Heniford

In 2019, members of the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (WNT) filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation. The case describes the history of the WNT's quest for equal pay leading up to this event. View Details

Keywords: Equal Pay; Negotiation; Compensation and Benefits; Equality and Inequality; Gender; Prejudice and Bias; Negotiation Tactics; Corporate Governance; Lawsuits and Litigation; Sports; Sports Industry; United States

March 8, 2022
Article

Women Can’t Go Back to the Pre-Pandemic Status Quo

By: Colleen Ammerman and Boris Groysberg

Survey data collected in 2018 and 2019 from Harvard Business School graduates revealed that for women—and especially women of color—well-being at work was suffering long before the pandemic. While 17% of all respondents said that they often or very often experienced... View Details

Keywords: Women; Burnout; Gender; Race; Resignation and Termination; Well-being; Employees