Hi! I’m a recruitment manager at a multinational company based in Dubai. One of our major policies is workplace diversity. However, I find it difficult to recruit top-level female talent for our company as many of them are hesitant when it comes to applying for executive positions for fear of having to sacrifice home life for their job. Can you please help me with ways to attract female talent and keep them in the company? Thank you! Sophie L.
Answer by Bayt.com:
Including workplace diversity policies is great for any company. However, attracting female talent of exceptional caliber can be difficult, especially for more senior or managerial roles. Here are 5 ways that can help your company maintain a better balance of genders at the workplace:
Many women have doubts about working at certain companies because of a lack of equal opportunities. In fact, less than half (49%) of working female respondents believe that men and women are treated equally in the workplace, according to The Bayt.com Status of Working Women in the Middle East survey, December 2014. You must have workplace policies in place that ensure equal opportunities for both men and women. This includes but isn’t limited to salary, promotions and work distribution. Infusing this kind of policy will help attract and retain talented female professionals.
If you’re looking at attracting female talent, why not post your vacancies on those resources where the audience is primarily women? For example, you could target your social media posts on to a female-only audience or post vacancies on leading job sites or women magazines with a high female audience. It all depends on how to strategize your resources in order to attract the best and most diversified talent for your company.
Some experienced professional women might not be able to work on-site due to personal obligations. Offering flexibility at work promotes productivity among these women and encourages them to accept the job. You could include various flexi-time options, such as half-day at work half-day at home or coming in three days a week, for example. Here are 5 types of flexible work arrangements that work.
Offering the right amount of maternity leave days is extremely important for female employees. Leave policies show that the company’s top management and human resources sympathize with their female workers. Although all women place increased importance on the number of days granted to them as part of their maternal leave, only 35% of companies in the Middle East provide paid maternity leave, as revealed in The Bayt.com Status of Working Women in the Middle East survey. Bayt.com, for example, offers a 70-day maternity leave and a three-week paid leave for those who have been with the company for five years or more.
You can hold monthly or quarterly celebrations for your female employees to reward them and celebrate their achievements. At Bayt.com we have quarterly fiestas where we celebrate top performers. The company plans several family-friendly events throughout the calendar year - Ramadan Iftar, spring trip, Eid festivities, etc. - and employees are encouraged to bring family members and friends. Employees and their families get the opportunity to socialize and enjoy a community feel outside the office. Here are some non-cash bonuses that you could give to your female employees.
