Women Criminal Defense Attorneys: Harvard Case Study Points the Way to Gender Equity

Just recently, the New York Times published an article about a Harvard Business School Case Study on Gender Equity, which summarized in detail a two-year experiment that was conducted at Harvard Business School (HBS).

HBS hoped that focusing on gender relations could turn around their own record on gender equity, which (as with most business schools) included a sharp gender salary gap that widens dramatically after graduation, along with a low retention rate amongst women professors.

And they realized that their role as leaders in business gave them an opportunity to provide the larger business community with much-needed information on how to effect real change in workplaces across the nation.

In 2010 the first woman dean of Harvard committed to addressing the disparity that still existed at the institution and appointed a dean of the business school who was committed to this same mission.  He and his team addressed how students spoke, studied and socialized at HBS: “The institution would become a laboratory for studying how women speak in group settings, the links between romantic relationships and professional status, and the use of everyday measurement tools to reduce bias.”

And remarkably, by graduation many of the students and faculty reported the school had become a better place for female students, who were participating more in class overall, while a record number of women were winning academic awards.

The experiment included coaching women on subtle details such as how to more aggressively raise their hands during class. Women lagged far behind men in class participation, which accounts for 50% of a student’s final marks.  It also included adding stenographers in class so that professors would no longer rely on biased memories of who said what, as well as developing new methodologies where professors cold-called on students who were grouped in teams. New software was used to identify patterns by gender.

One factor that administrators discovered was a pressure amongst single women who felt they had to choose between academics and social success, which they attempted to address. Finally the administration make an effort to increase and retain female HBS professors by helping them succeed in the traditionally male dominated working environment.

The bottom line is that the numbers don’t lie. At HBS, one of the oldest symbols of success is the Baker Scholar award that is awarded to the top 5% of the graduating class. Historically there has been a disproportionately low percentage of women winning this award.  This year, after the two-year experiment, that number skyrocketed to an all-time high of 40% women.

For me the HBS experiment sends two powerful messages.

First, that focusing on and addressing head- on the gender disparity in business today can bring about tremendous change. Second, with just small adjustments to how women function in business, huge change can occur.

I love this study because it confirms what I have believed for some time, which is that we women continue to hurt ourselves by remaining silent.  Without question, standing up and facing these issues head on is the answer.