The world has long ceased to be only a men’s playground. However, even as women increasingly take on significant career positions, the rules of the business world often remain unfairly designed. Women face unique challenges in the workforce – from unequal pay to biases about their ability to assume leadership roles. For women to truly gain equal opportunities as men, it's essential to change the dynamics of inequality and prejudice. Part of the strategy to break the glass ceiling should include empowerment programs for women that provide tangible skill development opportunities, networking, and confidence-building.
Game rules and the entry cost
In Croatia, women still earn on average 11.2% less than their male colleagues in equivalent positions, while in the EU this gap is around 13%. While this disparity is a problem, workplace equality is far more complex than wage gap statistics.
Europe and Croatia have many highly qualified women (up to 60%), but they remain underrepresented in higher-paid executive roles. Moreover, many women in leadership positions still lag in terms of salary and advancement opportunities. Less than 10% of CEOs in large organizations are women. When women reach managerial roles, they earn 23% less than their male counterparts. The SELECTIO index highlights that women in leadership positions are still disproportionately few.
To reduce these inequalities, by June 2026 EU member states will need to incorporate into their legislation the goals of the EU Pay Transparency Directive and the Directive for Gender Balance on Corporate Boards. For many organizations, this marks the end of the glass ceiling and the beginning of genuine gender equality, as well as the realization that a shift in work culture is needed.
Why do women leave leadership positions?
Key prerequisites for achieving gender equality and equal pay include equal opportunities for employment, advancement, reward, and general career success. While employers need to ensure equal opportunities for professional growth for women, they must also provide sufficient opportunities for mentorship, networking, and strengthening leadership skills.
Yet, women continue to leave leadership positions despite various initiatives and opportunities already offered by numerous employers. Why is this happening? The reasons are varied and complex – from limited workplace flexibility and a lack of support for work-life balance to more frequent scrutiny of their business proposals. Women face the dual burden and expectations – they need to be excellent leaders while also being careful not to be perceived as "too ambitious."
Glass ceilings, double standards, and unconscious biases – women in the business world manoeuvre through an obstacle each day. In addition to these professional challenges, women often take on a greater share of responsibilities at home – they perform up to 75% of unpaid work. This reality often goes unnoticed at work but significantly impacts how women approach their careers. Thus, flexibility in working hours is one of the main factors women consider when choosing an employer.
Women in management roles often invest more time in building relationships and developing people, which is crucial to the success of any organization. This strength of women is frequently overlooked during performance evaluations. For these reasons, women more often than men leave managerial positions when they feel that the organization does not provide a supportive environment.
Mentorship as a path to equal opportunities
Mentorship is often a pivotal point in a woman’s career. Research shows that up to 54% of women in leadership positions had a mentor who supported them in their development. Therefore, it is essential to invest in programs that aim to equalize the "rules of the game" by levelling the playing field.
The Equal Play Mentorship program is SELECTIO Group’s latest program, combining mentorship, specific training, and networking opportunities to help women reach their full potential. Equal Play Mentorship includes a 12-month tailored program in which HR professionals match complementary mentors with mentees from different organizations to empower women for leadership roles through facilitated mentoring.
SELECTIO program for women's empowerment
While finding a mentor independently is one way to develop professionally, under the influence of personal and business obligations, mentor-mentee collaboration can often become diluted. Joining a structured and guided mentorship program ensures consistent and planned collaboration between mentors and mentees.
The program begins with a 360° assessment and assessment centre that, through specific questionnaires, interviews, and group tasks, enable the evaluation of mentees’ leadership competencies. Then, mentors and mentees from different organizations are paired through facilitated mentoring, creating complementary mentorship pairs. This approach offers participants exposure to new perspectives and skills in a unique, supportive environment over 12 months.
Mentees are supported by bite-size education targeting identified areas for leadership competence improvement, while mentors receive support in developing mentoring and coaching skills. The program also includes other elements that enhance the effectiveness of empowering women, such as Belbin team-building and networking events. All participants take part in team-building activities designed with Belbin methodology to foster motivation, mentoring dynamics, and networking.
New rules of the game
With the upcoming EU Pay Transparency Directive deadline, companies must take the necessary steps to reduce pay disparities. The Directive sets an allowable pay gap difference of up to 5%, requiring employers with more than 250 employees to publicly report pay gap data annually. Leaders in reducing pay disparities already hold the Equal Pay Champion certification.
The Equal Play Mentorship program goes a step further. In addition to mentoring and development programs, it focuses on educating organizations to meet gender equality standards and actively work to remove barriers for women in leadership.
This mentorship program not only enables women to “master the game” but to change its rules. Through collaboration with mentors, skill development in leadership and confidence, and mutual support, women in this program take charge of their professional growth and encourage organizations to support them along the way. As new generations increasingly seek work environments that foster diversity and inclusion, companies that successfully implement these principles will remain a step ahead of desirable employers.
The equality initiative
Equal Play Mentorship is not only a chance for personal growth but also an invitation to companies to join this equality initiative, enabling their DEI and GSE initiatives to allow employees to shine with the help of mentors. It’s an investment that results in improved skills, strengthened work teams, and increased loyalty.
Through such mentorship programs, women in the workforce have the opportunity to realize their full potential – to grow, lead, and redefine the business world according to their own rules to ensure equal opportunities for all.
Besides individual growth, Equal Play Mentorship offers structured support for overcoming barriers through mentorship that connects women with experienced mentors. The program encourages women to network and create support systems, which is often a crucial factor for further professional growth.
This fresh approach openly acknowledges that the workforce isn’t an even playing field. Instead of ignoring the ‘playfield irregularities’, the program uses them as a springboard for women’s professional development. If you’d like to be part of this unique program to empower women and promote equal opportunities in your organization, reach out to us.
Find out who the Equal Pay Champion certificate holders are in 2023.
Closing the pay gap: The role of legislation in achieving gender pay equity
