According to the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry’s (ABPI) 2021 Workforce Diversity Survey, 54.2% of the pharma workforce in England is made up of women. Statistics vary from country to country, but the overarching trend is positive, indicating a relative gender balance in entry-level roles in the sector.

The story changes at management level, however, when the number of women drops off significantly. According to the World Economic Forum, women make up less than 30 per cent of senior management in the pharmaceutical industry, despite the fact that there’s now a relatively equal number of women and men entering the workforce with degrees in life sciences and medicine.

There is clearly work to be done when it comes to retaining and promoting women in the industry, and it is imperative for pharmaceutical organisations of all sizes to focus on building diverse workforces, which better represent our world.

Engaging and empowering women associates

I firmly believe that the emphasis should be on collaboration – empowering women and allowing them to learn, advance and thrive in pharma. The words ‘progressive’, ‘supportive’ and ‘caring’ should all be top of mind as we encourage greater levels of inclusivity and diversity within our industry. This is a journey we must all take together, and the process of engaging women associates in visioning and shaping the community should be embraced by all.

When addressing an associate’s life cycle within a company, it is important to take into consideration how every stage is effectively managed –from identifying talent to the hiring process, onboarding, performance management, engagement and well-being through to talent management and retirement.

At all times, the goal should be to create more efficient and effective workplaces by capitalising on diverse perspectives and cultural knowledge, and removing inefficiencies caused by prejudice and discrimination. To facilitate change over time, businesses need to give women leaders the space to learn from their peers. Creating a safe community where they can ask and field questions and be mentored by colleagues without fear of judgement or repercussions will help pave the way for women leaders to grow and thrive.

Together with my team, I have been adopting strategies like this to help bring about systematic change – to build an inclusive, sustainable culture across our entire organisation, at every stage. While this is an ongoing initiative, we are already seeing improvement when it comes to the retention of our female associates, as well as upskilling those who have returned from a sabbatical.

We have run our ‘Mosaic for Women’ sessions for more than 480 associates across the business since April 2023. This initiative brings more women associates together to share experiences and learn from each other. Its vision is to enhance opportunities and foster a sense of belonging for women in the business, providing opportunities for professional growth through development, networking and peer-to-peer support. From the start, its goals have included:

• Helping to create a more inclusive work environment for women associates across levels
• Providing a platform for women to create sustainable professional networks and to foster career development
• Providing a safe space for collective voice around shared issues or concerns
• Promoting a respectful workplace
• Recognising and promoting diversity of gender inclusivity, thereby reinforcing a progressive culture.

As a direct result of the launch of ‘Mosaic for Women’, we have – over the last year – seen more women associates taking bigger roles, moving up the hierarchy through promotion assessment centres, an increase in women working in management and tech, and another uptick in the trend for female hires into management roles within the organisation. We have also observed that our annual attrition has reduced by approximately 3% for women in the 2023-2024 financial –a positive trend to continue to build on. The figures demonstrate that this collaborative approach is truly paying off, and clearly, proves the rationale for the creation of the initiative. So much so, that we’re now also deep diving into the ‘Mosaic for Young Talent’ programme to help attract and retain younger associates within the business.

Creating change for the future

Cultivating an inclusive culture is vitally important for businesses to grow and thrive. Benefits of a diverse workplace include increased profits, improved productivity, better decision-making, faster problem-solving, greater innovation, higher employee engagement, reduced employee turnover and better company reputation.

In addition to reducing biases in hiring programmes, businesses must ensure their policies and procedures are kept up to date and reflect an inclusive approach throughout the entire employee lifecycle. For example, maternity or family care leave policies should be reviewed to ensure that associates are still provided with the opportunity to take part in promotion assessments while they are on leave, so they are not forced to choose between work and family. Whether these take place remotely or in person, providing this level of flexibility means they won’t have to be left out of the cycle for advancing their position or career.

Other areas to address could include reward or incentive schemes for diverse hire referrals aimed at widening the pipeline of talent and the inflow of women associates into the hiring process. Firms should also look at their policies around adoption, surrogacy, paternity and family care leave – encouraging industry best practice – to support career development, talent acquisition, and the cultivation of an inclusive culture for everyone.

Cultivating allies and championing patience

While the pharmaceutical industry is making progress in redressing the gender imbalance, there is still work to be done. Attracting and retaining women in leadership positions requires the full backing, commitment and support of the C-suite to invest in their D&I journey. This does not mean leaving men out or behind. For the reasons outlined above, a diverse workplace is better for everyone. Giving women the room to learn, advance and lead does not mean eliminating these opportunities for men.

Be sure your change programmes also include upskilling men at all levels of the business, providing them with the opportunity to advance and take on the role of allies, not adversaries. And remember these things take time. Make room to listen to all the voices in the room and remind everyone that patience is required for positive change to happen. When change is weaved collectively it creates sustenance and the culture of inclusion. Perhaps these are moments in the organization where the We comes before the I.