Gender Bias in Performance Management Trends

“You can come across as abrasive sometimes. I know you don’t mean to, but you need to pay attention to your tone.” - to a woman

Selected from Quotes Gram

Sound familiar? There is a big stink about gender bias going around as people are becoming more aware of the inconsistencies and discrimination in the workplace. Many people think of equal pay for equal work, but we all know that gender bias does not stop there. Gender bias in the workplace undermines careers all around.

Gender bias in the workplace doesn't stop at the rate of pay difference between men and women but unfortunately, includes the amount of critical feedback given to women versus men counterparts. Women are described differently in performance reviews. Women receive more negative feedback than men. If companies want to retain satisfied employees, they will need to evaluate their performance management methods and work to eliminate the biases. 

“Hone your strategies for guiding your team and developing their skills. It is important to set proper guidance around priorities and to help as needed in designs and product decisions.” -to a man

Selected from The One Brief

Performance reviews are written documentation of a person's perception of a fellow employee and are mostly positive. Men and women are both given constructive suggestions. However, women should sit back and stop being so boisterous and then praise men. Women's reviews included critical feedback while men are given tips on skills to develop. Women receive more negative personality criticism for example reports of women being too abrasive, judgmental, and needing to back off.

“Your peers sometimes feel that you don’t leave them enough room. Sometimes you need to step back to let others shine.” - to a woman

Selected from QuotesGram

A question that comes to mind is who is doing the reviews. Does the reviewers' gender matter? It turns out the sex of the person giving the review does not matter. Women are still perceived as bossy, abrasive, emotional, irrational, and aggressive and are just suppose to endure such personality feedback that is harmful. For men, aggressive may show up as a criticism but rarely compare to women. Most biases are unconscious. Leaders need to step up and uncover and correct systemic bias and review the language used in reviews. 

Women experience prejudice when it comes to leadership roles. Both males and females perceive women as less favorable in leadership positions. They also evaluate the behavior of things that are enacted by women as less favorable. It is harder for women to become leaders and achieve success. Women are held to stricter standards than men when it comes to promotions.

“There were a few cases where it would have been extremely helpful if you had gone deeper into the details to help move an area forward.” -to a man

Selected from The Irish Times

Women are said to be better in teams and men are seen as more independent. This distortion gives the view of women as seen as supportive, collaborative, and helpful more often while at the same time men with the same characteristics are described as more confident and independent. Men are also more likely to get feedback on actual job performance. 

Here are some ways to confront gender bias. 

• Diversity training- do not risk discrimination; realize unconscious stereotyping and promote awareness. 
• Language check- give facts vs. judgments; state behaviors; use verb over adjectives. 
• 360-degree reviews- allow feedback from other sources; seek professional development, encouragement, and advice from other women.
• Anonymous feedback- consult with all managers equally; allow feedback to point out bias. 
• Performance data tracking- compare comments received; report unequal access to promotions. 

Everyone needs to be onboard to correct gender bias. Attitude matters and everyone is affected by gender bias. Awareness and promotion of equality between sexes are crucial to the development of communities small and large.