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Women Account for 30% of the Healthcare C-Suite

Analysis  |  By Melanie Blackman  
   August 26, 2020

A new report from McKinsey & Company found that while women's representation in the C-suite has increased in recent years, women of color representation in the C-suite is only 5%.

A McKinsey & Company report released this week found that women represent less than one-third of the healthcare C-suite.

The analysis, produced in conjunction with LeanIn.org, found that women, "account for 66% of all entry-level healthcare employees," but only make up 30% of the healthcare C-suite.

The report is the latest Women in the Workplace study of gender imbalances in the healthcare C-suite.

According to the findings from the all-female authors, the percentage of women in leadership roles goes down while moving up the pipeline.

  • 59% of women are in managerial roles
  • 49% of women are in senior management
  • 41% of women serve as vice presidents
  • 34% of women serve as senior vice presidents

While the study indicated that healthcare "continues to outperform other industries in female representation," with external hiring of women into the healthcare C-suite rising from 33% in 2017 to 42% in 2018, there is still a lack of representation of women of color in healthcare.

The analysis found that white women make up 46% of entry level healthcare positions and 25% of the C-suite, however, women of color only make up 20% of entry level healthcare positions and 5% of C-suite positions.

Other findings of note:

  • 18% of women say gender may have been a factor in "missing out on promotions, raises, or chances to get ahead," while 68% did not; 14% of women say they are unsure if it played a role.
  • While 69% of men report being happy in their healthcare careers, 75% of women report being happy in their healthcare careers "despite the obstacles to advancement."
  • New research suggests the COVID-19 pandemic put 20 hours of additional work on women.

Melanie Blackman is a contributing editor for strategy, marketing, and human resources at HealthLeaders, an HCPro brand.


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