MIT Sloan Management Review Article on The Toxic Culture Gap Shows Companies Are Failing Women

According to the most recent “Women in the Workplace” report from LeanIn.Org and McKinsey, the gap between men and women leaving their jobs is the largest it has been since the report was first published eight years ago. For every female director who is promoted, two women at the same level of seniority choose to quit. The exodus of female leaders, which has been dubbed the Great Breakup, is attributable in part to the persistent gap in pay between men and women.

Unequal compensation remains a critical pain point for many women, but corporate culture can exert an even more profound influence on how they experience the workplace. According to Rachel Thomas, CEO of LeanIn.Org and a coauthor of the report, women are leaving companies that fail to deliver on “the cultural elements of work that are critically important to them.”

About the Author

Donald Sull (@culturexinsight) is a senior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management and a cofounder of CultureX. Charles Sull is a cofounder of CultureX.

Learn more about MIT SMR.