The Top 5 Gender Diversity Metrics HR Should Track

Building and retaining a gender diverse workforce should be a top priority for all businesses. From diversity recruiting to engaging Employee Resource Groups, inclusive practices can help close the gender pay gap and establish representation across entire organizations.

But without having data to back it up, businesses can’t properly track the progress they make towards improving gender equality and diversity in the workplace.

So what should HR teams be measuring?

Here are the top 5 gender diversity metrics:

1. Headcount by Gender

Before calculating any other metrics, you need to determine the gender breakdown of your workforce. What percentage of your employees are female? 

To take this calculation off of your hands, Namely’s People Analytics Dashboard automatically does it for you:

To improve this metric, you can shift your recruitment strategies and strive to balance the percentages out.

2. Managers by Gender

To help break the glass ceiling, it’s critical that you examine the gender ratio across leadership positions at the manager and senior manager levels. This will give you a better idea of the workplace barriers that exist at the managerial level and what you can do to remove them. 

People leaders can use the data from the manager ratio to inform talent acquisition and career progression strategies. Luckily, Namely also calculates this for you:

3. Average Tenure by Gender

Determining the average tenure by gender gives you a clearer picture of how long employees stay at your company. This will show the turnover and retention rates amongst your female employees—which will serve as an indicator of their employee satisfaction.

And you guessed it—Namely calculates this metric, too:

To improve your company’s retention, you can take a closer look at the reasons why employees are leaving and begin to formulate solutions. For example, if employees are leaving because they want an employer who invests more in their career development, you may decide to build a mentorship program or offer other L&D opportunities.  

4. Gender Ratio by Department

Analyzing the gender ratio by department enables you to stay accountable for gender representation across all the different business functions. This is key in determining areas where representation is particularly too low or high and establishing a path forward to balance the ratio. 

For example, are the women in your company well represented across engineering and sales? If not, you can shift your recruitment strategies for those particular departments to try to increase representation. You could also help employees grow in these departments through a women’s leadership development program or internal mobility initiatives. 

Namely can easily provide a snapshot of departmental data you can put to use:

5. Gender Ratio by Location

Lastly, looking at your workforce’s gender breakdown by location can help you adjust your recruitment strategies even more. What percentage of your employees in New York City are female? This metric may tie back to your company’s gender ratio by department if certain teams work together in the same office. 

Here is an example of what this metric looks like on Namely’s dashboard:

Measuring gender diversity metrics is useful in understanding where your company stands in relation to its overall diversity goals. It can empower your recruitment strategies and help you build a strong business case for more equitable workplace practices.

But these aren’t the only people metrics to keep track of. As a leader, what else should you be measuring? Check out this blog post written by Namely’s CEO, Larry Dunivan, to find out.