1. Is gender equity a Jewish issue? Yes. Women represent 70% of the Jewish professional workforce yet few women rise to top positions of influence. This serious imbalance dissuades talented women from pursuing careers in Jewish communal organizations and drains the Jewish community of critical capacity, energy, and perspective. Unfortunately, many Jewish leaders do not recognize that gender equity is a challenge that needs to be addressed by the Jewish community– they believe women are “bound to rise” to top positions, over time. Cleary, the facts show otherwise. And not recognizing the issue only serves to perpetuate the status quo.2. Is the Jewish community behind the curve?Yes. The professional Jewish community has distinguished itself as being one of the few sectors that has not engaged in a substantive effort to advance gender equity. In 2003, AWP and United Jewish Communities initiated a gender equity initiative, marking a rare instance in which a mainstream Jewish organization committed any resources to expanding opportunities for high potential women. But this is the exception not the rule. In sharp contrast, we have seen decades of sustained initiatives in business, politics, academia, and other areas. And while women are not yet adequately represented in top posts in these areas, they have made quantifiable gains. In academia, for example, women now head 23% of the universities in the US, including three out of the eight in the Ivy League. In philanthropy, more than half of the nation’s foundations have women at the helm, including some of the world’s largest.3. How can we change the field?Strategies for change have been developed in dozens of arenas from law, medicine, business, and accounting to consulting, academia, politics, and philanthropy. Jewish leaders can begin to change the field by adapting successful strategies to the specific culture of Jewish communal organizations. Here are some key principles: - Demonstrate the explicit championship of gender equity by the CEO
- Train managers to identify and develop talented women
- Hold managers accountable for making progress in promoting women
- Develop robust professional development practices
- Give women opportunities to assume new responsibilities, particularly in positions that directly contribute to the bottom line
- Institute flexibility policies that are equitable and that help people navigate life and work
- Implement objective performance measures
- Collect data, set benchmarks and track progress
4. Do women actually want these jobs?Yes and no. In 2003, AWP asked that question in the context of a study to determine if women aspired to become heads of Federations, considered to be one of the most challenging jobs in the system. At the outset, most male CEOs thought it would be hard to identify a strong group of women candidates. In actuality, we found just as many women as men with the ambition and capacity to become Federation CEOs. They applied for spots in a new executive development program, and were selected in equal numbers with their male counterparts. That said, we also found that not all high potential women want the leadership positions as currently defined. Instead, they aspire to re-define the job and in so doing, re-envision the culture of life and work in Jewish communal organizations.
