In 2013, The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) reformed its Women’s Initiative into Women @ BCG, with the goal of increasing the number of women employees in senior leadership roles and creating a more effective work environment. Consulting staff at all levels of BCG are targeted through five pillars: recruiting and hiring; talent development and mentoring; work-life and flexibility; awareness and affiliation; and external engagement.
Partners and other senior leaders are highly engaged and accountable for many aspects of the initiative. Major components and programs include:
- Strategic efforts to decrease bias in recruiting and hiring processes, such as unconscious bias interviewer calibration and training.
- Apprenticeship in Action, a program that coaches women and men leaders to improve their communication and leadership skills and encourages a broader range of leadership styles.
- The Segment of One program, which recognizes that each person is unique and requires a specific type of support through evolving career and life stages.
- The Predictability, Teaming, and Open Communication working model, which supports teams to better work, learn, and communicate with each other.
From 2013 to 2017, representation for women has increased across senior levels. Women’s representation on BCG’s Executive Committee has increased from 17.6% to 35.3%. The number of women partners has increased at almost three times the rate of men partners over the past four years. Currently, women lead six NAMR (North America/Mexico Region) offices which account for over 30% of staff in the region. In addition, the percentage of women in every cohort has grown as a result of parity in promotions and retention as well as an aggressive focus on recruiting.