HD6060-.A84-2008-PDF-Athena-factor-Reversing-the-brain-drain-in-science,-engineering,-and-technology

The Athena Factor: Reversing the Brain Drain in Science, Engineering, and Technology
HBR Research Report
of junior women, selected according to their performance and level. Each ring had two senior
women and 18 to 20 junior women; there were eight rings in total. Sessions were scheduled once a
month over a six-month period. The senior female executives were coached to be more facilitators
than mentors—not that they didn’t also give advice. Their main function, however, was to help the
junior women talk about top-of-mind topics concerning their work and career development at
Microsoft. Participants benefited from both top-down coaching and peer mentoring. Being part of
a group of 18-20 people, with facilitators rather than mentors, gave junior women the opportunity
not only to speak openly about their career concerns but also to enlarge their networks.
Individual rings were given leeway to accommodate the unique needs of their members. Some
groups, for instance, met twice a month but for only 45 minutes each time. Other groups skipped
months so that their circles lasted longer than six months. Most mentoring ring leaders requested
that each mentee prepare a talking point for one session, and all participants were encouraged to
get involved in discussion.
Feedback from the first pilot was so positive that the business division initiated a second round
in early 2007. This round added an important innovation: The 11 women tapped as mentors were
asked to enroll a male peer as a partner. This enabled the women in the group to get a “man’s
view” on issues, and it gave senior men insight into what was on the minds of junior women. By
creating an open discourse that includes both genders, Microsoft equipped its junior women with
a framework to share perspectives on career development and professional aspirations.
As the program readies for its third round, additional tweaks have been made. Some rings, for
example, will include only participants from a single division or functional area, such as marketing
or product development. There will also be rings focused on specific topics, such as career paths
or work-life challenges. The hope is that these specialized rings will demonstrate commitment to
career development for women by certain business units and thereby increase retention.
Microsoft is already thinking about what comes next. Could the Mentoring Rings continue to
multiply? Could there be a strategy ring targeting top talent with business unit heads as mentors?
One thing’s for sure: These rings are seen as enormously beneficial by those who participate and
are having a ripple effect throughout the company.
IBM: Flexible Leave of Absence
Andrea Henderson graduated near the top of her engineering class at MIT in 1976. After being
hired by IBM, she entered a 12-month development program where she trained to become
a technical marketing rep. Four years later she was recognized by IBM as the top marketing
professional in her region. That same year Andrea gave birth to her first child. Just three years later
she left the company.59
Andrea’s action is a classic example of the fight-or-flight moment. A women experiencing overload
in her mid-30s can either push on and fight for career advancement, often to the detriment of her
family obligations, or flee to focus prime attention on caring responsibilities. Believing firmly that
no woman, or man for that matter, should have to make such a wrenching decision, IBM took
action. In 1986 the company launched its first Work and Life Issues Survey designed to uncover
why so many women were being forced off track. The survey revealed a harsh reality: More than
one-quarter of all women at IBM reported difficulty balancing the demands of work and family
life.60 Company officials implemented a number of immediate policy changes and continued to
field the survey every three years to gauge changes in the culture. The most far-reaching initiative
to come out of this survey was the expansion of IBM’s flexible leave of absence program.
The program, which dates back to the 1950s, lets employees remain connected to IBM even if
they need to take an extended break from employment. The 1986 Work and Life Issues Survey
prompted IBM to reassess its employees’ work-life challenges; as a result, the leave of absence
program was extended from one to three years.61 As work-life constraints have evolved over time,
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