Staying at the Forefront of Gender Parity | Best Practice by Bain & Company
The consulting industry, in which Bain & Company operates, is still a largely male-dominated business. Especially with increasing seniority, the proportion of women is particularly low. Bain & Company strives to break these patterns and wants to motivate women to choose and then to have a successful career in strategy consulting. Thriving in your career is an individual journey and at Bain, we aim to foster an environment that supports each woman to reach her full potential.
This best practice was first published in the Gender Intelligence Report 2020.
Bain has decided on a clear ambition: becoming the preferred employer for female talent.
The global consultancy inspires and supports women throughout their career – based on four key pillars.
Bain’s initiatives addressing gender parity are run under the ‘Women at Bain‘ program, a strong network that acts as a support system to help women thrive during their careers. At Bain Switzerland, WAB is integrated in the office-wide ‘We Care’ initiatives. ‘We Care’ is a holistic approach to provide all Bainies with the best support for a fulfilled, energizing and sustainable professional and personal life.
Senior Practice Manager Private Equity at Bain & Company Switzerland and Co-Lead Women at Bain (WAB)
There are many trainings to support the Bain women throughout their careers. Within their first year, all female Bainies take part in a full day female-specific training on communication and presence. The trainings are very popular among our consultants, with an average Net Promoter Score* of 85 -100%.
There are other events, where our women can enhance their network and build a close community. Last year’s female DACH summit ran under the motto ‘Thriving’. More than 100 women joined for panel discussions and workshops to get tips and tricks on how to approach their own professional and personal journey.
*Net Promoter Score®, or NPS®, is a key figure measuring customer experience and employee satisfaction developed by Bain & Company.
The Women at Bain DACH event was such an enriching experience. Not only did I get to broaden my WAB network across all tenures and DACH offices, but I also got to learn from inspirational individuals such as Orit Gadiesh, the Chairwoman of Bain & Company. The event is really valuable for all of us.
– Regula Schuler, Senior Associate Consultant at Bain & Company Switzerland
Each Bainie is unique and has different needs regarding life and professional career. Bain is committed to making the company the best place to work for every top talent. All of this would not be possible without a supporting career model. Flexible working models ensure women can thrive in their careers while having a fulfilling private life. Bain Switzerland offers its employees a wide range of flex options, ranging from BainFLEX! (1-2 month leave of absence available for all tenures) to part-time client facing and part-time internal allocation. These flex models have enabled numerous women (and male colleagues!) to have a successful career at Bain.
Currently, I work 60% distributed across 4 (and sometimes 5) days per week to accommodate client meetings as much as possible. Since 2014 I’ve worked in different models from 40-80%, mostly with fixed working days. I’ve chosen to work part-time after the birth of my first child in 2014. I wanted to spend sufficient quality time with him (and in the meanwhile with my two other children as well) during the course of a week and have more flexibility for school plays, soccer training and the like. Having the opportunity to combine exciting case work and spending (Wednesday) mornings at the Zoo, on the playground or baking cookies is my key perk of working part-time.
– Melanie Oschlies, Associate Partner and WAB Co-lead at Bain & Company Switzerland
Striving for gender equality is not merely a female job – every Bainie is not only included in the discussion, but is also encouraged to actively engage via allyship programs. As an example, regular unconscious bias trainings help to create a culture of inclusion in the organization.
Bain believes in its responsibility to continuously invest in Gender Parity Research in order to pioneer thought leadership. The consultancy ensures accountability on a local, regional and global level with respective committees such as the Bain’s Global Women’s Leadership Council (GWLC) and assigned senior sponsors for each female leader to help build a successful career at Bain.
I have a sponsor and engaged mentors both on local and regional level. They believe in gender parity as well as the possibility to successfully combine both family and career through flexible work models. It’s great to know you have strong support as you juggle the multiple demands of an exciting career choice, three small children and a dual career household. It is not always easy as you want to bring the best version of yourself both to work and to your family.
– Deike Diers, Senior Practice Manager Private Equity at Bain & Company Switzerland
Even though Bain’s effort of gender parity and promoting diversity never stops, the results are already visible. In 2019, Bain Switzerland has achieved an Employee Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 92% among overall consulting women and an even more remarkable NPS of 100% among consulting women in leadership positions.
Contact
For further information, please contact Janna Neophytou, Director, Talent & Business Operations at Bain & Company Switzerland at janna.neophytou@bain.com
This best practice was first published in the Gender Intelligence Report 2020.
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