Company Culture Is Key To Unlocking Gender Equality, New Accenture Research Finds

New research from Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has identified 40 workplace factors that create a culture of equality — including 14 factors that matter the most. The research, published today in the company’s “Getting to Equal 2018” report, details the most-effective actions that business leaders can take to accelerate advancement and help close the gender pay gap.

The research is based on a survey of more than 22,000 working men and women in 34 countries — including 717 male and female employees in the United Arab Emirates— to measure their perception of factors that contribute to their workplace cultures. The survey was supplemented with in-depth interviews and a detailed analysis of published data on a range of workforce issues.

“Our research has found that companies that exhibit positive workplace cultures, policies and programs support talented employees across the gender spectrum. Helping women, essentially, helps men too,” said Omar Boulos, regional managing director of Accenture in the Middle East and Turkey. “And in a country that has ambitious development plans, supporting talented employees in an inclusive environment will be a critical enabler for the UAE’s sustained success.”

Companies that exhibit the 40 factors are most likely to nurture talent, both male and female. In the UAE, about 78 percent of employees in these organizations have training available on demand — higher than the global average of 77 percent— and most of them (90 percent), indicate that these programs keep skills relevant.

Accenture’s research found that in UAE-based companies where the 40 factors are most common have:

•  94 percent of employees are satisfied with their career progression
•  92 percent of employees aspire to get promoted
•  93 percent aspire to become senior leaders in their organizations