Our last Leadership Insight raised the topic of creating a data dashboard for your team or area to support addressing issues of equity or barriers faced by members of your workforce. In our focus on gender equity, we have talked about creating a dashboard in relation to gender, but you could include and record any other demographic data as well.

To begin, think about the question(s) you want to ask. For example, what gender balance do we have in our department? Or, do mothers and fathers of young families work full time or part-time? Create your dashboard by recording your data into a simple table or spreadsheet, starting with the overall numbers and then deciding on the specific areas and sub-categories that make sense for your area. Consider recording gender against the following workforce data:

• Roles (Intern, registrar, senior reg., consultant, senior consultant, Clinical Director / Head of Department)
• University or training program
• Type of FTE appointment (full-time, part-time, casual, fixed term)
• Recent promotions by career stage
• Retention data / who has left
• Type of leave taken over past 5 years

Having concrete data about your people is powerful. While we know there are areas or places where there is likely to be a ‘gap’ in gender representation, the nature of this gap or bias, and why and how it emerges, is also specific to each situation and workplace.

In looking at your data, what stands out? What do you notice?

You could begin by looking for where there are the biggest differences in gender representation and where these differences begin to emerge.

These areas and places or points in a career journey can provide clues as to what types of interventions could help navigate and change them in your context. These interventions can be small. If there is a difference in recent promotion data, you could think about how regular feedback conversations and performance reviews could incorporate asking about goals and aspirations and supporting resources and networks for those interested in a next step.

If your data shows an underrepresentation of women in more senior roles – especially when the gender balance was not present at junior levels – consider looking over your selection and recruitment processes. Consider promotions and how people are recommended and selected internally for leadership roles. Ensuring that processes are open and transparent is so important. Advertisements need to be clear and publicly disseminated (rather than relying on informal networks). Having selection panels that are gender balanced themselves and interview and evaluation processes that are structured and standardised across interviewees also help navigate potential biases.

In senior roles and leadership positions, consider what skills are required and whether the role needs to be a fulltime role, occupied by one person, or whether it could make sense to spilt roles and appoint two or more people into fractional appointments. As middle and senior leaders take on leadership at a time when there are so many other demands on their time (such as raising children caring for parents and own health considerations), it is important to challenge the traditional models of full-time roles. Many senior leadership roles are overly burdensome, and the work and workforce could be better served by other ways of sharing this important work.

Creating data dashboards and an overview of your workforce can be complex and time consuming work. while at first you might do this independently, consider teaming up with a colleague or with a colleague in your HR or executive team. If other colleagues or areas are doing similar work, consider sharing spreadsheets and ways of looking at the data that are helpful.  

Example tables for building your data dashboard

For more on this topic, see our previous Leadership Insight and the AMA Victoria’s Autumn VICDOC magazine article on Leading for Equity.

You can also book a member benefit leader check-in to discuss a current leadership issue you are facing.

Dr Anna Clark (PhD)
Dr Anna Clark is AMAVs Leadership consultant, coach and educator, currently offering individual coaching for doctors and directing the AMA’s professional development programs in leadership, the Emerging Leader Program and Middle Leader Program.