Gender parity: More than workplace flexibility required

THIS WEEK'S TOPIC: Will new work norms such as the rise of hybrid working and work-from-home help improve gender equality at the workplace?

Wendy Johnstone SVP & COO APAC Zendesk

THE pandemic launched the world's largest work-from-home (WFH) experiment, with seemingly split outcomes - while some enjoy the flexibility and cost savings, others are stressed and burnt out. Global research has found that women face the toughest challenges, pulling ''double shifts'' to juggle paid employment with unequal responsibilities at home.

I believe hybrid working presents a wonderful opportunity to improve workplace gender equality, but it requires active involvement of leaders at every level. The Singapore government's review of women's issues will undoubtedly help to shift corporate mindsets, but in the meantime it is up to leaders to hold ourselves accountable and commit to real change.

Tony Cripps Chief Executive Officer HSBC Singapore

Gender equality in the workplace starts at home. Flexibility can certainly help - not only by giving workers the time and space to be caregivers at home while holding a job, but also by encouraging men to take more active domestic roles and allowing women to focus on being successful at work. Companies like HSBC are supporting this with parental leave policies and flexible work arrangements that allow and encourage both men and women to help out equally in the caregiving at home. But policies are not enough. A company needs the right attitude - across all rungs - to recognise and support these realities. There also needs to be trust among colleagues. Forward-thinking companies must create an environment that allows both men and women to set up arrangements that work best for them, so that employees can provide their best for their companies and for their families.

Victor Mills Chief Executive Singapore International Chamber of Commerce

The pandemic has accelerated and legitimised new working arrangements but it will take all of us to improve gender equality in society and at work. We can build on the similarity of experiences and responses we humans have both to the pandemic and to new ways of working. We can leverage what we have learnt and are still learning. That it is output that counts, not hours worked. That gender is irrelevant because we are all just human. It is time for equal pay for doing the same job irrespective of age or gender. Being inclusive of all the diversity that exists mitigates groupthink.

Lawrence Loh Director, Centre for Governance and Sustainability NUS Business School

New work norms, especially those facilitating locational neutrality, will definitely provide the parity between the genders. In an interesting twist, these norms will even allow both genders to balance workplace and home involvements. But what is even more important is the holistic set of policies that support the work arrangements. For example, these will relate to assignments and appraisal - there should be equitable opportunities and outcomes.

In enabling these emerging innovative practices, gender equality cannot be an end in itself. It has been established that diversity is a means to organisational performances, and gender equality in particular can thus go a long way to uplift the workplace.

John Bittleston Founder and Chair Terrific Mentors International

If we could think of it less competitively, we might consider how cooperation will be affected by social and economic changes taking place. Since WWII, societies have been working to involve the husband more in the home and the wife more at work. Covid has pushed this tendency forward to the benefit of both parties. Women are still, for the most part, not treated fairly at work, but making the issue one of winning and losing merely exacerbates the problem. It is not a competition, it is a cooperation. When it works well it is brilliant. It still has a long way to go.

Richard Warburton President British Chamber of Commerce Singapore

We welcome the comprehensive review of cultural, social and structural issues affecting progress for women in Singapore, and the recognition that the pandemic has significantly changed the way of working for much of today, and tomorrow's, workforce. It is only through open discussion of these issues in both official and unofficial channels that true progress can be made. BritCham Singapore continues to support our member organisations in their equality goals, hosting regular challenging discussions with thought leaders. We encourage the business community to openly share best practice across industries, including how contracts and working practices have changed for the better as a result of the pandemic, so that we may all learn together.

Ivy Lai Country Manager Philips Singapore

The equal access of all employees to opportunities is independent of WFH arrangements, but it can promote empathy and pave the way for better policies for primary caregivers. These new norms need to be adopted as part of a larger intentional strategy to build diversity and inclusion - which has been a focus for us even prior to Covid-19. While similar policies already apply to all our team members, we recognise that work-life policies can be particularly impactful for women, who often take on the role of primary caregiver at home. In our pursuit of gender equality, these existing flexible working arrangements work hand in hand with our other policies and initiatives, like comprehensive parental leave, women's leadership programmes and other initiatives.

Pascal Lambert Group Country Head, Singapore Head of SE Asia and India Societe Generale

The pandemic has accelerated the use of new practices such as teleworking. Positive lessons being learnt show that more systematic use of WFH is doable, and will remain beyond Covid-19. This will in turn bring strong benefits in terms of quality of life for all employees. Improving gender equality requires sustained commitments that go beyond enhancing workplace flexibility. In Societe Generale Asia Pacific, together with our Diversity Council and gender networks, we have worked on raising awareness on gender balance and implementing specific actions to improve the balance, especially at senior levels. Policy changes, such as enhancement of maternity and paternity leave, dedicated programmes for female talents, executive coaching for senior female leaders, are all critical in cultivating a diverse workforce in an inclusive workplace. Also important is strong support from senior management to encourage a culture of equality, openness and respect for all employees.

Kevin Chow Country Director & Chief Executive Thales Singapore

As many companies, including Thales, adopt a hybrid work model, the focus will be on greater collaboration, and on being outcome-oriented without compromising efficiency. These new norms imply a shift of autonomy to the hands of the employees and their managers to organise themselves in the best way possible to do their jobs, but also to manage their commitments and roles outside of work. I believe that these agile workspace arrangements can only strengthen gender equality as companies adopt more Smart Working practices that allow their employees, both male and female, to deliver their best performance on the job, while balancing their personal lives.

Deborah Ho Country Head, Singapore & Regional Head of SE Asia BlackRock

The pandemic has made working beyond the walls of the office more acceptable. However, it has also intensified some of the challenges that women have been facing. Having to do extended hours of office work and caring for children and household chores puts added physical and mental pressure on women. Performance criteria for promotions and career advancement have not changed from pre-pandemic times but demands have grown. The pre-existing biases against women and mothers' commitment in the workplace often causes more anxiety for them. We believe the shifting of such mindset begins with challenging our assumptions and having sometimes difficult but necessary conversations, to make room for understanding and changed actions. The jury is still out.

Nick Lim General Manager, APJ TIBCO

Flexible work options such as remote work and hybrid work arrangements are great starting points towards gender equality. However, change does not come without challenges and business leaders need to be conscious of biases and seek to minimise them. Representation and having more women leaders in a male-dominated industry like technology is vital, and it is equally as important to promote diversity and create a gender-balanced organisation.

The global health crisis has highlighted how women's inclusive, trust-based and cooperative leadership has redefined the traditional office-based, command-and-control corporate management style. As an industry, we must build on this momentum, focus on the positives from last year's transition to flexible working, and be a catalyst for a wider social change.

Ben King Country Director Google Singapore

While it is fair to say that increased flexibility in work arrangements could make things easier for women who are balancing family and work commitments, gender equity remains a broader issue. There is much to do in terms of tackling inhibiting factors that remain prevalent - examples include stark pay differentials between men and women, and conscious and unconscious bias when considering candidates for roles of greater influence. Research has shown that people who feel uncomfortable self-promoting are likely to fall behind their vocal peers. At Google we have invested heavily in programmes and employee resource groups that empower women to celebrate achievements, and challenge the social perception around self-promotion. More broadly, we can work towards achieving gender equity through education, development of meaningful allyship, and the development of focused planning to ensure higher levels of accountability at an organisation level.

Russell Higginbotham CEO & Regional President Swiss Re Asia

This International Women's Day, we should take a moment to address how the pandemic may have impacted the progress made in this space. We cannot lose sight of our goals of facilitating an inclusive and diverse workplace. Our research has found that gender diversity offers reinsurance companies an opportunity to strengthen governance, profitability and long-term sustainability. At Swiss Re, we strive to create an environment that provides equal opportunities, encompasses diversity and supports career growth for a wide range of people - where everyone can reach their full potential. Our ''Own the Way You Work'' programme was up and running years before the pandemic hit and perfectly aligns with the ''new norm'' around the rise of hybrid working and WFH. As we continue to evolve our people strategy to be even more inclusive, we believe we can create an ecosystem where there is balance and equality.

Claudio Lago de Lanzós Head of South East Asia Oliver Wyman

In the short term, the pandemic has demonstrated that while remote working is possible, it has adversely impacted women more than men. Women in mid-career - sandwiched between child and elder care - are particularly disadvantaged as in many cases they end up shouldering most of the responsibilities.

However, longer term, in a survey conducted by Oliver Wyman, more than 60 per cent of respondents (men and women) thought that hybrid working could have a positive impact. For firms to drive inclusion (in addition to diversity) will require focus on structural changes (for example, job shares at mid/senior-levels, promotions while on parental leave) as well as mindset shifts (for example, outcome focus versus face time).

Patrick Lee Cluster CEO, Singapore & Asean Markets Standard Chartered Bank

Hybrid working and other inclusive HR policies will improve gender diversity. Empowered with choices to find the work-life balance they need, women have greater impetus to return to the workforce and pursue their professional aspirations.

In fact, the pandemic has further broken down social stigma against flexible working, which is increasingly accepted by empathetic managers and adopted by more employees, regardless of gender. These cultural shifts should also benefit employers in the long term as they recruit, engage and retain their best talent.

At Standard Chartered, Singapore employees can explore greater work flexibility based on their job requirements - an opportunity that has been available even pre-Covid.

Pauline Lemaire Regional MD, Retail Media, SEAsia and Australia Criteo

Flexible work arrangements are a good start in ensuring that employees, regardless of gender and personal obligations, are empowered to balance work and life. This year, Criteo Singapore took a step further and enhanced child-bonding leave to four weeks for all parents in support of this, and for greater diversity, equity and inclusion.

Ensuring equal opportunities for an inclusive workplace ultimately needs to be a conscious and continual effort by organisations, even when employees work remotely. Criteo is taking steps toward this across global offices, including support for our Women@Criteo community, that equips female employees with virtual trainings and mentorship, and leads conversations on improving equal representation in the workplace.

Kevin McGuigan MD, SEAsia and Country Leader, Singapore 3M

As a parent, I have personally benefitted from hybrid working during the circuit breaker and firmly support the practice beyond the new normal. It empowers our employees, especially mothers, to work in ways that offer flexibility and balance while driving productivity and collaboration. Such flexible work benefits enable all our employees to make impactful contributions at work.

That said, corporations can do more to achieve true gender equality. They can spearhead more initiatives to promote female leadership at all levels, redesign interview processes, introduce unconscious bias training, and collaborate with non-profit organisations to advance the cause.

Jeffery Tan Group General Counsel Jardine Cycle & Carriage

Achieving gender equality requires a ''whole of society'' effort focussed on making a fundamental culture change that involves a shift in the values, norms, expectations, habits and symbols of our society.

We can start off with ''hardware'' efforts like hybrid working and WFH to help improve gender equality at the workplace. Also key are the ''software'' aspects, such as:

• Tone from the top - Leaders (at home, in the workplace and the country) need to articulate and champion the value and benefit of gender equality in all aspects of society.
• Training - Educate the community on the critical importance of gender equality and look at this through ''enlightened lens'', with particular emphasis on future generations.
• Transformation Mindset - Recognise that giving women and men equal opportunities (at home, in the workplace and the country) can only benefit everyone, as it draws upon the full potential, capabilities and talents of the community; that ultimately builds a society that is inclusive and rich in diversity.

David Kuo Co-founder The Smart Investor

Hybrid working and work-from-home are a good start to addressing gender inequality in the workplace. But it cannot just stop there. Both models are so head-slappingly obvious that it is unfathomable why it has taken a pandemic before many organisations were willing to change some of their archaic practices. That said, neither hybrid working nor working-from-home are universal panaceas. Many of us are guilty of unconscious biases based not only on gender but other demographics, too. A few days of working from home will not change that. Only we can change our biases by acknowledging that we have them.

Stephen Hamill MD & VP, Asean & South Asia Genesys

While the pandemic has brought many challenges, it has been a great equaliser of sorts, and technology has been the great enabler that has transcended gender and stereotypical roles to give a platform for all. We have seen that cynicism and stigma around the viability and effectiveness of working from home are fading and corporates are becoming more accepting of the idea of a hybrid model.

Due to our roots as a cloud company, Genesys had already implemented a WFH culture where staff were empowered to meaningfully balance their life and work. We certainly feel that by offering this flexibility and putting in place the right HR practices and processes, organisations will not just be able to boost gender equality at the workplace, but also attract multifaceted talent across sectors that include science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines.

Rob Wells President for Asia Workday

The onset of remote working has helped many individuals, particularly those with young families or elderly parents to care for, in juggling their professional and private lives. However, it should not be seen as a panacea to workforce imbalances, which can permeate beyond gender issues. Rather, one factor that can promote greater workforce equality is access to technology in the workplace.

Technology is indiscriminate and serves as a great leveller in unlocking more opportunities for all. It enables companies to empower their employees, regardless of gender, in working more flexibly and efficiently, while still having greater oversight and connectivity. For it to succeed, there must be meaningful, long-term investment in the process. Once this is in place, companies will be better positioned to address issues of fair representation and gender diversity at the workplace.

Pranav Rastogi Managing Director Redhill

Increased acceptance and understanding of flexible working policies will only incrementally improve gender equality - it will not move the needle on the issue. An inflexible work environment is one small aspect of a much larger problem of gender equality and institutionalised misogyny, perpetuated by cultural, social and even political factors. To address gender equality, we need to identify the obstacles that prevent gender equality across different spheres (education, access to jobs, equal pay, social support, et cetera) and introduce solutions to deal with these issues. If we focus only on making incremental changes such as flexible working arrangements to better support working mothers without addressing the wider issues, then our move towards gender equality will be equally incremental.

Melanie Cook Managing Director, Asia Pacific Hyper Island

The pandemic has set back gender equality, with a greater proportion of women having lost their jobs. The problems that women face are not where they work but how much work they do and what they are ''allowed'' to work on. Unfortunately, the majority of unpaid care work still falls on women.

In China, there is a double shift phenomenon where women have a job at work and a second job at home. In fact, they work a whole day a week more than their male counterparts, yet are paid less. Working from home may feel more congenial to work-life integration but it does not address the structural societal issues that women face, specifically in economic participation and opportunity.

Colin Brookes Senior Vice President, APJ Citrix

We have always believed that work is not a place you go, it is what you do. Even before the pandemic hit, our employees have always been empowered with the resources and ability to choose where, when and how they work. We believe our flexibility has also helped retain and attract the best talent. The rise of remote work is allowing organisations to uncover the advantages that we have enjoyed, creating opportunities for people who are now empowered to juggle work and personal responsibilities. The new work norms will drive greater inclusivity and gender equality in today's digital workplaces, and prove that successful, productive workers are enabled by the right employee experiences.

Radha Shreeniwas VP Global, Talent APJ ServiceNow

Covid-19 has resulted in women shouldering added responsibilities as the lines between home and work further blurred. Traditional structures like eldercare and childcare support fell apart and resulted in longer working hours for women. This situation has created setbacks for many women, which in turn has implications for job security and advancement.

WFH and hybrid work set up with the right support structures, philosophies and benefits can help women overcome these challenges and bring improvements to gender equality in the workplace. Now more than ever, we need to implement processes and workflow technologies that can better set and track goals, aid meaningful progression and accommodate flexible work management to factor in family disruptions. In this new world of hybrid-working, managers need to be more conscious of women's evolving roles and have greater empathy to create an inclusive workplace.

Sujith Sivaram Managing Director ESCO Pte Ltd

No, the new norms will not have any significant impact on gender equality. The rise of hybrid and WFH arrangements only makes it easier for women, especially mothers, to attend to their parental duties and chores but it does not challenge entrenched attitudes relating to gender inequalities and women's roles in the workplace. Though it helps facilitate a better balance by providing such option, it does not necessarily result in a more level playing field for working women. To improve gender equality, there needs to be a mindset change as well as policies supporting removal of gender bias, both conscious and unconscious. A culture of inclusion and focus on the quality of work performance should be the focus. The issue of gender equality needs to go beyond offering just hybrid work arrangements. Many more progressive policies that seek to balance the gender bias in workplaces are required.

Ng Leng Leng Country Leader Willis Towers Watson Singapore

The pandemic has accelerated new ways on how work can be done - onsite, remotely or a combination of the two. As a working mother myself, I have benefitted from a hybrid model of splitting workdays between office and home as I can spend less time commuting and gaining flexibility on managing work and home/care responsibilities. This rapid shift of employees working from home is likely to stay.

A recent study by Willis Towers Watson shows that companies in Singapore expect that the proportion of full-time employees working from home in three years' time will be six times higher than seen three years ago. These new work norms could help to promote employee retention and allow organisations to access a more diverse talent pool. Employers need to rethink traditional work practices and provide more support and understanding to women so they can continue to stay and thrive in the workforce, advancing gender equality at work.

Jessie Xia MD, Southeast Asia ThoughtWorks

Working norms once prevalent in technology companies - like flexible working that empowered working parents to juggle personal and work commitments efficiently - have now been adopted across most industries.

While much more has to be done to truly close the gender gap, hybrid and remote working have enabled more career opportunities and heightened awareness for greater inclusivity throughout the public's consciousness. The need for gender equality will gradually become more ingrained as part of workplace culture, driven by this new working normal.

Tirupathi Karthik Chief Executive Officer Napier Healthcare

At our workplaces including international offices, we have tried to create more than the obligatory work-from-home (WFH) policies. We realised a need to provide for young mothers a few years ago. Recently we started to celebrate their return to work too and offered them flexi-work timings (even if they are under WFH). Thanks to Covid, a productivity tool based on work delivered, rather than just time clocked, helps further our gender agenda. However our quiet accomplishment has been in putting women in leadership roles, and some functions simply are an ''all women crew''. The first step in gender equality is to recognise that ''different strokes for different folks'' applies in workplaces.

Dennis Tan Chief Executive Officer Prudential Singapore

The pandemic has created a new normal where remote working becomes a reality for many. While working mothers who have to juggle work and family welcome this new shift, they may be concerned that reduced visibility in the physical office would affect their career progression. To address this, it is important to have people rewarded based on performance and measured on outputs. Prudential has put in place such a culture three years ago when we introduced flexi-work arrangement for our employees. The outcome has been positive as we saw increased productivity and morale. Our employees are more motivated because they appreciate the flexibility to organise their time around work and their personal priorities.

Kannan Chettiar Managing Director Avvanz

The hybrid work-from-home (some call it work-from-hell due to the turmoil at home with the kids) and work-from-office is creating gender equality not just at the workplace but even at home. We men share more of the home workload by helping out with the domestic duties. It is no more about work-life balance but work-life integration where men and women can now work around the clock while juggling home and office responsibilities. With this new mode of working, women now do not have to give up work for family and this is a great development in regards to gender equality.

Axel Berkling Executive Vice President KONE Asia Pacific

The pandemic brought about a dynamic change to the way we work in the form of telecommuting and hybrid working models. This transformation has paved the way for a more inclusive and collaborative workplace environment. The implementation of flexible work arrangements allow agile organisations to relook, rethink and reshape how organisations can better advance workplace equality, narrowing the gender gap.

In the fight against gender stereotyping in the workplace and broader community, diversity and inclusion is one of KONE's key strategic focus areas in our endeavour to build a sustainable culture within our internal and external ecosystem. We believe this is the first step towards reducing disparity, and embracing togetherness.

Joey Lim VP Commercial, Asia Lark

Remote work is largely recognised as an effective tool in strengthening diversity and inclusion in the workplace, and for women, workplace flexibility and gender equality go hand in hand. Though many parents feel the brunt of working at home while raising their kids with little help, if equipped with the right tools, hybrid arrangements can provide working moms with the flexibility they need to pursue a career and raise a family at the same time. This means fewer women will feel they need to leave their jobs mid-career and more women will rise to the top.

Veronica Shim Founder & CEO Envysion Wealth Management

Having new work norms is only one step towards gender equality. Cultural, social, and structural hurdles are still present despite progress in improving gender equality. If traditional expectations of women - having to front household chores - remain unchanged despite working from home, smoothening out gender inequality will be a challenge. What is important is to educate the next generation that improving gender equality starts at home. Seeing both parents working and supporting the family together despite busy schedules will help shape their perspectives on the similarities between male and female in terms of capabilities at the workplace.

Charles Ferguson General Manager, Asia Pacific Globalization Partners

Remote work has been a great equaliser as it has elevated trust among business stakeholders. The new work norms have enhanced team members' accountability, collaboration, innovation, and value creation for the organisations and customers they serve. The pandemic offered a fresh perspective that flexible work models are not just for a specific group or gender but for everyone. It remains to be seen whether this new world of work will influence the advancement of women in leadership roles, result in better pay/pay increases, or earn women more seats in boardrooms. Elsewhere, it has been reported that the pandemic has widened the gender gap in many markets with women facing greater job losses. While we see a spectrum of potential impacts of new work norms on gender equality, the bright spot is that they opened up a world of possibilities for everyone - gig roles, job sharing, hiring global remote talent - all of which are available to anyone, anywhere regardless of gender, race or age.

Peta Latimer CEO, Singapore Mercer

Globally, women's job losses due to Covid-19 are 1.8 times greater than men's. Expanding access to flexible work is one way companies can help to reverse this troubling trend. Flexible work can create a level playing field for employees who carry greater care obligations at home, supporting women who are currently more likely to drop out of the workforce due to family obligations. But it needs to be designed with care.

Employers must ensure opportunities for engagement so women who choose to work remotely will not see their careers suffer as a result. They should also redesign performance and career management processes to eliminate any bias towards in-office work. Otherwise, a poorly designed flexible work programme could just reinforce persistent disadvantages for women in the workforce.

Naveen Menon President, Asean Cisco

Employers need to set their employees up for success as they adapt to the challenges of hybrid working. A Deloitte study found that 48 per cent of women needed even greater flexible working arrangements, 46 per cent required stronger leadership, networking and mentoring, and 45 per cent highlighted the need for more mental health resources and support. A company culture that encourages complex conversations around flexibility, mentorship and mental health challenges will allow women to take charge of their careers, and perform better. At Cisco, we take pride in our ''Conscious Culture'' where everyone takes responsibility for fostering an inclusive, collaborative, and respectful environment. This kind of culture, aided by technology, can empower employees to work effectively wherever they are and find a path towards a more balanced life.

Sumir Bhatia President, Asia Pacific Lenovo Data Center Group

As location becomes irrelevant in the new normal, the focus is squarely on identifying hybrid work skills, tech awareness, and flexibility. This inevitably opens opportunities for greater participation of working mothers and women who may not be able to commute to work but can work remotely. While companies commit to gender equality and workplace diversity as a sine qua non of organisational culture, implementing policies both at the regulatory and corporate level that make employees feel included, engaged, and recognised will make all the difference. Business continuity and virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) technologies can play an enabling role here. At Lenovo, we take pride in enabling an inclusive culture that champions diversity - all powered through the technology that we offer.

David Sandison Chief Executive Officer Grant Thornton Singapore

The business landscape is undergoing permanent changes, with a more flexible, hybrid working environment coming to the fore. Our recent Women in Business 2021 report revealed that 70 per cent of Singapore respondents agree that in their organisations these new working practices have enabled women to perform greater leadership roles. The switch to a more digital landscape has removed many of the traditional obstacles to women's careers and having an inclusive business is more possible and more important than ever before. At Grant Thornton Singapore, we are seeing the advantages of gender diversity firsthand, with the appointment of three new female partners over the past year. In order to reap the benefits of a better gender balance, businesses must continue to take action to enable women to realise their ambitions.

Rikki Jones President, GCI Health Asia-Pacific and MD BCW Singapore

The new norms of hybrid and remote working may help to break down the flexibility stigma and its gender inequality, but only if businesses learn the right lessons. Flexibility must be on offer for all, regardless of gender, age, or caring responsibilities. Only when all employees access real and routine flexibility without consequence will the workplace inequality that many women face in juggling careers and home start to level out. And in providing all genders the opportunity for equal home responsibility, we offer an increased likelihood of gender-diverse and thriving workplaces.

Ronnie Lee General Manager Lenovo Singapore

Gender equality and diversity are values that need to be entrenched within an organisation's DNA and exemplified at the leadership level. Women will only be able to reap the benefits of the new hybrid work arrangements and progress professionally if organisations take the effort to invest in support and empowerment measures. At Lenovo, we believe that our senior women can take on leadership positions and are proactively grooming them for greater roles and responsibilities through programmes initiated by a dedicated employee resource group, WILL (Women in Lenovo Leadership). Technology can only be a positive enabler for change if organisations truly believe that all employees have the capability to contribute, regardless of their gender.

Toby Koh Group MD Ademco Security Group

Gender equality will only improve when mindsets, attitudes and cultural norms change. There is no magic pill. Hybrid work conditions will help facilitate but not resolve inequality. Education is key. Fathers must set the tone and show respect for their wives and be the role model so their children grow up in a gender-equal environment. These kids will bring such norms and respect into adulthood and into their workplace.

Emma Pudney CTO, Asia Pacific Japan Rackspace Technology

Having recently returned from maternity leave, for me the newest challenge of being a woman in the workplace has been balancing motherhood with my duty to the team at Rackspace Technology. The company's WFH initiatives have given me the flexibility needed to take care of my baby while continuing my professional contributions. Remote working opens up the possibility for more women to obtain work-life balance as it creates a level playing field for both genders to work based on their personal schedules. Covid-19 has highlighted the importance of technology. At Rackspace, we believe that businesses must deliberately create opportunities for women entering the tech space and offer pathways for female tech leaders. The key to strengthening the tech industry include offering subsidised programmes, training and internships for those with interest regardless of gender or background. Change will happen when it comes from the top.

Rachel Ler VP & GM, Asia Pacific & Japan Commvault

While the pandemic may have been a chaotic disruption to regular routines, a silver lining has been the opportunity for organisations to experience how effective working from home can be. This is especially true for working women who are their family's primary caregivers, as focusing on work while juggling family commitments can be a challenge. Fostering a WFH environment and making sure employees, both women and men, feel included and supported is essential for us, as a business and as an industry, for higher productivity, work-life balance, and talent retention. A flexible and inclusive culture defies physical divide even as the world has quickly adapted to virtual connections. Businesses must commit to and champion inclusivity and diversity for us to forge a gender- equal world.

Alan Watts President, Asia Pacific Hilton

Flexible working schedules, a key anchor of Hilton's benefits, have allowed for better work-life balance across the company, bringing about uninterrupted careers for many of our women team members. It has also enabled more men to take up home responsibilities and support their partners in growing their careers. However, flexibility is only one part of the puzzle and companies need to balance it with intentional diversity and inclusion efforts to strengthen gender equality. To that end, we have continued to invest in every stage of our team members' experience with us, including through leadership development programmes, robust succession planning, and resource groups that empower and support our women team members in their professional growth.

Helen Ng Chief Executive Officer Lock+Store

Gender equality starts at home. With more people working from home, there is a renewed sense of shared responsibility for household chores and parenting. Husbands are more conscious of the burden of having to choose between work and family that their wives had to shoulder alone in the past. They are more likely to support the push for gender equality at the workplace.

Fabrice Leguet MD Director and President Siemens Healthineers SE Asia

Women face intensified challenges with the rise of WFH arrangements because of the multiple hats they wear - as a homemaker, caregiver and an employee. Companies have a responsibility in creating environments that help them not only cope but also excel in the new normal and pursue opportunities for progression. Flexible work policies that focus on work-life integration allows women to find better synergies to accommodate various day-to-day challenges and situations and perform at work. Siemens Healthineers' new way of working enables employees to decide when and where to work based on their individual preference for the best performance.

Marwa Al-Khuzaim Managing Director Aramco Asia Singapore

Improving gender equality in the workplace requires the concerted effort and commitment of governments, employers, and society to address structural issues and mindsets that hinder diversity and inclusion. Aramco believes in promoting inclusive culture throughout our organisation. In Singapore, women comprise half of our leadership positions. In Saudi Arabia, Aramco conducts initiatives designed to support women at each stage of their career, as well as developing inclusive leadership at every level. We also actively engage with ministries, educational institutions, and advocacy groups to nurture inclusion and diversity culture in the kingdom.

Gustav Eriksson Group CEO Collectius

A year into the pandemic, it is evident that the hybrid work model is here to stay. Core to the culture at Collectius is respect for our employees' time both at home and at work. We recognise that an energised and productive workforce is one that is rooted by a positive work culture. As the lines between home and work are increasingly blurred, we do our part in ensuring our employees have avenues to unwind and stay connected to their colleagues remotely. As the future of work evolves, we are nimble and agile as a team. We are proud employers of inspiring people who wear many hats at home. In celebrating International Women's Day, we applaud the many women at Collectius who are great leaders, achievers and problem solvers both at home and at work.

Jill Smith Chief Executive Officer Manulife US Real Estate Management Pte Ltd

At Manulife US Reit (MUST), we believe that a diverse talent pool provides access to different skillsets and talents essential for the firm to stay ahead of its industry. Today, women represent half of our independent directors, half of our senior management team and around 70 per cent of our staff strength. We value and support our female employees through flexible working arrangement and provide equal opportunities and remuneration packages based solely on performance.

All staff, regardless of gender, are entitled to work from home when the need arises. To further our commitment on this front, MUST provides regular training to all employees on diversity and inclusion, and diversity data is reported to the Board for review bi-annually.

Joanne Wong VP, International Markets LogRhythm

As hybrid and remote work arrangements inevitably blurred the boundaries between the workplace and home, we have come to empathise and better understand the challenges of wearing double hats, especially for working mothers. This calls us to totally break away from the traditional thinking that women are solely responsible for the household - be it home chores or caregiving - and move towards equal sharing of duties. Only then can we empower women with more flexibility at work, and encourage men to play a more active role at home. These new ways of working will translate into change at the workplace and help champion gender equality in the long run, but only if we are willing to keep challenging the status quo.

Chan Chong Yang Managing Director, Asean Qlik

With millennials facing the challenge of being the sandwich generation - caught between elderly parents and young children - there needs to be a shift in social norms around caregiving. Interestingly, despite increased flexibility in the workplace last year, research by Motherly in the US found that 74 per cent of working mothers felt mentally worse since the pandemic began; I am sure Asean results would not be too different. Much of this was due to increased caregiving duties despite managing regular office workloads from home. While it is great that a number of our MPs are calling for flexible work arrangements to be adopted as standard practice, this has been long overduesince the rise of dual-earners. I also believe the second and more important step is a cultural shift. More encouragement in sharing of parental and elder care responsibilities is essential to break the cycle of overburdening women in the workforce.

Eric Van Miltenburg Chief Business Officer Ripple

The pandemic brought many hardships for society but one of the biggest setbacks affected women both at home and in the workplace. Companies need to be thoughtful and intentional about establishing policies that result in an inclusive workforce so as to promote gender equality.

Since the start of the pandemic, Ripple has worked to ensure that all parents and caregivers felt supported in their new setting. We increased our quarterly stipends to cover costs related to childcare and home education until the end of 2021, hosted support circles and expanded our partnerships related to mental health. Starting this year, we offered equal parental leave for all new parents globally, regardless of their gender identity or sexual orientation, indefinitely, and plan to incorporate an equitable remote work option that gives employees the opportunity to find the best fit for their location and personal needs. As companies start planning for a post-Covid office reality, it is crucial that we evolve and extend policies that support gender parity in the workplace.

Geraldine Kor MD, South Asia and Country MD Singapore Telstra

We have witnessed results from our implementation of flexible work policies that have empowered our people and advanced gender diversity. We know that the traditional nine-to-five workday does not suit everyone. What the pandemic has shown is that we bring our best selves to work when our workplaces offer flexibility, combined with adaptability and technology.

Through our ''All Roles Flex'' initiative, our people can take up non-traditional working hours, work from other locations, job-share or work part-time hours. We saw immediate results after three months of trial - representation among female candidates increased, and 30 per cent of those surveyed said they had applied for their role because of our openness about flexibility. A similar number reported they were working flexibly in their new role. This initiative has been adopted company-wide since March 2014, and we have seen very positive increases in engagement and employee retention as both our men and women can balance the demands of office and home life.

Andrew Lim VP, Asean and Greater China Cognizant

The pandemic has further accelerated remote working that had already been gaining ground for a while owing to the coming together of virtualisation of work and consumerisation of IT. Thanks to anytime, anywhere systems that can create virtual presence, work is no longer fettered by place and time. Mainstreaming of hybrid or remote working has paved the way for more women to tide over constraining circumstances and commitments, and return to the workforce with greater flexibility and control. It has also created newer social as well as organisational constructs for each individual's inherent potential to be realised and mentored without biases, which is key to driving gender diversity and equality in the workplace.

David Chan Managing Director AdNovum Singapore Pte Ltd

With the pandemic, flexible work arrangements and work-life balance are firmly rooted in the new world of work and are now new expectations in the workplace. This would undoubtedly help improve gender diversity, with the accompaniment of a diversified and inclusive culture.

In AdNovum, recruitment and advancement are assessed fairly based on the individuals' merit and capabilities. Our employees enjoy flexible hours and work-life balance where they can arrange their work schedule within a 40-hour work week. We currently also offer part-time work arrangements for female employees who are mothers and for those working gradually towards retirement.

Businesses should invest in building a more flexible and inclusive workplace, jointly with the commitment of government and families in order to have things done more equitably.

Dennis Yeo Head of Investor Services, Asia Pacific Cushman & Wakefield

Over the years, we have seen more and more companies embracing flexible working as a talent recruitment and retention strategy and this has contributed to an improvement in both diversity and gender equality. The growing adoption of new work norms will continue to be part of the talent strategy discussion, which will further influence gender equality in the workplace. But there is still room for improvement such as having the right policies and structures to support these new work norms and educating leaders and managers on the impact on their team members. At Cushman & Wakefield, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is a key pillar of our business, and we are committed to pursuing new and better ways of working that foster a conducive and equitable work environment that provides fair growth opportunities for all our employees, regardless of gender.

Cameron McLean SVP, Core Europe and Australia Enterprise & Growth Markets PayPal

While remote working arrangements may result in greater productivity, this is not necessarily true for women who typically take on more domestic responsibilities. A supportive culture that recognises this will help encourage women who are primary caregivers or working mothers to be successful in the workplace.

PayPal maintains equal opportunity through a combination of HR policies and employee advocacy groups. From flexible working arrangements to open dialogue sessions and informal mentorship programmes, we aim to foster an environment where individuals can better balance their personal and professional responsibilities. If we want to reach true gender parity, we need to advance equity at every level.

Annie Yap Founder & Chairman The AYP Group

While the new work norms definitely have their perks for individuals in terms of work-life balance, they do little to nothing on improving gender equality. Gender inequality in the workplace has existed for a long time and is based on attitudes and social policies that have been in force for as long as we can remember. The home is also, more often than not, loaded with gender roles when it comes to housework or taking care of children. As such, gender inequality at work will not be remedied by remote work; this will only change when the prejudices, behaviours and attitudes of those in the workforce change.

Andrew Chan Founder & CEO ACI HR Solutions Ltd

While the gender equality gap may be narrowing, it is not nearly closing fast enough, especially on the issue of salary equity. The pandemic certainly enabled many companies to fast-track flexible working and even forced many organisations to reluctantly implement this option, especially during the circuit breaker. My belief is that post-pandemic, office-based working will still ultimately be the dominant work style, as many roles simply cannot be home-based. So this alone cannot be the driving principle, and more effort will still be needed to reduce gender bias and effect change.

Lim Soon Hock Managing Director PLAN-B ICAG

New work norms such as the rise of hybrid working and work-from-home, in extending the conventional workplace to virtually anywhere, will empower more women, thereby helping improve gender equality at the workplace. Such new work norms will inevitably create more employment opportunities for women, thereby endowing them with more economic power. More economic power will invariably help close the gap for gender equality. That said, society will still need to do more to change entrenched cultural attitudes and deep-seated mindsets to achieve absolute gender equality.

One acid test would be when there is equal respect for men and women exemplified naturally and spontaneously through social graces and courtesies, such that male chivalry would not be just the monopoly of men.

Henry Tan Group CEO Nexia TS Group

Flexi-work arrangements and ability to manage workload with more autonomy would be conducive towards encouraging more women at the workplace. WFH and other remote work arrangements will help, but other matters like equal opportunity, flexibility and commitment to diversity play a part. Our firm has continued to encourage women in the workplace and we have continued to get feedback from our female staff on their needs. One example we had is the provision of a lactation room in the office. As a result, 53.6 per cent of our employees are women, and women directorships in the firm stand at 47 per cent. The figures not only show that equal opportunities are given to both genders but also reflect our commitment towards gender diversity within the firm. That widens the depth and breadth of our skills and perspectives, which drives innovation and collaboration in the firm.

David Leong Managing Director PeopleWorldwide Consulting Pte Ltd

Cultural, social and structural hurdles for women will always exist and are embedded and imprinted into our collective consciousness. The roles and responsibilities of women differ and hence the perceived gender equalities.

The new work norms, including WFH, are still a working condition and will not specifically impact the contexts and contents of the work. The behavioural shift must start from according women their due merits and recognition for their work.

This behavioural shift will then be imprinted into our collective consciousness and gender equality at work will then have its equalising and normalising effects.

Gan Ta Loong MD, SEA and VP, Immersive Experience, APAC Barco

We have seen the pandemic act as a force multiplier for gender equality in organisations. The shift towards hybrid working adjusted expectations in a way that levels the playing field for women. It encourages an essential cultural shift to acknowledge women as caregivers and office workers at the same time. By saving time on commuting and via tech advancements, hybrid working arrangements present better chances of maintaining a work-life balance for everyone. And thanks to WFH, even men have started offering a helping hand at household chores. Companies have started tracking work outcomes rather than time inputs, which allow women to tend to personal as well as their professional duties without having to choose one over the other.

As remote working is here to stay, organisations should also look at providing their teams with the latest collaboration technologies to eliminate the need for full-time presence at the office.

Hari V Krishnan CEO & MD PropertyGuru Group

Bridging the workplace gender gap needs a strong sense of equity - recognising the unique requirements of different stakeholders and providing conditions that allow all employees an equal shot at success. One solution among many is to offer flexible working arrangements.

The pandemic exposed us to new ways of working. WFH frees women (and men) from a typical workday and allows more time for themselves or the home front, in turn motivating them to manage both responsibilities simultaneously. That said, we should exercise caution in how this flexible environment is created. A hasty transition towards remote working can do more harm than good for any employee.

At PropertyGuru, we recently introduced a ''Future of Work'' programme that enables our employees to choose the working hours, schedules, location and more, in line with their role. Our emphasis is on providing the right skills, training, and technology solutions for employees to effectively collaborate, as well as knowing how to ''switch off'', while enjoying a flexible work environment.

This is Part 1 of the responses.

Part 2 will be published on March 15.