Businesses with equal numbers of women leaders are more successful than those without.

This has been proven again and again in management theory and research and is particularly relevant to restaurants right now as they navigate a labor shortage. Gender equity is an important piece of both attracting and retaining talent. High feelings of belonging, for example, are associated with a 50% drop in turnover risk (Carr). The latter data point is particularly relevant for restaurants which, pre-pandemic, were experiencing an annual turnover rate of 70% (Johnson & Madera). 

O, who manages a bar, has introduced several practices aimed at helping employees of all identities belong. These include fundraisers for organizations that matter to the team (they recently did one to benefit The Lilleth Fund); paying employees for taking on restaurant projects that they care about like gardening or curating playlists; and capping shifts at 6 to 8 hours. “So far, I’m very happy to say that we’re fully staffed,” she explains. “We’ve had a bunch of friends come in and being like, oh, how’s hiring for you? And we’ve been very lucky where we’re doing okay.” 

O is quick to credit her success in avoiding a worker shortage to luck, but she is proving the value of women in leadership positions. In fact, inclusive workplaces are twice as likely to meet or exceed financial targets, six times more likely to be innovative and agile, and eight times more likely to achieve better business outcomes (Bourke & Dillon). Restaurants are wading through uncharted waters, navigating unprecedented financial hardship and scrambling to come up with new and profitable ways of operating. Hiring inclusively is a way to increase the likelihood that they’ll succeed, and O’s bar is case in point. 

However, simply promoting more women is insufficient. Gender diversity correlates with more productive companies only when there is a normative acceptance of working women, defined as a widespread cultural belief that gender diversity is important (Turban). Here is where restaurants will face a hurdle: in order to actually achieve gender equity in leadership positions, those in charge of hiring have to believe its value. J, for example, was once hired to do some consulting for a Thai restaurant in New York City. She used their sales data to recommend removing a few dishes from the menu as a cost-cutting measure. “The owner was so upset that…he just literally walked out of the meeting. So obviously nothing got done.” Even though she was hired for her expertise, it was ultimately ignored:

“As a woman, you immediately learn that…pointing out something is wrong will never get you anywhere, because everybody gets so defensive and angry.” 

Soon, restaurants may not have a choice other than inclusive leadership. 61% of women look at gender diversity of an employer’s leadership when evaluating a job offer, and 67% of job seekers consider workforce diversity overall (Turban). “I think women specifically are trying to be much more selective about the environments” they are returning to, says O. R concurs: “As I recruit, I see that the standard of what someone wants is much higher, and I’m happy about that.”