One of the positive lessons that businesses have learned from
the Covid-19 pandemic is that flexible workplaces work, and work well. For decades, Hong Kong has had a work culture of long hours along with what analysts like to call “presenteeism” – staying late in the office even when not necessary, out of guilt or fear you will be seen as slacking off.
Pandemic restrictions have disrupted this unproductive culture, and that is a good thing. Hong Kong companies have had to come up with new ways of organising the workplace in a very short timespan. Companies instituted flexible hours and
work from home arrangements while developing digital resources to facilitate the socially distanced office.
I hope these workplace innovations have staying power in the post-pandemic business environment. Many of these flexible options
improve business productivity but, even more importantly, they will encourage the progress of gender equality and diversity in the workplace.
Last year, a University of Hong Kong study showed women’s careers thrived when they were working in a company that provided flexible options for working hours and office time. Conversely, women tended to leave companies with rigid office cultures that did not allow for
work-life balance.
The study uncovered another sobering statistic. Although more than half of HKU students are women, the female senior-level representation at Hong Kong companies is only 29 per cent.
Daunted by an unaccommodating work culture, women are dropping out of career tracks. This is a lose-lose situation all around for the women who are not realising their potential and for
Hong Kong’s economy, which needs the talents of these women to remain competitive.
Gender diversity in business is a social good, and that alone is a reason to support it. It is also proving to be
good for business, though. The global research group McKinsey has tracked more than 1,000 businesses around the world since 2014 and discovered there is a direct correlation between the health of a company’s bottom line and the number of women in its executive team.
This makes sense. Companies need to be in touch with the marketplace and customers. A business that has only male decision-makers at the top is going to have less insight into both.
The senior management team of my insurance company is mostly women, including the CEO. I admit
gender diversity was not at the top of my mind when we hired these people. What attracts me in a job candidate are ability, experience, talent and track record.
However, it is a huge plus when a candidate brings these qualifications to our organisation as well as the added value of diversity. My company has benefited immeasurably from the perspectives of these extraordinary women, and so have I.
Although Hong Kong’s gender diversity in the civil service is remarkable – 14 out of 18 permanent secretaries are women – it surprises me that the city lags behind other economies when it comes to women
in corporate boardrooms. Only 13.7 per cent of directors at Hong Kong’s major listed companies are women, lower than Britain’s 34.5 per cent and 28 per cent in the US. The figures for mainland China are similar to Hong Kong’s.
Hong Kong’s statistics on board diversity are actually quite alarming. At the end of 2020, just 74 women served as board members at the 52 companies in the Hang Seng Index. White men, who only make up about 0.5 per cent of the Hong Kong population, held 74 board seats themselves.
The Hong Kong stock exchange – which happens to be headed by
Laura Cha Shih May-lung, an extraordinary woman – is concerned about this gap and is taking steps to encourage companies to diversify their boards. The latest environmental, social and governance guidelines for Hong Kong companies include a requirement for submission of a detailed diversity policy.
Some groups think we should do even more. The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries is calling for a 30 per cent target for female board memberships in Hong Kong. It would include a transition period of six years and be on a voluntary, “comply or explain” basis.
This seems like a reasonable plan. Gender diversity is key to Hong Kong’s long-term economic recovery from the pandemic. We should use this moment to make sure the doors of the workplace, from entry level to the boardroom, are wide open for the talented women of Hong Kong.
Bernard Chan is convenor of Hong Kong’s Executive Council
