With it being Women's History Month, there was perhaps no better time for PhocusWire and Expedia Group to release a new white paper on how gender diversity in the travel industry can be financially beneficial.
As of now only five percent of the C-suite in travel companies are comprised of women and only nine percent of travel companies have female presidents. That means that 70 percent of the travel industry performs within a "poor to adequate" range when it comes to gender parity.
By examining case studies from partners like American Airlines, Avis Budget Group, HEI Hotels and Resort, and Marriott International, the study titled, "Gender Diversity in the Travel Industry," found that companies with a higher rate of diversity and inclusion had a 19 percent higher revenue due to innovation. Plus, corporations with higher rates of gender equality were 27 percent more likely to outperform their competitors on longer-term value creation, and 35 percent more likely to have above-median financial returns.
Add on the fact that diversity and inclusion can assist with better talent recruitment and retention and customer acquisition (of which 85 percent of all purchases are made by women), and it's a no brainer. Bringing more women into the travel leadership fold can bring about greater success.
So how can travel companies do this?
"Diversity and inclusion is a journey that requires constant listening, learning, and implementation of policies and programs that foster inclusion and belonging," said Melissa Maher, chief inclusion officer and SVP marketing and industry engagement, Expedia Group.
PhocusWire and Expedia suggested starting at the individual level and focusing on employee satisfaction, then moving on to programs and initiatives that make gender equality a top priority.
The study was quick to note that just by having a gender equality program in place is not good enough. A BCG study found that 91 percent of companies have a gender diversity program, but only 27 percent of women say they actually benefit from them. Clearly, not all companies are following through.
PhocusWire and Expedia say companies could implement gender balancing tools like Textio to remove gender bias in job descriptions, encourage allyship that calls out bias throughout the company, form councils to address growth bias (of which women majorly suffer from), and mentorships that focus on getting diverse candidates to leadership positions.
Real-world examples of this exist. Expedia Group uses diverse employees to conduct interviews - including women - and provide hiring managers and recruiters training on bias toward candidates. American Airlines partners with historically black colleges and groups like Women in Aviation International and Fairgodboss to target more women and women of color for their company.
HEI Hotels & Resorts formed a Women in Leadership Council in 2019 to address the lack of women general managers through mentorship.
"It's very much a male-dominated landscape. Women outnumber men when they enter this business but by mid-management, they've disappeared," said Rachel Moniz, HEI's executive vice president of operations. "The goal is to get to 25% of our hotels having women general managers by the end of 2021. And by 2030, we want to get to 50% parity."
She added, "The only cost involved is our time and the time of our other sponsors. But all of that has paid dividends in terms of the results we're getting in our hotels. The spend is intellectual and already, we're seeing some wonderful returns on investment."
Diversity and gender parity is both cost-effective for a travel company and offers a return on profits. While it can seem like a surmounting thing, travel companies that put their mind to it can make it happen. Just look at Intrepid Travel. In 2017, they had a goal to double their female leaders and they did it in two years.
Marriott International's chief financial officer, Leeny Oberg offers some sound advice: "Just saying something and doing one program for one year just absolutely doesn't work. It has to be in the fabric of the company. It can't just be in their words."
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