Advancing women in the post-DEI age

Why women get overlooked after a career break

We know, and data proves, that teams with more women on them perform better by all measures, but it's hard to build them when we can't openly pursue them. This begs the question: "But why do we need special programs to attract women?" The answer lies in a basic biological reality: women have babies, and the bearing and raising of those babies interrupts their career paths in ways that too many employers still read as a liability instead of an asset.

Data from McKinsey shows that about 50% of U.S. women professionals take a 2+ year career break for childrearing. A related Pew Research Center study reveals that the majority of women who remain in the workforce during their child-rearing years take what's called the "Mommy Track." Specifically, 42% of them downshift by working reduced hours or in a lesser role, and 11% stall in place by turning down promotions, during this busy life phase.

The result is that the vast majority of the U.S.’s best women talent have resume gaps, perceived inferior performance, and disrupted, crooked career paths, which are the very features your job board algorithm and front-line recruiters are programmed to weed out.

Career breaks shouldn't be career-enders

As such, women returning to or rebooting at work face daunting odds getting back in the door and, if and when they do, they are penalized with fewer opportunities, for lesser roles, with limited advancement opportunities, and lower pay. This reality explains why there are so few women at the top. "Career-relaunchers" like Constance, an Ivy-League-educated Tier 1 attorney; Maria, a quad-lingual fintech project manager; and Emma, an acclaimed brand marketer with an Oxford PhD, didn't need a DEI edge to get into the workforce, but returning to it and advancing in it was another story.

Women's biology is immutable, but the responsibility to end its career penalties should not be theirs alone. A thriving workplace depends on tapping into all its talent; a thriving species depends on birthing future generations. Both require women. We should encourage and help women, not punish them, when they pause their careers for motherhood. Oftentimes, they return even stronger candidates.

We can still support women in a post-DEI workplace if we value their perspectives (diversity), commit to fair play and equal pay (equity), and make space for unconventional career paths (inclusion).

8 ways to support women without a formal DEI program

1. Redefine “work.”

When women pause or scale back their careers, they're not working less, just differently. In addition to essential caregiving, they're leading community organizations, chairing fundraisers, advocating for justice, and consulting on nonprofit boards. This work is valuable and skill-building; chances are you've personally benefited from it. So be sure to count it when you're evaluating a woman for a job or promotion. Work is work, whether it's paid or unpaid.

2. Reframe work-life benefits.

Flexible work and family leave programs improve productivity and performance for all. But there's an unfortunate divide in who participates: women typically do, so they experience career interruptions and reduced facetime. Men typically don't participate, often for fear of being ostracized, so they maintain career traction and advance faster and further than women. Welcoming everyone to participate in work-life programs levels the playing field, increasing retention rates, and raising profits.

3. Rewrite job specifications.

Set a more inclusive tone by stating "We welcome applicants returning to the workforce after a career break, and value the diverse experiences and perspectives you bring." Add encouraging prompts like "If you've taken time off for family caregiving, please share any transferable skills and unique perspectives you've gained during this time that will help you succeed in this role."

4. Rethink “ambition.”

Ambition is a common criterion for hiring and advancement but, aside from being impossible to measure, it hinders female candidates. Harvard Business Review notes that when women adjust their careers for work-life balance, they are seen as less ambitious and excluded from key conversations and projects. Ensure this bias isn't impacting your female colleagues, and then go talk to an MBA-Mom raising three preschoolers while running a nonprofit and keeping up with her continuing education credits to witness real ambition.

5. Reconsider promotion requirements.

Intermediate steps like cross-country or global relocations are often required for advancement into senior roles but offer little developmental value. They are "loyalty-proving" steps that disproportionately disadvantage women: men are 3.7 times more likely to relocate their families.

6. Resume or establish supportive programs.

Options include mid-career internships ("returnships"), formal career on- and off-ramps, and parent Employee Resource Groups. These are proven programs that help women, and all caregivers, maintain career continuity despite disruptions, and they're worth keeping.

7. Review company-wide compensation.

Conduct an audit to identify if you have a pay equity gap. Examine whether women are routinely paid less, or over-represented in lower paying roles, or fall behind at a certain job level. And then fix it.

8. Recast caregiving pauses as valuable.

Normalize them as an expected, important aspect of working motherhood that benefits mother, child, workplace, and the world.

DEI has changed, but the data hasn't

Data conclusively shows that diverse teams perform best and companies with more female leaders achieve better financial results, equal pay for equal work benefits not only the employee but the economy, and inclusive workplaces that look like their customers are more successful in reaching those customers.

Yes, in some places DEI has become a collection of performative box-checking mandates that favor identity over qualifications and offer little developmental support. But, at a time when the workforce is shrinking, AI complexities are multiplying, retention is at a multi-year low, and women are leaving the workplace in higher numbers than ever recorded, we need to lean into those things DEI got right.

FAQ

What does "post-DEI" mean?

It refers to the current environment in which many formal diversity, equity, and inclusion programs have been scaled back or eliminated, often under legal and political pressure, leaving companies to find other ways to support underrepresented groups like women.

Why do women take career breaks more often than men?

Women remain the primary caregivers for children in most households. Research from McKinsey shows about 50% of U.S. women professionals take a career break of two or more years for childrearing.

What is the "Mommy Track"?

It's the pattern identified by Pew Research Center in which women who stay in the workforce during their child-rearing years downshift their careers, working reduced hours, taking lesser roles, or turning down promotions to manage caregiving responsibilities.

How can companies support women without a formal DEI program?

By redefining what counts as valuable work experience, rewriting job postings to welcome career-break returners, auditing compensation for pay gaps, and building supportive programs like returnships and parent employee resource groups, all without labeling any of it as a DEI initiative.

About the author

Susan Rietano Davey is a career and workplace expert and co-founder/owner of the global learning and consulting firm, Prepare to Launch, LLC, which regularly partners with PowerToFly to deliver instructional programs. This blog post includes material from a book she is writing about how women’s nonlinear career paths are an asset to the workplace that will be published by Berrett-Koehler Press in September 2027.