According to the Filene report, "5 Challenges: How to Enhance Women's Leadership In Credit Unions," women comprise 25% of middle managers, 19% of senior leaders, 14% of board members and 2% of CEOs in credit unions. The report is based on a study of 753 respondents at 320 credit unions across North America. While women are an essential part of credit unions around the world, they still face systematic challenges that threaten their professional aspirations. Institutional and cultural biases hold women back, but not necessarily in consistent or predictable ways.

Workplace Perceptions

We all have pre-perceptions of the ideal leader: Intelligent, fearless, selfless, etc. Stereotypes play a significant role in these perceptions. The original mission-driven nature of credit unions aligned quite closely with characteristics that people often ascribe to women – community orientation, giving back, collaboration – so it's mysterious that women, who are well represented as a percentage of employees in the credit union system, attain fewer senior leadership roles. Women climb the ranks less often than men, making up 70% percent of credit union employees overall but only 41% of credit union leadership.

The characteristics that we often ascribe to women – being warm, friendly, likable and nurturing – tend not to overlap as much with at least our historic notions of what it means to be a leader and a high-level leader. Moreover, the study showed that the way women perceive themselves in the workplace is very distinct in comparison to men:

• Women feel they have significantly less status and fewer resources, and exert less influence than men;

• Women are a bit more likely to set objectives in isolation and less likely to seek input from subordinates;

• Women report feeling more able to motivate others than men.

Family life also contributes in shaping the perceptions of professional women. There is a higher likelihood that women opt out for familial obligations or that there's a perceived "ambition gap," and you end up with very few women likely to reach the top ranks of their organizations.

Surely women can start to dispel these perceptions with advocacy and self-assurance, right? It's not that cut and dry – especially when they face unconscious work biases and want to leave. The idea of opting out is a heavy one. It can lead to the perception that women aren't good targets for institutional investment of resources, or will choose family over work. In the banking industry specifically, women managers have more trouble achieving work-life balance than their male peers do, likely because of their commitments to both work and home.

Source: 2012 NCUA data with names of credit union CEOs and board presidents coded for gender. Roughly 240 unisex names were assigned based on the statistical likelihood that they were male or female.

Educational Backgrounds and Professional Climate

Educational background is a significant predictor of who ends up in leadership positions. Women often start working for credit unions with less education and in departments that don't lead directly to the executive suite. Almost half of women who enter a credit union begin as tellers, versus only 28% of men. Of the available careers, tellers are the second lowest generator of managerial-level positions.

Career ascension is also very dependent on the types of college majors credit union employees' possess. The research reveals accounting and finance as the two college majors that lead to senior leadership. In the study, 50% of people with bachelor's degrees reached management positions while only 20% of people with associate's degrees did.

The professional climate female credit union professionals must work in can also determine whether or not leadership positions are in the near future. Employees at credit unions with female CEOs perceive themselves differently and act differently than those at credit unions with a man in charge. This isn't earth shattering or surprising. All of us have more comfort working in an environment where we feel a sense of belonging. Reliability for women is crucial. In almost every way, women feel more empowered under female CEOs. The presence of a female CEO is a huge signal to women of their importance within the credit union.

Solutions for Credit Unions

So what can credit unions do to ensure more women feel empowered to strive for leadership positions? It starts at the top. Having leaders – male and female – that emphasize the importance of workplace equality is vital. At the organizational level, prioritize women's training and advancement so best intentions don't get lost. Invest in building a clear career path for women. Outside of the internal rewards you can reap by making sure women feel validated with their careers, having a woman-led organization can increase visibility and a sense of ambition for others to follow.

Eradicating the leadership barriers that hold women back will enable credit unions to encourage diversity and shrink the gender gap. One of the most effective ways to do this is to encourage sponsorship, not just mentorship. Differentiate between mentors and sponsors. Mentors give advice and feedback; sponsors advocate aggressively, championing their sponsoree's work to executives. Sponsorship gives women confidence. Women can make great headway in using sponsors effectively, soliciting feedback on all aspects of work, from effectiveness to appearance. Once a woman has a sponsor, she, like men who have sponsors, is more likely to ask for a raise or a tough assignment.

Finally, boards and hiring executives should exercise their influence by demanding diverse candidate slates for important positions. The more search firms and hiring managers see inclusion as a necessary principle, the more they will emphasize it in their own processes.

For more information on how credit unions can help lead and promote women, download "5 Challenges: How to Enhance Women's Leadership In Credit Unions."

Manpreet Nat is a research associate at Filene Research Institute. 608-661-3752 or [email protected]