Procter & Gamble – Everyone Valued, Everyone Included, Everyone Performing at Their Peak™ (Practices)

 

Everyone Valued, Everyone Included, Everyone Performing at Their Peak™ is Procter & Gamble’s (P&G) global initiative and strategy to develop talent throughout the organization including advancing women leaders across regions. At the heart of the company’s approach is a comprehensive talent management strategy with strong leadership development components (including training, career development, and mentorship/sponsorship opportunities). Other efforts such as affinity groups, work-life and flexibility programs and policies, as well as site-specific and region-specific activities are integrated within the initiative. P&G’s work in this area is rooted in its “build from within” culture and P&G’s core values—Integrity, Leadership, Ownership, Passion for Winning, and Trust—which are essential to creating an inclusive workplace that attracts, develops, and retains the best talent.

Wide-ranging learning and development resources provide employees at all levels with the tools to leverage not only “traditional” dimensions of diversity, but also diversity of communication and leadership styles. Leaders and employees communicate regularly about goals, performance, and personal development plans through tools such as MyCareer Portal and Career Maps. These tools allow customization of employee development and career trajectories, as well as the “5 Rocks” goal-setting system, that aligns business objectives with diversity and inclusion efforts and overall organizational goals. P&G offers a variety of capability-building tools for all employees that focus on topics related to diversity and inclusion, and development opportunities specifically for women leaders, such as the Women’s Empowered Accelerator Program, that provide high-potential women with the skills to advance to the next level. All capability-building tools are tailored to participants’ unique levels, functions, and professional needs. P&G’s Affinity Groups have branches across every function, business, and region, with leaders who disseminate information locally. The Affinity Groups foster an inclusive culture by providing employees with opportunities for career development, networking, mentoring, and sponsorship. Lastly, the global Flex@work initiative provides location and time flexibility, as well as a variety of reduced-hour arrangements and leave benefits, to help create a culture in which both women and men can effectively manage their responsibilities at and outside of work.

Thanks to these efforts, P&G has achieved some remarkable results. Between 2008 and 2013, women’s representation increased globally from 25.7% to 28.3% at and above the VP level, from 29.3% to 31.8% among Associate Directors, and from 40.2% to 43.6% among all managers. Notably, women’s representation on P&G’s Board of Directors has increased from 27.3% to 50.0%. Also in that same time frame, P&G’s global retention rate of women employees increased from 87.0% to 91.0%.