CRM Archive

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McKinsey: Women in the Workplace 2023

By Emily Field, Alexis Krivkovich, Sandra Kügele, Nicole Robinson, and Lareina Yee
Women are more ambitious than ever, and workplace flexibility is fueling them. Yet despite some hard-fought gains, women’s representation is not keeping pace. That’s according to the latest Women in the Workplace report from McKinsey, in partnership with LeanIn.Org.
This is the ninth year of the Women in the Workplace report. Conducted in partnership with LeanIn.Org, this effort is the largest study of women in corporate America and Canada. This year, we collected information from 276 participating organizations employing more than ten million people. At these organizations, we surveyed more than 27,000 employees and 270 senior HR leaders, who shared insights on their policies and practices. The report provides an intersectional look at the specific biases and barriers faced by Asian, Black, Latina, and LGBTQ+ women and women with disabilities.

This year’s research reveals some hard-fought gains at the top, with women’s representation in the C-suite at the highest it has ever been. However, with lagging progress in the middle of the pipeline—and a persistent underrepresentation of women of color1—true parity remains painfully out of reach.

The survey debunks four myths about women’s workplace experiences and career advancement. A few of these myths cover old ground, but given the notable lack of progress, they warrant repeating. These include women’s career ambitions, the greatest barrier to their ascent to senior leadership, the effect and extent of microaggressions in the workplace, and women’s appetite for flexible work. We hope highlighting these myths will help companies find a path forward that casts aside outdated thinking once and for all and accelerates progress for women.

The rest of this article summarizes the main findings from the Women in the Workplace 2023 report and provides clear solutions that organizations can implement to make meaningful progress toward gender equality.

State of the pipeline

Over the past nine years, women—and especially women of color—have remained underrepresented across the corporate pipeline (Exhibit 1). However, we see a growing bright spot in senior leadership. Since 2015, the number of women in the C-suite has increased from 17 to 28 percent, and the representation of women at the vice president and senior vice president levels has also improved significantly.

These hard-earned gains are encouraging yet fragile: slow progress for women at the manager and director levels—representation has grown only three and four percentage points, respectively—creates a weak middle in the pipeline for employees who represent the vast majority of women in corporate America. And the “Great Breakup” trend we discovered in last year’s survey continues for women at the director level, the group next in line for senior-leadership positions. That is, director-level women are leaving at a higher rate than in past years—and at a notably higher rate than men at the same level. As a result of these two dynamics, there are fewer women in line for top positions.

Moreover, progress for women of color is lagging behind their peers’ progress. At nearly every step in the pipeline, the representation of women of color falls relative to White women and men of the same race and ethnicity. Until companies address this inequity head-on, women of color will remain severely underrepresented in leadership positions—and mostly absent from the C-suite.

Four myths about the state of women at work

Myth: Women are becoming less ambitious
Reality: Women are more ambitious than before the pandemic—and flexibility is fueling that ambition
Myth: The biggest barrier to women’s advancement is the ‘glass ceiling’
Reality: The ‘broken rung’ is the greatest obstacle women face on the path to senior leadership
Myth: Microaggressions have a ‘micro’ impact
Reality: Microaggressions have a large and lasting impact on women
Myth: It’s mostly women who want—and benefit from—flexible work
Reality: Men and women see flexibility as a ‘top 3’ employee benefit and critical to their company’s success

More: McKinsey & Comapny

To view previous reports, please visit the Women in the Workplace archive

 

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BCG: Is Your Upskilling Program Paying Off?

By J. PuckettVinciane BeauchenePatrick Erker, and Zhdan Shakirov

As generative AI (GenAI) and other disruptive technologies rapidly transform the business landscape, companies are recognizing the strategic imperative of workforce reskilling. Indeed, according to a 2023 BCG survey, 75% plan to make significant investments in talent retention and development. Yet historically, even significant investments in upskilling programs often yielded disappointing results. One key reason is that companies haven’t found a reliable way to measure their programs’ impact, despite many attempts to create such mechanisms over the past 50 years.

Through our work with clients, we have developed a three-step approach to help companies better measure “return on learning investment” for some dimensions of organizational upskilling programs. ROLI enables companies to: 1) identify upfront the business outcomes or impact they are looking to achieve; 2) define the metrics they will use to hold the program accountable to that impact and measure progress; and 3) determine whether that impact has been achieved.

With these ROLI principles in mind, companies can design upskilling programs with demonstrable impact on revenues, costs, customer satisfaction, and innovation speed, ultimately improving margins and delivering on other business objectives.

The Challenges with Traditional Approaches

It’s not hard to see why companies traditionally have had limited success measuring the impact of their upskilling programs. First, the measurement mechanism itself is very difficult. It’s one thing to track the time an employee spends in an upskilling program. But tracking them through their workflow to determine how they’ve applied their new skill sets is another thing altogether.

Even if it were possible to determine that a person’s performance had improved since the upskilling program, it’s not easy to distinguish correlation from causation. Since controlled studies aren’t realistic, it’s hard to know whether an upskilling program was responsible for the change or if other factors, such as motivation, manager input, or market dynamics played a role.

Another issue is that the impact of any single upskilling program isn’t typically immediately apparent. That’s because the upskilling cycle takes time—both acquiring the skills and then putting them to work in a way that has a business impact. And because leaders have different motivations for investing in upskilling, there isn’t a universally recognized measure of success or even an approach for tracking impact. Some leaders look for productivity improvements, others look for better retention, and still others look to boost their brand.

Despite these challenges, organizations that make a clear connection between the skills being learned and specific KPIs can measure the impact of upskilling programs on their own employees; the maturity of the ecosystem (how fast the organization can upskill and adapt compared with its competitors); and business performance.

Even if it were possible to determine that a person’s performance had improved since the upskilling program, it’s not easy to distinguish correlation from causation.

While all three are undeniably important, the business impact is paramount, given the substantial investment needed to build scaling capabilities. For example, an upskilling program to facilitate a digital transformation in a global company can require an investment of millions of dollars. Only programs that will arguably unlock meaningful value for employees and the enterprise will get the green light.

More: BCG

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Deloitte – ESG zyskuje na znaczeniu

Inwestorzy z Europy Środkowej spodziewają się większej liczby transakcji w 2024 roku.

Blisko 90 proc. lokalnych funduszy private equity podejmuje lub planuje podjąć działania na rzecz ESG

Najnowsza edycja badania Deloitte Central European (CE) Private Equity (PE) Confidence Survey firmy doradczej Deloitte wskazuje, że prywatni inwestorzy z Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej z optymizmem patrzą w najbliższą przyszłość. 49 proc. przedstawicieli funduszy private equity spodziewa się wzrostu liczby przeprowadzonych transakcji. Chociaż poprawa nastrojów jest obserwowana od ponad roku, to jednocześnie inwestorzy zdają się zachowywać ostrożność w swoich prognozach. Na znaczeniu nadal zyskują kwestie ESG, które w swoich strategiach inwestycyjnych uwzględnia ponad połowa ankietowanych.

Opracowywany od ponad 20 lat indeks Central Europe PE Confidence Survey stanowi odzwierciedlenie nastrojów lokalnych uczestników rynku private equity. Na koniec 2023 r. jego wartość wyniosła 107 punktów, o 24 więcej niż sześć miesięcy wcześniej. Autorzy raportu zwracają uwagę na stały wzrost optymizmu przez trzy ostatnie badane okresy, co jest trzecim takim przypadkiem w historii badania. Jednocześnie zaobserwowana zmiana ma mniej dynamiczny charakter niż w poprzednich latach, a to, zdaniem ekspertów, świadczy o ostrożnym podejściu inwestorów do poprawiających się warunków rynkowych. Mimo to aż 86 proc. ankietowanych uważa, że najbliższe 12 miesięcy będą dobrym czasem dla działalności inwestycyjnej. W 2024 roku blisko połowa ankietowanych planuje skupić się na nowych inwestycjach. To niemal 10 pkt proc. więcej niż rok wcześniej. Co trzeci zamierza poświęcić się głównie zarządzaniu dotychczasowym portfelem spółek, a jedynie 15 proc. na pozyskiwaniu funduszy.

Chociaż najnowszy odczyt wskaźnika nastrojów jest najwyższy od półtora roku, to widać, że przedstawiciele środkowoeuropejskiego rynku private equity cechują się większą rozważnością niż w przeszłości. Jest to rezultat doświadczeń płynących z ponad dwudziestoletniego funkcjonowania w zmiennych warunkach rynkowych. Jednocześnie oczekujemy, że mimo wielu wyzwań gospodarczych aktywność prywatnych inwestorów w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej powinna rosnąć. Dotyczy to zarówno strony popytowej, jak i podażowej, o czym świadczy odsetek ponad 40 proc. badanych kontynuujących proces sprzedaży mimo zmiennej sytuacji rynkowej – mówi Arkadiusz Strasz, partner w dziale doradztwa finansowego w Deloitte, M&A Transaction Services.

Aktywność funduszy w górę

Rozkład odpowiedzi dotyczących oczekiwań w stosunku do warunków gospodarczych potwierdza tezę o rosnącym optymizmie inwestorów. 42 proc. ankietowanych stwierdziło bowiem, że spodziewa się poprawy sytuacji rynkowej. To blisko trzykrotnie więcej w porównaniu do poprzedniej edycji badania. Jednocześnie o połowę spadł odsetek zakładających negatywny scenariusz. Ponad dwukrotny wzrost widać także wśród oczekujących wzrostu dostępności finansowania dłużnego. Tego typu odpowiedzi udzieliło 29 proc. badanych.

Na pytanie dotyczące aktywności rynkowej – przewidywanej liczby transakcji w 2024 roku, 49 proc. respondentów stwierdziło, że spodziewa się większej aktywności w tym obszarze. To niemal dwa razy więcej w porównaniu do połowy 2023 r. Wynik ten stanowi również o ponad 40 p.p. wyższy odsetek niż latem 2022 roku, kiedy to takich odpowiedzi udzieliło jedynie 6 proc. badanych. Analogicznie grupa wyrażająca pesymizm skurczyła się ponad dwukrotnie – do poziomu 14 proc. Na skłonność inwestorów do podejmowania działań wpływ ma m.in. koszt kapitału. Zdaniem co trzeciego badanego dostępność finansowania powinna w najbliższych latach wzrosnąć. Odsetek ten jest dwa razy większy w porównaniu do poprzedniej edycji ankiety. Prawie połowa badanych nie spodziewa się zmiany obecnych warunków, a co piąty zakłada pogorszenie możliwości uzyskania środków na inwestycje.

Chociaż inflacja pozostaje jednym z największych wyzwań dla współczesnej gospodarki, to z czasem tempo wzrostu cen, a co za tym idzie – wysokość stóp procentowych, powinno spadać. Oczekują tego m.in. prywatni inwestorzy, dla których dostępność kapitału stanowi podstawę działania. W miarę jak banki centralne będą odchodziły od restrykcyjnej polityki monetarnej, oczekiwania uczestników rynku private equity powinny stawać się rzeczywistością, co bez wątpienia przełoży się na wzrost aktywności funduszy w krajach Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej  – mówi Michał Tokarski, partner zarządzający działem doradztwa finansowego Deloitte w Polsce, lider zespołu M&A Corporate Finance.

ESG zyskuje na znaczeniu

Autorzy raportu podkreślają dalszy wzrost znaczenia czynników ESG dla uczestników środkowoeuropejskiego rynku funduszy private equity, m.in. w obszarze podejmowanych decyzji inwestycyjnych. Ponad 50 proc. przedstawicieli funduszy potwierdziło, że w swoich działaniach zwraca szczególną uwagę na te kwestie. Największy wzrost zaobserwowano wśród podmiotów nieposiadających strategii uwzględniającej ESG, ale planujących zmianę w tym obszarze – z 9 proc. w pierwszej połowie 2023 r. do 23 proc. sześć miesięcy później.Na pytanie dotyczące neutralności klimatycznej większość funduszy odpowiedziała, że znajduje się dopiero na początku drogi do zeroemisyjności. Odsetek podmiotów, które dotychczas wdrożyły zobowiązania i cele dekarbonizacji spadł o 8 p.p. do poziomu 18 proc. Jednocześnie zaobserwowano analogiczny wzrost wśród funduszy będących w trakcie opracowywania własnych celów klimatycznych. Jest to obecnie najbardziej liczna grupa badanych podmiotów, stanowiąca 42 proc wszystkich ankietowanych.

O rosnącym znaczeniu czynników środowiskowych, społecznych oraz związanych z ładem korporacyjnym najlepiej świadczy fakt, że ponad 90 proc. badanych podmiotów bierze je pod uwagę w swoich działaniach lub planuje to zrobić w przyszłości. Jednocześnie ubiegły rok był przełomowy z tego względu, że po raz pierwszy w historii spółka wchodząca w skład lokalnego funduszu private equity uzyskała prestiżowy status B Corporation, stanowiący zobowiązanie do aktywnych działań na rzecz ESG. W najbliższej przyszłości możemy się spodziewać dynamicznego przyrostu takich podmiotów, dla których zaangażowanie w zrównoważony rozwój będzie kluczową kwestią – mówi Irena Pichola, partnerka, liderka Sustainability & Economics Consulting CE, Deloitte.

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Maritime tourism drives British ports and cities. Southampton city received over £1 billion

By Marek Grzybowski

CruiseBritain members ended 2023 with success and high revenues for ports and cities. The Port of Dover was named ‘Best UK Departure Port’ and the Port of Belfast ended the year with the ‘Best UK & Ireland Port of Call’ title. Over 460 cruise ship calls and 2.6 million passengers visiting Southampton contributed over £1 billion to the local and regional economy.
In Southampton, there are over 15,000 people in the maritime tourism sector. jobs offered by local entrepreneurs, both those operating in ports and serving tourists in the city and  Hampshire.
Stephen Manion, executive director of Go! Southampton, said: Cruise passengers are an extremely important part of the Southampton and Hampshire tourism economy – quotes the director of CruiseBritain.
Maritime tourists visit Hampshire for its charming scenery. It is a land located in the south of England, situated on the English Channel and the Solent Strait. According to the local tourism organization, they spend more than average.

 

Go! Southampton
“We look forward to working with the Port of Southampton to increase not only visitor numbers, but also their ability to access the city and all its attractions,” says Stephen Manion.
The operator of the Port of Southampton is Associated British Ports (ABP). Southampton Airport is 5 miles from the port. It is one of the leading cruise ports in Europe. It is distinguished by five cruise terminals. The new Cruise Terminal (Berth 102) was built as a joint venture between MSC Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings. The terminal also serves luxury cruise lines Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Oceania Cruises.
The Port of Southampton is home to the UK’s first high-capacity land-based power plant used to power ships. It allows cruise ships to provide electricity from the quayside. This allows combustion engines to be turned off in the port. This, in turn, enables the port to achieve zero emissions, which is one aspect of ABP’s commitment to sustainable development.
Another activity of ABP is encouraging passengers to use public transport. – We are working with the City Council and port partners to ensure that air quality levels continue to be below nationally set thresholds, and thanks to port air quality monitors we can accurately measure this – emphasizes ABP.
Alastair Welch, ABP regional director for Southampton, said: “We are proud of the role we play in supporting the local, regional and national economy. While this is a record year for cruises, we continue to invest in this and other port-related sectors to ensure the long-term success of our port city.

Dover – the White Cliffs region
Commenting on Dover’s win in the ‘Best UK Departure Port’ category, Cruise Critic UK & AU said: ‘as well as its stunning location and welcoming White Cliffs, Dover serves an increasing number of cruise lines, including Seabourn, Fred. Olsen, Hurtigruten, Costa and Carnival Pride. We also positively assess investments in infrastructure and sustainable development, including the construction of a completely new marina and cooperation with local and international partners in order to create a port that is more friendly, sustainable and equipped with modern technologies,” reported “Cruise Critic UK & AU”.
Doug Bannister, Chief Executive Officer of the Port of Dover, said upon receiving the award: “This is the perfect end to a great year for Dover Cruise and a testament to the world-class customer service provided by our team. Leading cruise lines have chosen the iconic backdrop of the White Cliffs and Dover Castle for launch visits and special celebrations throughout the year, states Bannister. – My thanks go to our team for providing hundreds of thousands of cruise guests with lifelong memories in 2023, and to our cruise lines for choosing Dover as their number one destination in the UK. See you in 2024! – said Doug Bannister, quoted by CruiseBritain.
“It has been a phenomenal year for the cruise industry,” said Adam Coulter, editor-in-chief of Cruise Critic UK & AU. He noted that not only had record sales been achieved, but also that “travellers come to the seaside for a high-quality holiday. And for travelers based in the UK, the introduction of new ships has helped to further drive interest in cruises.”

Belfast – “Best UK & Ireland Port of Call”
The Port of Belfast has been named ‘Best UK & Ireland Port of Call’ in the 15th edition of the Cruise Critic UK Editors’ Picks Awards.
The Port of Belfast Authority earned this award by serving 159 calls from 32 cruise operators in 2023, an 8% increase on the record set in 2019.
Cruise Critic, a subsidiary of TripAdvisor, is the world’s leading cruise review site and online cruise community. Each year it announces the winners of the Editors’ Picks Awards, selected by an international panel of cruise experts.
After receiving the Cruise Critic award, Michael Robinson, director of Belfast Harbour, said: “This award recognizes the fantastic work that everyone in the cruise industry has done to create a product that will ensure the satisfaction of visitors to Northern Ireland.
Robinson highlighted that there has been significant investment in cruise ship facilities in Belfast.
– We receive positive opinions from passengers, crew and cruise line management, both about the high level of services provided and the quality of the tourist offer – noted Robinson. – As part of Cruise Belfast, our partnership with Visit Belfast, a lot of work has been done to promote the region and attract visitors here. Working with tour operators, the hospitality sector and industry organizations, we have helped create an attractive offer that gives cruise lines the confidence to return to the region and increase the number of connections they make each year, emphasized Robinson.
Gerry Lennon, chief executive of Visit Belfast, said: “Belfast is a fascinating, unique destination, rich in history, culture, heritage and attractions, boasting great hospitality, a rich shopping offer and a wealth of world-class attractions. I am delighted that its success has been officially recognized this year by Cruise Critic as the best port of call in the UK and British Isles.

In 2024, from Dover to Norway, Iceland, Portugal and the Azores
British ports predict that 2024 will be even better than 2023. 90 ships will visit Portsmouth this year, which will make 2024 a record year in terms of cruise ship moorings. This is the result of ten new calls. About 155,000 people will arrive on ships. passengers. Many of them will start their journey in the new terminal.
In 2024, Dover residents will witness six inaugural calls. There will even be days with three ships mooring at the passenger terminal at the same time – emphasizes the Port of Dover management. There is also a new marina on the newly developed Dover waterfront. The Marina Curve and Clocktower Square recreational areas adjacent to the terminal are now open for use.
– There is no doubt that 2024 will be an unforgettable year for us. We look forward to the return of all our cruise services and look forward to welcoming those operators who are visiting us for the first time,” said Peter Wright, Cruise Director at the Port of Dover.
The increased activity of cruise owners is evidenced by Clare Ward’s statement. Director of Products and Customer Service at Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, said: “We are delighted to be back in Dover again with five new cruises launching this summer to attractive ports including Norway, Iceland, Portugal and the Azores.
20 tour operators have contracted entries. From Dover, there are cruises to Norwegian fjords, Baltic Sea ports, and ports of the British Isles. It is also the home port for the world’s leading cruise lines.
It should be added that you can travel from Dover to London by high-speed rail. After an hour, passengers get off at Victoria station, in the center of the British capital, a dozen or so minutes’ walk to Buckingham Palace.

Photos: Cruise port authorities: Dover, Southampton, Belfast

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Deloitte: Global Powers of Luxury Goods 2023

During FY2022 the Top 100 luxury goods companies generated composite sales of US$347 billion, up from the US$305 billion registered in FY2021. This sharp increase in luxury goods sales signals the good state of the luxury industry after the COVID-19 pandemic years.

Luxury goods companies continue their process of moving toward an environmentally responsible, circular economy business
model, pushed by customer demand and increasing regulations. In this phase of change, technology can help accelerate the
green transition while improving the relationship between companies and their customers. Several recent developments
in digital technology, including artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and the Internet of Things (IoT), may change the
luxury market forever.
The report presents the Top 100 largest luxury goods companies globally, based on their consolidated luxury goods sales in FY2022,
which we define as financial years ending within the 12 months from 1 January to 31 December 2022.
In FY2022, personal luxury goods sales for the Top 10 luxury companies increased by 22.8%. However, the share of their sales in the
combined luxury goods sales of the Top 100 companies showed little change—it decreased by only 0.2 percentage points to 56.0%.
Companies registered double-digit sales growth in all product sectors, in particular fashion sector returned to growth with the
strongest recovery in FY2022.
Luxury goods sales of the Top 100 companies across all countries considered in this report increased by double digits in FY2022.
France confirms its leadership in luxury with seven companies that accounted for nearly one-third of the Top 100 luxury goods sales.

Game changing steps in luxury
Luxury goods companies play an important role in moving the broader fashion industry toward an environmentally responsible, circular economy. Technology can help accelerate the green transition and improve the relationship between companies and their customers. Several recent developments in digital technology, including artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and the Internet of Things (IoT), may change the luxury market forever.
The Luxury industry embraces Artificial Intelligence (AI)
The Luxury industry is synonymous with exclusivity, craftsmanship, and innovation. It has thrived for decades by catering to a discerning clientele seeking distinctive and personalized experiences. However, it has been affected by technological advancements and innovation.
With the omnichannel revolution, digital IDs, and the metaverse incursion, Luxury has been among the industries experimenting most with technology and digitization in recent years.
In the business world, AI and generative AI (GenAI) are becoming increasingly important and exciting tools for enhancing customer service, simplifying repetitive tasks, and improving productivity. Even though AI has been around since the 1950s, the popularity of this technology has risen since the emergence of GenAI. Global revenue from GenAI technology is expected to reach US$36 billion by 2028, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 58% from 2023 to 2028.
GenAI can create new ideas and content, including conversations, stories, images, videos and music that appear to be generated by humans. Content ranges from business insights to creativity and productivity. GenAI relies on machine learning models (algorithms trained on large amounts of data) as does any other form of AI.

We hope you find this report interesting and useful, and welcome your feedback.
Giovanni Faccioli, Fashion & Luxury industry global colead, Deloitte Italy
Karla Martin, Fashion & Luxury industry global colead, Deloitte US
Ida Palombella, Fashion and Luxury industry, global colead, Deloitte Italy

More: Deloitts