Out of all corporate functions, the second-biggest gender equity gap exists within the sales function. Despite the slow march toward gender parity in many areas of the corporate world, the percentage of women in front-line sales management has remained flat for more than 10 years.
This is particularly impactful when you take into consideration that the majority of C-suite executives have sales experience during their careers. Meanwhile, half of women do not believe female sales professionals have the same opportunities for advancement as their male counterparts, despite having the same skills and qualifications. In fact in 2015, 90 percent of new CEOs had sales experience and 100 percent of them were men. The headwinds women face in sales roles and rising into sales management leads to a lack of women for the most powerful position in the C-suite, CEO.
Regardless of why these headwinds happen, the data shows that diverse sales teams routinely perform more profitably than non-diverse teams.