When Lean In and McKinsey released their 2019 research, their surprising main finding was that the biggest problem women face in the workplace is getting their first promotion.
They call it 'the broken rung' - because it's like the first step of the ladder is broken. And they want to see that rung get fixed.
They're joined by many other organizations that want to help women get promoted.
And to help YOU get the support you need, I've pulled together 14 resources that can help when you're going for your first promotion:
Communities you can join
Companies with career tools
Organizations that'll help you build your skills
communities you can join
Lean In is the website for a global movement based on Sheryl Sandberg's 2013 book. Lean In is widely seen as launching massive attention to the concept of small groups (circles) of women who support each other to move into leadership positions.
Lean in has chapters across the world, and each chapter hosts dozens - if not hundreds - of circles. Some are small & intimate groups of friends, others are larger networks within companies, all with the same purpose of connecting women to support each other as they 'lean in' to their careers.
Plus, many of the chapters have very active Instagram accounts that will inspire you to lean in to your career:
Ellevate describes itself as "a community of professional women committed to helping you succeed". They organize and promote networking events that are worth your time. They also have smaller groups of "ellevate squads" for women to support one another.
Many of their city chapters are on Instagram, and you can follow them to see what events are happening in your city:
Junior League is a unique community for women, because it's designed for connecting women who are committed to building better communities through volunteerism. They also provide training for women to become community leaders.
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Career Tools
Career Contessa is a great website and was proudly built as an exclusive career site for women.
If you're looking for tips on advancing your career, this is a great site for you.
Career builder is an excellent site where you can :
Team Coworker is a site that's devoted to helping employees change their workplaces. If you have an idea on how to improve your company, you can start a petition and talk to coworkers about joining the campaign.
As a woman looking to advance your career, you definitely need to look into Power to Fly. It was launched with the goal of connecting women with companies that value gender diversity and inclusion. They have optimized search and sourcing tools, targeted job promotions and other key resources designed to increase the pipeline of talented women, particularly in technical roles.
If you've ever wondered about how a company is rated by its women workforce, this is the site for you. You can get results on hundred of thousands of companies and see how they are rated by women. They also give you more nuanced results, with scores on topics like "Maternity and Adoptive Leave", "Family Growth Support", and "Female Representation in Leadership".
build your skills
HBR is my number one go-to whenever I have a question related to work. I'm rarely disappointed when I go to their site, type a few keywords and hit search. They have thoughtful articles that are both well researched, expert reviewed and easy to read (not an easy feat!).
And as a bonus, they run three amazing podcasts that will help you build your leadership skills:
The AAUW Salary Negotiation workshop is revered by women of all backgrounds and career objectives. While the focus is on salaries, they cover many negotiation techniques that will help you in situations well beyond salary discussions.
Attend a live event if you can, but if there isn't one near you, there's also an online version of the class.
Ellevest has a very specific vision: close the gender investing gap.
They noticed that too many women hadn't been educated about investing.
If you're looking for investment support geared specifically for women, this is it.
It's fairly well known these days that emotions play a large part at work. But most authors and pundits still speak in sweeping generalities like "we should be more emotionally intelligent".
Yes, we get it, we need to have better EI. But how do you actually improve your EI?
Liz and Mollie created a movement to help us learn how to harness emotions effectively at work. They have an emotional tendencies assessment, plus ecards and practical guides. This is a great site to learn how you can have + use feelings at work.
Women of Influence have a stated goal of "Empowering and inspiring women to achieve the careers of their dreams."
They have resources like success case studies, white papers about research on successful women, and events where you can grow and meet like-minded women.
Alba Gomez is a personal brand and image expert who has a passion for helping you harness your first impression and have the kind of presence that positively impacts people around you. She has several free resources to help you work on your personal brand and image.
