What Works: Gender Equality by Design

by Iris Bohnet

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Author: Iris Bohnet

Publisher: Belknap Press

Paperback:
ISBN 10: 0674986563
ISBN 13: 978-0674986565

Hardcover:
ISBN 10: 0674089030
ISBN 13: 978-0674089037

Shortlisted for the Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award
A Financial Times Best Business Book of the Year
A Times Higher Education Book of the Week
Best Business Book of the Year, 800-CEO-READ

Gender equality is a moral and a business imperative. But unconscious bias holds us back, and de-biasing people’s minds has proven to be difficult and expensive. By de-biasing organizations instead of individuals, we can make smart changes that have big impacts. Presenting research-based solutions, Iris Bohnet hands us the tools we need to move the needle in classrooms and boardrooms, in hiring and promotion, benefiting businesses, governments, and the lives of millions.

“Bohnet assembles an impressive assortment of studies that demonstrate how organizations can achieve gender equity in practice… What Works is stuffed with good ideas, many equally simple to implement.”
―Carol Tavris, Wall Street Journal

“A practical guide for any employer seeking to offset the unconscious bias holding back women in organizations, from orchestras to internet companies.”
―Andrew Hill, Financial Times

Review

“Compelling, lucid, and filled with actionable insights, What Works draws from a deep well of research to explain how we can end gender inequality.”―Adam Grant, author of Originals

“Pathbreaking work, and packed with insights on every page. Bohnet has produced, at once, the best book ever written on behavioral science and discrimination, and a major contribution to behaviorally informed policymaking as a whole. Her book promises to change both private and public institutions―and to improve individual lives.”―Cass Sunstein, coauthor of Nudge

“Impressive…What Works is stuffed with good ideas...The glory of this book is that Bohnet not only offers dozens of practical examples of how behavioral findings can be put to use but also demonstrates that moving toward equity need not be a zero-sum game in which as women gain, men lose…She makes trying out the new steps seem like an exhilarating project rather than an impossible one.”―Carol Tavris, Wall Street Journal

“Right up to board level, companies should find in What Works not only food for thought [about gender bias], but a guide for effective practical action as well.”―Sarah Gordon, Financial Times

“In a field overflowing with opinions and ‘gut feelings,’ What Works is a shining ray of truth and insight. Bohnet lays out the science behind what really drives―and prevents―gender inequality, and translates it into clear, easy-to-implement steps for achieving equality. A much needed book with precise, effective prescriptions for any environment.”―Laszlo Bock, SVP of People Operations at Google and author of Work Rules!

“Even when women do make it to the bargaining table, they often fare poorly… Bohnet examines data from a group of Swedish job seekers, among whom women ended up with lower salaries than their equally qualified male peers…When women act more like men, she suggests, they are often punished for it. Lean in, and you might get pushed even further back. Bohnet recommends that organizations explicitly invite women to negotiate, and train managers to counteract their biases.”―Lauren Collins, New Yorker

“A refreshingly clear, meticulously researched manual for eliminating gender inequality in the workplace.”―The Guardian

“Have you checked your boardroom and hallways lately? What do you see on the walls? Among the many interventions Iris Bohnet…proposes in order to achieve gender equality, one that you could implement pretty quickly is reviewing the photos hanging around your company. If after a quick inspection, you discover the portraits are mostly of past male CEOs, rethink your decor. It’s a simple idea that can work wonders.”―Forbes

“What Works delivers! I have long been inspired by Iris Bohnet’s impressive research on gender bias. In this book, she has distilled years of work into practical approaches that any organization―business, education or government―can adapt to start changing the environments in which we all live, learn, and work. This is a must-read for everyone who actually wants to do something to address the stubborn and costly issue of gender inequality.”―Beth A. Brooke-Marciniak, Global Vice Chair of Public Policy, Ernst & Young Global Limited

“A game changer. In this brilliant and practical book, Bohnet explains how behavioral insights can collapse gender inequality in our lifetime. It’s terrific.”―Linda Babcock, James M. Walton Professor of Economics at Carnegie Mellon University and coauthor of Women Don’t Ask: Negotiation and the Gender Divide

About the Author

Iris Bohnet is a behavioral economist and the academic dean of Harvard’s Kennedy School. She combines insights from economics and psychology to improve decision-making in organizations and society. Her most recent research examines how behavioral design can be used to de-bias how we live, learn and work. She is co-director of the Kennedy School’s Women and Public Policy Program, and the faculty chair of the “Global Leadership and Public Policy for the 21st Century” for the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders.

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What Works: Gender Equality by Design