How do the expectations and aspirations of female MBA graduates match the reality of the marketplace?

As organisations strive to diversify their workforce and gender equality remains hotly debated, we thought it would be interesting to understand what women look for from an employer post MBA.

The top line feedback from our 100 in-depth interviews from female MBA graduates from business schools worldwide is provided below:

• 55% placed Corporate Social Responsibility as the primary driver behind applying to a company

• more than half surveyed claimed they wanted to continue to build on their careers developed prior to their MBA

• 45% could not find their ‘ideal’ employer; as a result they were forced to compromise their CSR values

• brand, location and flexible working hours were also noted as primary drivers in their decision making

• the majority surveyed were disappointed at the lack of personal interaction during application processes – pertinent given that this group spend more time on applications in comparison to their male counterparts

Given this emphasis on wanting to work for a socially responsible employer, are MBA recruiters doing enough to communicate their CSR message to this candidate pool? This in my opinion is an opportunity to differentiate yourself in the marketplace and encourage diversity of applicants.