Despite impressive progress in certain industry sectors, a 2019 study of women leaders in the U.S. aviation industry overall raises concerns about the lack of opportunities for women to advance, and also whether the current pipeline of female leaders is robust enough to sustain the progress that has been made to date.

The study—"Soaring Through the Glass Ceiling: Taking the Global Aviation and Aerospace Industry to New Heights Through Diversity and Inclusion”—was conducted by Korn Ferry, an organizational consulting firm, in partnership with the International Aviation Women’s Association and five aviation associations. More than 2,400 individuals were interviewed from across the aviation field, including commercial airlines, aerospace and defense firms, airport management companies, and providers of air navigation services. 

While the survey’s intent was to uncover pathways toward greater diversity and inclusion in the historically male-dominated aviation industry, results suggest that current conditions will continue to limit the field’s ability to attract and retain promising female talent. The chief talent pools feeding aviation leadership—the government and military—do not seem to be changing their cultures or demographics enough to shift trends going forward. “What looks like progress at the top isn’t changing the day-to-day life of women in the middle or below,” notes Michael Bell, one of the authors of the study and a senior client partner at Korn Ferry in their Civil Aviation practice. Yet gains are being made. Find out where progress is happening and what the study discovered are critical factors for retaining and elevating top women leaders. Link to the full article here.