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Why Grant Thornton
Whether you’re growing in one market or many, looking to operate more effectively, managing risk and regulation, or realising stakeholder value, our firms can help.
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Culture and experience
Grant Thornton’s culture is one of our most valuable assets and has steered us in the right direction for more than 100 years.
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Global scale and capability
Beyond global scale, we embrace what makes each market unique, local understanding on a global scale.
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Join our network
In a world that wants more options for high quality services, we differentiate in the market to grow sustainably in today’s rapidly changing environment.
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Leadership governance and quality
Grant Thornton International Ltd acts as the coordinating entity for member firms in the network with a focus on areas such as strategy, risk, quality monitoring and brand.
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Africa
24 member firms supporting your business.
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Americas
31 member firms, covering 44 markets and over 20,000 people.
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Asia-Pacific
19 member firms with nearly 25,000 people to support you.
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Europe
53 member firms supporting your business.
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Middle East
8 member firms supporting your business.
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Business consulting services
Our business consulting services can help you improve your operational performance and productivity, adding value throughout your growth life cycle.
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Business risk services
The relationship between a company and its auditor has changed. Organisations must understand and manage risk and seek an appropriate balance between risk and opportunities.
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As organisations become increasingly dependent on digital technology, the opportunities for cyber criminals continue to grow.
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Forensic services
At Grant Thornton, we have a wealth of knowledge in forensic services and can support you with issues such as dispute resolution, fraud and insurance claims.
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Mergers and acquisitions
We work with entrepreneurial businesses in the mid-market to help them assess the true commercial potential of their planned acquisition and understand how the purchase might serve their longer-term strategic goals.
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Recovery and reorganisation
Workable solutions to maximise your value and deliver sustainable recovery.
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Transactional advisory services
We can support you throughout the transaction process – helping achieve the best possible outcome at the point of the transaction and in the longer term.
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Valuations
We provide a wide range of services to recovery and reorganisation professionals, companies and their stakeholders.
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IFRS
At Grant Thornton, our IFRS advisers can help you navigate the complexity of financial reporting from IFRS 1 to IFRS 17 and IAS 1 to IAS 41.
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Audit quality monitoring
Having a robust process of quality control is one of the most effective ways to guarantee we deliver high-quality services to our clients.
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Global audit technology
Our global assurance technology platform provides the ability to conduct client acceptance, consultations and all assurance and other attestation engagements.
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Corporate and business tax
Our trusted teams can prepare corporate tax files and ruling requests, support you with deferrals, accounting procedures and legitimate tax benefits.
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Direct international tax
Our teams have in-depth knowledge of the relationship between domestic and international tax laws.
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Global mobility services
Through our global organisation of member firms, we support both companies and individuals, providing insightful solutions to minimise the tax burden for both parties.
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Indirect international tax
Using our finely tuned local knowledge, teams from our global organisation of member firms help you understand and comply with often complex and time-consuming regulations.
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Transfer pricing
The laws surrounding transfer pricing are becoming ever more complex, as tax affairs of multinational companies are facing scrutiny from media, regulators and the public
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Africa tax desk
A differentiating solution adapted to the context of your investments in Africa.
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Banking Holding banking to account: the real diversity and inclusion pictureWe explore how the banking sector can continue to attract, retain and nurture women to build a more diverse and inclusive future.
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Sustainability From voluntary to mandatory ESG: How banks can future-proof their operationsAs we move from voluntary ESG initiatives to mandatory legislation, we explore what the banking sector needs to prioritise.
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IFRS IFRS 9 - Audit of Expected Credit LossesGPPC releases The Auditor’s response to the risks of material misstatement posed by estimates of expected credit losses under IFRS 9
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growthiQ Steering your company to long-term successHistory has something important to tell us about the difficulties of steering a business to long-term success – through seismic shifts in technology, consumer demands and product development. With that in mind it’s unsurprising that over half the world’s largest companies in the early 1900s had shut their doors by the late 1990s. Some, however, have endured.
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International Financial Reporting Standards Implementation of IFRS 17 ‘Insurance Contracts’The auditor’s response to the risks of material misstatement arising from estimates made in applying IFRS 17 ‘Insurance Contracts’
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IFRS Get ready for IFRS 17After twenty years of development the IASB has published IFRS 17 ‘Insurance Contracts’, find out more.
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Global business pulse - industry analysis Mid-market recovery spreads to more industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
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Global business pulse - industry analysis A very uneven recovery across industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
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Global business pulse - Sector analysis Clear patterns of damage from COVID-19 across the industriesThe index results for 12 key sectors of the mid-market reveal just how much or little the various parts of the economy were impacted by COVID-19.
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Not for profit Mission: possible – putting impact at the heart of charityGlobal charitable continues to decline and charity leaders are increasingly looking at their own unique impact journey.
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Access to finance Raise finance to invest in changePrepare your business to raise finance to invest in change.
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Private equity firms Private equity in the mid-market: reshaping strategies for 2021When the global COVID-19 pandemic stormed across the globe in early 2020, the private equity sector was hit hard but deals are coming back to the market.
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Mid-market businesses Getting ready for private equity investmentOur specialists explore how private equity firms are now working with their portfolios and how the mid-market can benefit from investment.
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Mid-market businesses Myth-busting private equityNervous about partnering with Private Equity? We explore some of the common myths we come across when speaking to mid-market businesses about PE investment.
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Public sector Helping build the government of tomorrow, todayLearn about the Grant Thornton US public sector team.
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Global business pulse - industry analysis Mid-market recovery spreads to more industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
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Global business pulse - industry analysis A very uneven recovery across industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
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Global business pulse - Sector analysis Clear patterns of damage from COVID-19 across the industriesThe index results for 12 key sectors of the mid-market reveal just how much or little the various parts of the economy were impacted by COVID-19.
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Industries European Real Estate PodcastJessica Patel, Tax Partner at Grant Thornton UK speaks with tax partners and directors across the network to share their insights on the real estate market and some of the challenges.
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Industries European Real Estate PodcastJessica Patel, Tax Partner at Grant Thornton UK speaks with tax partners and directors across the network to share their insights on the real estate market and some of the challenges.
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Global business pulse - industry analysis Mid-market recovery spreads to more industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
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Global business pulse - industry analysis A very uneven recovery across industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
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Global business pulse - industry analysis Mid-market recovery spreads to more industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
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Global business pulse - industry analysis A very uneven recovery across industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
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Retail How retail is positioning for successCOVID-19 provided some hard lessons for the retail industry. It is time to turn those into sustainable and well executed growth strategies in 2021.
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Telecoms Can tech and telecom leverage economic headwindsAs most businesses brace for an economic downturn, tech and telecom could see new prospects. But, to turn the headwinds to your advantage, you need to find your unique opportunities and risks.
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Technology Mid-market tech companies lead the way on diversity and inclusionWe explore how the mid-market tech sector can continue to build and nurture a culture that’s increasingly more diverse and inclusive for women.
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Tax Resetting global tax rules after the pandemicBusinesses are seeing rising challenges, and finance heads are dealing with a range of new measures. To say the next 12 months are critical for businesses is an understatement.
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TECHNOLOGY International tax reform: the potential impact on the technology industryIn this article, we’ve summarised key elements of the global tax reform proposals, their potential impact on technology industry and advice from our digital tax specialists on what technology companies can do to prepare.
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Telecoms Can tech and telecom leverage economic headwindsAs most businesses brace for an economic downturn, tech and telecom could see new prospects. But, to turn the headwinds to your advantage, you need to find your unique opportunities and risks.
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TMT TMT industry: Fully charged or on standby?Our research revealed five key trends that resonated with Technology, Media and Telecoms (TMT) industry leaders around the world. We asked a panel of our experts from UK, US, India Ireland and Germany, to give us their reaction to the findings.
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Cybersecurity One size fits nothingTechnology companies must adopt a new approach to digital risk: those that successfully develop a reputation for digital trust by demonstrating an unwavering commitment to cyber security and data privacy will be able to carve out a competitive advantage.
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Technology, media & telecommunications Why it’s time for a 5G reality checkFigures suggest the mobile sector is maturing. While data usage continues to soar, mobile revenues are expected to flatten out over the next few years.
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International business Mid-market businesses lifted by rising tide of optimismOptimism among global mid-market business leaders rose to 67% in the first half of this year and they are markedly more optimistic about their prospects with global optimism having increased by 8%.
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Global business pulse - industry analysis Mid-market recovery spreads to more industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
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Hotels COVID-19: Checking in with the hotel industry one year onCOVID-19 provided some hard lessons for the hotel sector. It is time to turn those into sustainable and well executed growth strategies.
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Global business pulse - industry analysis A very uneven recovery across industriesThe index results for 13 key industries of the mid-market reveals a very uneven recovery from COVID-19
- By topic
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Women in Business 2024
2024 marks the 20th year of monitoring and measuring the proportion of women occupying senior management roles around the world.
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COP28: Mid-market firms should seize the opportunity from adaption and innovation
COP28 was the first time there has been a global stocktake on progress against the Paris Agreement.
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Scanning the horizon: Mid-market sets sights on global trade growth
The latest International Business Report (IBR) data shows that mid-market businesses have high expectations for global trade.
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Mid-market businesses less optimistic, despite record numbers expecting increased profitability
A closer examination of the data offers some explanation of this apparent contradiction.
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Women in tech: A pathway to gender balance in top tech roles
Grant Thornton’s 2024 Women in Business data suggests we are far from achieving parity within the mid-market technology sector.
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Women in leadership: a pathway to better performance
What makes the benefits of gender parity compelling is the impact it can have on commercial performance.
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Women in Business 2024
2024 marks the 20th year of monitoring and measuring the proportion of women occupying senior management roles around the world.
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Women in business: Regional picture
We saw an increase in the percentage of senior management roles held by women, on a global level, but there are some significant regional and country variations.
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Pathways to Parity: Leading the way
To push towards parity of senior management roles held by women, who leads within an organisation is vital.
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Generating real change with a long-term focus
The most successful strategy to achieve parity of women in senior management is one which stands alone, independent of an ESG strategy.
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People at the heart of great business
Businesses have started to put guidelines and incentives in place, focused on driving employees back to the office.
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Focusing and developing a solid strategy around diversity, equity and inclusion
Grant Thornton Greece is pioneering a growing set of diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) initiatives that centre around three strategic pillars.
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Ten considerations for preparing TCFD climate-related financial disclosures
Insights for organisations preparing to implement the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB)’s Standards.
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COP28: Mid-market firms should seize the opportunity from adaption and innovation
COP28 was the first time there has been a global stocktake on progress against the Paris Agreement.
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Transition Plan Taskforce publishes its final disclosure framework
As organisations in the private sector make commitments and plans to reach net zero, there's a growing need for stakeholders to be able to assess the credibility of their transition plans.
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Promoting ESG excellence through tax
ESG considerations have never been more important for an organisation’s long-term success, but how can tax be used to add value to an ESG agenda?
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International business: Mid-market growth and expansion
The mid-market looks to international business opportunities for growth.
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Top five constraints to international business in the mid-market
Top five major constraints that are testing the mid-market’s ability to grow their businesses internationally.
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Brand and international marketing – breaking global barriers
Brand has been identified as a key driver of mid-market success when looking to grow and develop international business.
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The key to international business: Investing in people
How can recruitment and retention help grow international business?
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Building resilience in international business
Evolving supply chains and trade patterns amid ongoing global uncertainty.
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IFRS Alerts
IFRS Alerts covering the latest changes published by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB).
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Example Financial Statements
General guidance for preparers of financial statements that supports the commitment to high quality, consistent application of IFRS.
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Insights into IFRS 2
Insights into IFRS 2 summarises the key areas of the Standard, highlighting aspects that are more difficult to interpret and revisiting the most relevant features that could impact your business.
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IFRS 3
Mergers and acquisitions are becoming more common as entities aim to achieve their growth objectives. IFRS 3 ‘Business Combinations’ contains the requirements for these transactions.
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IFRS 8
Our ‘Insights into IFRS 8’ series considers some key implementation issues and includes interpretational guidance in certain problematic areas.
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IFRS 16
Are you ready for IFRS 16? This series of insights will help you prepare.
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IAS 36
Insights into IAS 36 provides assistance for preparers of financial statements and help where confusion has been seen in practice.
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IFRS 17
Explaining the key features of the Standard and providing insights into its application and impact.
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Pillar 2
Key updates and support for the global implementation of Pillar 2.
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Global expatriate tax guide
Growing businesses that send their greatest assets – their people – overseas to work can face certain tax burdens, our global guide highlights the common tax rates and issues.
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International indirect tax guide
Navigating the global VAT, GST and sales tax landscape.
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Global transfer pricing guide
Helping you easily find everything you need to know about the rules and regulations regarding transfer pricing and Country by Country reporting for every country you do business with.
Globally, women hold 32.0% of senior management positions in the tech sector, below the global average of 33.5%, and below other industries such as professional services (36.2%), asset management (35.5%), and healthcare (37.7%).
The rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence (AI) means that ensuring gender inclusivity in the technology sector is paramount. Fail to get it right and future generations will get left behind. With wide-ranging applications in the workplace from recruitment and hiring, performance evaluation, pay and compensation, and workplace analytics, Goldman Sachs estimates that generative AI alone could raise global GDP by 7%.[i] In doing so, it will revolutionise our working lives.
However, new inventions are often exclusionary to women if designed by a male-only team. For example, since the 1970s, crash test dummies have been based on male body types and it was only in 2022 that a team of Swedish researchers designed one based on women’s bodies to ensure car safety features work for both men and women.[ii] Even while AI is in its relative infancy, in comparison to where it is projected to go, there is already evidence of bias. A 2019 Harvard Business Review article outlines the lack of diversity and bias in AI English speech recognition software, sharing a US study that showed that the technology had the best accuracy rate for white men.[iii]
Left unchecked, bias in AI systems can have profound consequences for gender equality. AI systems learn from data, and if this data is not representative of the entire population, the resulting algorithms can be biased. It is therefore crucial to include more women in AI development teams and on senior leadership teams in the technology industry to recognise bias, especially at this early stage of development.
As David Peneycad, Global chief operating officer at Grant Thornton International, says: “Gender diversity in technology project teams is not a social initiative, it is a business imperative. As organisations invest in their response to the revolution of AI, ensuring that all voices are heard will lead to a more effective and profitable outcome. It is incumbent on today’s business leaders to ensure that female technologists are supported and promoted so that the future of the industry is delivered by a more balanced and representative group. Anything less will be a leadership failure.”
When looking at which senior management positions women hold in the tech sector, it is clear more must be done to ensure women are closer to the development of the technology itself. Women hold just 20.2% of Chief Technology Officer positions in mid-market tech firms and 25.8% of CEO positions, compared to 45.3% of Human Resources Director positions.
More must be done to get women into senior leadership positions that are close to the development of new technology, to ensure it is developed equitably. Therefore, we’ve identified three areas for mid-market firms to focus on to help women reach positions in the tech sector that can influence the development of AI, and boost innovative thinking: Early careers, retention and transparency.
Women and tech - early careers
To develop a robust pipeline of female tech leaders requires focusing attention on the needs of younger women as they advance in their careers. Nurturing talent in a flexible workplace environment is pivotal to this, as our 2024 Women in Business report ‘Pathways to Parity’ found.
It is therefore encouraging that Grant Thornton’s 2024 Women in Business data shows that global mid-market tech firms have adopted one of the flexible working models, with 53.8% of global mid-market tech firms having a hybrid working model, compared to 45.2% across all industries. Conversely, just 36.7% require employees to be primarily office-based, compared to 47.0% globally.
This is important as, “A hybrid work environment can help overcome the demands of balancing personal and work commitments that some women may experience, when reaching mid-level management at a company,” says Andrea Schulz, National managing partner for the Technology industry at Grant Thornton LLP (US).
However, businesses should be cognisant of the challenges hybrid work can have to the progression of women early in their careers if not handled correctly by senior leaders. Simply adopting a hybrid working model is not enough. This needs to be backed with real intent to nurture talent remotely.
Nurturing talent in a hybrid working model means mitigating against the risk of employees missing out on the social connections needed to progress, or not being part of their company culture.
This requires leaders putting conscious effort into being visible and avoiding employee relationships becoming purely transactional, particularly with those at the beginning of their careers.
To help create intentional connections and support younger women on their career journey, one action senior leaders can take is to act as role models and provide mentoring opportunities to younger colleagues.
To be an effective role model, according to Yannis Krasonikolakis, Head of applied intelligence and predictive analytics, Technology, Grant Thornton Greece, requires the business to actively celebrate women’s successes, demonstrating to future female leaders the qualities needed to succeed: “We need to publicise the achievements of women, showing what they can do at the end of a year, or a decade, in a corporate environment.”
Retaining women in technology
Partly due to the growing prevalence of AI, the tech sector has undergone a ‘great layoff,’ equating to over 263,000 global jobs in 2023 alone.[iv] In this environment, tech firms must ensure that job cuts do not disproportionately impact women. To know whether this is the case requires measuring turnover by gender; disappointingly, Grant Thornton’s 2024 Women in Business data shows that only 22.3% of technology firms do this.
Failing to measure staff turnover by gender means that firms are likely to be taking limited action to ensure their female leadership pipeline is secure.
“I don't think there's any intention behind women being disproportionately being laid off, but firms are not compiling or issuing any data,” says Andrea Schulz, National managing partner for the Technology industry, at Grant Thornton LLP (US).
If this measure is implemented as part of a standalone, actionable DE&I strategy (as recommended by our 2024 Women in Business report), it can act as a vital Key Performance Indicator to measure the success of other DE&I initiatives. For example, how does introducing a better return-to-work policy after maternity leave, or introducing a more flexible working pattern affect the retention of female staff? Tech firms cannot answer this question without measuring turnover in the first instance.
Yannis Krasonikolakis, Head of applied intelligence and predictive analytics, Technology, Grant Thornton Greece says: “Companies that prioritise workplace diversity can attract, and retain, better qualified talent, boosting overall performance. Female representation in tech companies fosters a positive work environment.”
Transparency in the technology industry
The tech sector ranks consistently as having one of the most pronounced gender pay gaps. For instance, European women in tech make, on average, 26% less than men.[v] In an industry with such a wide gap, it is therefore vital that more mid-market tech firms measure gender pay inequality. However, only 40.4% currently do, according to Grant Thornton’s 2024 Women in Business data. It is especially concerning that this is below the global average of 46.8%.
It is unsurprising that a large pay gap would disincentivise women from pursuing a career in tech. Therefore, demonstrating progress towards alleviating wage gaps can help attract top talent, ensuring a diversity of voices are involved and, ultimately, leading to better business decisions being made.
“Building trust with employees through accountable and transparent actions helps to create an enhanced and inclusive workplace,” Rena Konomi, Head of intelligent automation services, Technology, Grant Thornton Greece shares, adding that this will help “attract the best talent in the market.”
By lagging behind their competitors in publicising progress on closing the wage gap, tech firms may find they are losing future female leaders before they even apply, weakening the talent pipeline. Publishing their wage gap is a vital first step for technology firms to overcome this.
Why urgent progress towards parity in tech is required
Amid the development of new technology, it is more vital than ever that tech firms push for parity for women in senior leadership positions, ensuring the equitable development of tech, such as AI. To do so requires a diverse set of voices to be involved in development teams, meaning that more must be done to promote and celebrate women in technology to reach senior management positions.
“AI is rapidly changing, it's about making sure that you're getting more diversity, and that generative AI is reflecting the views of everyone” Andrea Schulz, National managing partner for the Technology industry at Grant Thornton LLP (US) points out, highlighting how biased AI models is not an inevitable outcome, but a by-product of a lack of diverse voices around the table.
Firms need to make a determined and conscious effort to address the leadership pipeline to mitigate against the harm of gender-biased future tech. Focusing on the three recommended areas – boosting the prospects for early career women in tech, measuring turnover by gender and committing to greater transparency to attract women to the technology industry – is vital for the technology industry to focus on to help achieve gender parity of women in senior management positions.
To further learn how businesses can be part of the push towards parity, read our full Women in Business report.
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i. Generative AI Could Raise Global GDP by 7% (goldmansachs.com)
ii. The crash dummy aimed at protecting women drivers - (bbc.com)
iii. Voice Recognition Still Has Significant Race and Gender Biases (hbr.org)
iv. Tech companies axe 34,000 jobs since start of year in pivot to AI (ft.com)
v. Women are earning 26% less than men in the tech sector - (totalent.eu)