The 11th annual Women in the Workplace report shows entry‑level women face fewer opportunities, with 31% having sponsors versus 45% of men and 30% promoted compared to 43% for men, plus many reporting a lack of promotions or leadership roles in the past two years.

Some companies are cutting back on programs that support women—remote work, sponsorship, and targeted career development—hinting at possible backsliding in progress.

Overall, the McKinsey & LeanIn.Org study highlights a gap in promotion ambition between women and men and a decline in commitment to gender diversity.

Context: the study spans 11 years, drawing on data from thousands of employees and hundreds of organizations to evaluate policies, practices, and perceptions across career stages.

Broader implications suggest that organizations investing in fair processes and diverse sponsorships can access broader talent and outperform peers; the full report offers actionable solutions for improving gender equality.

The report draws on data from over 1,000 companies and more than 490,000 surveyed individuals, across 11 years, totaling input from 124 organizations and millions of people, including HR leaders and employees.

The full report and recommended organizational actions are available at womenintheworkplace.com.

Associated press materials note that the full report and solutions are accessible at womenintheworkplace.com and through related releases.

A call to action: companies must rebuild sponsorship pipelines, ensure equal access to new skills (including AI), and address biases in flexible work to close the ambition gap.

Employee sponsors correlate with faster promotions, making sponsorship a critical lever for advancement, especially for early-career employees.

Lean In and McKinsey urge stronger, consistent sponsorship, career development programs, and flexible work policies to close the ambition gap and avoid long-term costs to organizations and the economy.

Burnout and job insecurity are high, with 42% of women and 41% of men reporting burnout; senior‑level burnout is 60% for women, and Black senior‑level women show the highest burnout at 77%.