Book Review: Creating gender-inclusive organizations by Kossek, E. E. & Lee, K-H.

• Author: DeLysa Burnier
• DOI: 10.1177/02750740211056934
• Published date: 01 February 2022
• Date: 01 February 2022
• Subject Matter: Book Review

Book Review

Kossek, E. E. & Lee, K-H. (Eds). (2020). Creating gender-inclusive organizations. Toronto, CA: University of Toronto Press. pp. 226 $32.95.

ISBN 978-1-4875-0373-4

Reviewed by: DeLysa Burnier , Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA

DOI: 10.1177/02750740211056934

Creating Gender-Inclusive Organizations is a worthy book

that public administration scholars, practitioners, and stu-

dents will find fruitful if they are interested in researching

or establishing gender-inclusive organizational climates that

foster women’s career advancement. The book originated

from papers and presentations delivered in 2016 at the first

“Leadership Excellence and Gender in Organizations

Symposium”hosted by Purdue University’s Krannert

School of Management. The book begins with an effective

introduction that “makes the case”for gender inclusion and

women’s career equality (p. 3). The chapters that follow

address how to create gender-inclusive climates; the critical

role of mentoring in women’s career advancement; the

importance of building diverse teams; incorporating gender

inclusion in STEM educational and professional contexts;

and introducing gender inclusion to the field of entrepreneur-

ship. The volume concludes with concrete recommendations

for researchers and organizations seeking to establish gender-

inclusive climates that promote career equality.

The chapters themselves are comprised of four linked

essays, starting with a research overview by a noted scholar

followed by a practice-based essay by a human resource

and diversity leader from the private sector. In the third

essay a subject expert integrates the material from the preced-

ing research and practice essays into a wholistic perspective.

The final essay centers on specific managerial and organiza-

tional actions that should be undertaken to advance gender

inclusion and career equality. Linking the different perspec-

tives of research, practice, integration, and action for each

topic is a clear strength of the volume.

Ellen Kossek and Kyung-Hee Lee view gender-inclusive

climates in three dimensions. The first dimension encom-

passes the policies, practices, and leadership actions that

promote workplace gender fairness, equity, and nondiscrim-

ination. The second dimension centers on the talents women

bring to the workplace by examining how organizations can

“learn from and incorporate women’s knowledge, skills, and

perspectives at work across all markets and business issues”

(p. 6). The third dimension concerns the need to support

“women’s social identities, values, and needs”across work

and family roles without “backlash and stigma”or compro-

mising their work identities (p. 6). Kossek and Lee emphasize

that each dimension must be viewed from multiple levels,

including the individual, team, occupation, organization,

and society (p. 4). Ultimately, gender inclusion must be an

organization-wide commitment adopted and celebrated by

all organizational members, especially top leaders, and

must be embedded in policies, structures, cultures, teams

and interpersonal relationships. Establishing gender-

inclusive climates matters because research confirms that

they are “a necessary condition for women to experience

career equality”(p. 7).

Chapters two, three, and four, which deal with issues

related to gender-inclusive climates, mentoring, and team

diversity, will hold particular interest for public administra-

tors, students, and scholars interested in diversity, inclusion,

and gender. Chapter 2 is significant for Lisa Nishii’sinten-

sive analysis of gender inclusion as a relational construct.

She notes that in addition to “access discrimination”

employees may also encounter “treatment discrimination,”

the latter of which captures how women feel about and

experience their workplace at the unit, team, and interper-

sonal levels. Treatment discrimination is present when

diverse employees report that they do not feel a sense of

belonging and cannot be themselves. Ignoring “treatment

discrimination”barriers may hinder diverse employees’

career progress because feeling excluded can cause employ-

ees to lose motivation, disengage, and even question their

abilities. Inclusive climates strive to identify and eliminate

such discrimination by treating “women and members of

minority groups as insiders with valued--rather than

counter-normative--perspectives and strengths to contribute

to the organization”(p. 16).

Nellie Borrero’s practice essay reinforces the importance

of all employees embracing diversity and inclusion as a

shared responsibility. She argues that retaining diverse

employees requires holding “stay conversations”centered

around what organizations might do to keep them from

leaving. Conversation is essential generally for creating

gender-inclusive organizations because candid dialogue can

sensitize one to micro-inequities, unconscious bias, and

other interlocking treatment barriers that diverse employees

often experience and endure in silence. Such conversation

must happen throughout the organization if it is truly

Book Review

American Review of Public Administration

2022, Vol. 52(2) 169–170

© The Author(s) 2021

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