New Data by Women In Trucking’s WIT Index Shows Predominance of Women in human resources and talent management roles
The percentage of female professionals in human resources and talent management roles within the commercial freight transportation industry has reached an all-time high, according to new data highlighted in the WIT Index, which was just released by the Women In Trucking Association (WIT). The WIT Index is the official industry barometer to benchmark and measure each year the percentage of women who make up critical roles in transportation.
The 2022 WIT Index shows that 74.9 percent of human resources and talent management roles in transportation companies are women. In addition, the 2022 WIT Index finds that approximately 49 percent of respondents report that 90 percent or more of professionals in their HR/Talent Management positions are women. Another 34 percent say that between 50 and 90 percent of HR/Talent Management professionals are women. Approximately 11 percent report that women comprise 10 to 50 percent of HR/Talent Management roles, while 6 percent report having no women in HR-related roles.
Traditionally, human resources (HR) and talent management disciplines have been long perceived as a female-oriented profession, primarily because of the skill sets requirement in the field, according to Ellen Voie, WIT’s president and CEO. Women are typically more skilled in this area because they are commonly considered to have a better Emotional Intelligence (EI) score than men. Critical skills in this discipline that are more commonly held by women include multitasking, leadership, planning, communication, and human relations skills.
“Women have always been visible in the areas of human resources and talent management, but we want to see these figures increase as more women find careers in the transportation industry,” said Voie.
Initiated in 2016, the WIT Index is comprised of average percentages of females in various roles that are reported by companies in transportation, including predominantly for-hire trucking companies, private fleets, transportation intermediaries, railroads, ocean carriers, equipment manufacturers, and technology companies. This data was confidentially gathered from January through April of 2022 from 180 participating companies and percentages are reported only as aggregate totals of respondents.
Along with its traditional benchmark percentages among HR/talent management, leadership, and professional drivers in commercial freight transportation, WIT this year has expanded its collection on the percentage of women to include operations, technicians, sales and marketing.
For more information on the WIT Index and to download a full executive summary of the 2022 WIT Index findings, visit https://www.womenintrucking.
