Gender diversity is to the 2010s what the ‘triple bottom line’ was to the late 1990s. It is a key challenge for big business and increasingly under the spotlight, particularly in the Technology space.

We are awash with stories about the dearth of women in areas of technology and digital – this is not news. However, what is of increasing interest is that although many companies are tackling the diversity problem, some approaches are more well-meaning, than effective.

A 2012 McKinsey report found that, “though CEOs made gender diversity a priority in more than 80 percent of our 60 participating companies, only about half of employees surveyed from the same companies agreed that the CEO is committed to it.”

The business case for diversity may now be proven, but it seems that action is lagging behind words.

The general consensus is that diversity is an economic reality that businesses must face.  To build a dynamic and robust working environment, more women need to be involved. Unlike in the 1990s –when businesses focussed on being good corporate citizens to contribute to their bottom line –creating diverse workforces has now taken centre stage.

Deloitte’s ‘ A Global Diversity Dividend ’ report identifies:

As Deloitte so eloquently put it in their ‘ Only skin deep ?’ 2011 report: “it is not enough to create a corporate version of Noah’s Ark bringing in ‘two of each kind’. . . There is a clear argument for actively managing diversity rather than assuming you will naturally derive the benefits.”

The reality is that there is a dramatic shift in the workforce where more and more women are returning to work after having children. With this shift comes a need to adapt employee offerings and recruitment processes to ensure businesses meet women’s changing employment needs.

So what do organisations need to do?

Here’s a checklist of things to look at when reviewing your organisation’s ‘diversity fitness’: