GENDER INCLUSION AT THE HEART OF A HEALTHCARE COMPANY HEMEN MATERNAL AND CHILDREN’S SPECIALTY MEDICAL CENTER IN ETHIOPIA In partnership with the Government of Norway Locking-in Competitive Advantage with Stronger Gender Practices PROJECT LOCATION porate Gender and Inclusion Assessment and HEALTHCARE FOR Ethiopia Action Plan to identify and address operation- WOMEN, BY WOMEN al gaps influenced by gender dynamics. CLIENT OPPORTUNITY In 2008, four trailblazing women had the vision to Hemen Maternal and Children’s Specialty Medi- contribute to women and children’s well-being by cal Center (Hemen) was founded in 2008 by four Better capture the women’s healthcare mar- providing high-level medical care in Ethiopia. Hemen female physicians to offer high-quality women’s ket by strengthening the value proposition Maternal and Children’s Specialty Medical Center reproductive and children’s healthcare services and market differentiator of Care for women (Hemen) was co-founded by Dr. Zufan Lakew, a se- in Ethiopia. Hemen is one of the largest specialty by women. nior OB-GYN specialist and the first woman Dean of women’s healthcare providers in Addis Ababa. In the Faculty of Medicine at Addis Ababa University; Dr. 2021, Hemen employed about 150 permanent staff IMPACT Ambaye W/Michael and Dr. Mulu Muletta, senior OB- and served 95,000 patients. GYN specialists and world-known fistula surgeons; Between 2021 and 2022, Hemen built an archi- and Dr. Adanech Belay, senior OB-GYN specialist. IFC’S ROLE tecture of gender-inclusive policies and practic- es. Its management introduced a new gender It was not an easy endeavor. Launching a medical Hemen is a member of IFC’s Women’s Leader- policy, established a Gender Policy Commit- practice comprised primarily of women doctors for ship in Private Health Global Working Group, tee, adjusted job descriptions and salary scales, the benefit of women patients was rare in Ethiopia, an initiative within IFC’s Global Health Plat- re-assessed its performance evaluations and particularly in a country where only 18 percent1 of all form. As part of Hemen’s commitments to the promotions processes, and delivered training on physicians are women. Working Group, in 2021 IFC conducted a Cor- safe and respectful workplaces to all staff. In 14 years, Hemen expanded into a four-story full-ser- vice medical center equipped to accommodate 50 in-patients and more than 200 out-patients at any IFC’S GENDER-SMART From September 2020 to December 2021, IFC’s Women’s Employment Program led the Women’s Leadership in given time. BUSINESS SOLUTIONS Private Healthcare Global Working Group to strengthen As a women-led healthcare provider of which close to women’s leadership roles in the healthcare sector. The The International Finance Corporation’s (IFC’s) Wom- working group brought together 17 leading healthcare or- 80 percent of the workforce is female, the company’s en’s Employment Program provides gender-smart ganizations in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia to gender profile is a unique differentiator that attracts business solutions to IFC clients in Manufacturing, identify and address gender barriers in this sector. patients and employees. Hemen has earned a reputa- Agribusiness, and Services such as Health and Educa- tion in the market for providing quality care, attract- tion. Through the program, IFC partners with private We acknowledge and appreciate the generous sup- ing a diverse clientele of local and foreign nationals. sector businesses globally to assess their practices port provided by the Government of Norway, which on gender inclusion and advise them on advancing made these advisory initiatives possible on women’s women’s employment in their workplace. employment. 2 3 Locking-in Competitive Advantage with Stronger Gender Practices IFC’S CORPORATE “We have proven AN EVIDENCE-BASED Board of Directors. Yet, the data showed a tendency that GENDER AND INCLUSION that exemplary APPROACH TO men were more likely to be hired at greater levels of re- ASSESSMENT IMPROVING GENDER- sponsibility. Moreover, while the company has a sala- women in leadership INCLUSION ry scale and pay equity is required by law, data revealed the existence of a gender pay gap, and there are no equal As a Women’s Leadership in Private Healthcare Glob- can successfully compensation policy to mitigate inconsistencies. al Working Group member, Hemen partnered with IFC in 2021 to conduct a Corporate Gender and Inclu- lead a quality Care for women by women is a market differentiator for Hemen, considering the demand for female doctors in In 2020, despite the acute impact of the COVID-19 pan- sion Assessment to gain insights into how workforce institution. The IFC the male-dominated field of reproductive and women’s demic, Hemen’s employee turnover was low (11 per- composition and gender dynamics impacted its op- erations. The diagnostic used IFC’s quantitative and diagnostic helped us health. The company’s culture, support for profession- al women, high quality care, and leadership style were cent), but the lack of practices to ensure career progres- sion and succession planning affected employee en- qualitative tools to analyze Hemen’s employment to identify strengths cited as an incentive for patients and the main reasons gagement. According to the analysis, high performance and financial data, Human Resources policies, work- employees are proud to work in this hospital. did not necessarily align with promotion opportunities. force composition, career progression, and worker and weaknesses Staff interviews revealed that employees, particular- remuneration and operations. and will help us to During the diagnostic, IFC identified the need to insti- tutionalize and formalize gender inclusion practices in ly physicians, desired formal training, mentoring, or sponsorship programs. During the assessment period, IFC conducted interviews with the management institutionalize our the company to ensure the consistency and sustain- men were twice as likely as women to leave the compa- team to grasp the company’s strategy and operations, as well as focus group discussions with female and gender values in our ability of gender equality as the market differentiator for Hemen’s business. “The diagnostics showed us that ny. The reasons cited included better salaries and pro- fessional development opportunities. For women, al- male doctors, nurses, and administrative staff to un- company values.” concepts we believed were implemented in our center though Hemen offers some flexible-work options, the derstand their experience as Hemen employees. IFC were not institutionalized,” said Dr. Lakew. main challenge was maintaining a work-life balance. also conducted a literature review on the country and Dr. Zufan Lakew social context and corporate legal requirements. The assessment found that almost 80 percent of He- Another matter affecting employee retention was dis- Co-founder and CEO, Hemen men’s workforce are women, including an all-female respectful behavior and aggression from patients, es- The diagnostic provided Hemen with a framework pecially at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. for developing a comprehensive gender and inclusion The diagnostic found that Hemen did not have policies strategy. By creating policies that embed the compa- or training in place to prevent or address sexual harass- ny’s core values, Hemen can continue attracting high- ment and ensure workplace safety, which could impact ly skilled talent of all genders, position the company productivity and employee satisfaction. regionally, and fulfill its mission. Based on the assessment findings, IFC delivered a cus- tomized Gender Action Plan to help Hemen align its op- erations to its core values and continue to attract and retain top talent. 4 5 Locking-in Competitive Advantage with Stronger Gender Practices INTEGRATING year to assess their performance, and new hires are as- “The training RECOMMENDATIONS INTO sessed after two and after six months into the job. made us aware of 7. Human Resources Data WORKPLACE POLICIES 4. Establishing Gender Leadership Targets stereotypes and Since the assessment, the company launched an ef- As part of the Gender Action Plan, IFC proposed 13 recom- Hemen established gender targets for critical posi- opportunities. It fort to collect and track gender-disaggregated data to mendations to enhance employee career development and staff retention, increase employee engagement, and tions. In the next five to ten years, the organization in- tends to maintain targets of at least 50 percent of wom- helped to identify analyze trends and design new policies to address em- ployees’ needs, as well as the potential costs associat- create safe (and respectful) workplace policies. During en in all leadership, including the Board, senior, and internal feelings ed with turnover and absenteeism. 2021 and 2022, Hemen’s Board and CEO took swift action to integrate them into their operational framework: middle management positions. In the year after IFC’s Corporate Gender and Inclusion Assessment, Hemen we did not know 8. Gender Sensitization Training created new managerial positions to support their we had and how to 1. Creating a Gender Policy growing business that are held by women. Hemen conducted gender sensitization and unconscious avoid this. I have bias training for more than 25 female and male managers, Hemen developed a comprehensive Gender Policy to en- sure its core mission and values are permanent. The Gen- 5. Work-life integration been training my team leaders of clinical departments, and administrators. der Policy was shared with all staff and management and Fostering a supportive work-life balance, Hemen im- colleagues too.” incorporated into the company Human Resources Manual. plemented flexible work schedules and leave options Kidist Bunde to empower employees with the autonomy to man- Chief Nurse and Head of Clinical Services, Hemen 2. Ensuring Equal Pay age their time off effectively. Hemen benchmarked pay scales at private and public in- 6. Repectful Workplace stitutions with comparable services and revised its salary scale to make it more competitive. To align with the mar- Internally, Hemen set up a Gender Committee to address ket, Hemen also revised job descriptions and grades for workplace incidents and continues building safe and re- different levels of responsibility. In January 2022, they an- spectful workplace awareness through regular training, nounced new salary scales and remuneration structures. ensuring employees are aware of their rights and inter- Employees were reclassified and their salaries adjusted nal grievance mechanisms.  alent retention: Performance 3. T Hemen established an administrative office to ensure evaluations and promotions a respectful work environment for its staff. They in- stalled signs in public areas advising patients about In December 2021, Hemen revised its performance Hemen’s zero-tolerance policy towards violence and evaluation tool to make it more robust, transparent, harassment, and patients also received forms about and objective. Now, employees are evaluated twice a their rights and responsibilities. 6 7 Locking-in Competitive Advantage with Stronger Gender Practices HEMEN’S WAY FORWARD the well-being of its employees, positioning the busi- CONTACT INFORMATION ness as a pioneer in their region. IFC’s Corporate Gender and Inclusion Assessment International Finance Corporation provided Hemen with evidence-based insights to For Hemen, it is critical to ensure that gender inclusion 2121 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW institutionalize gender-inclusive practices and pol- remains a competitive advantage to foster patient loy- Washington, DC 20433 USA icies. At the same time, the Women’s Leadership in alty, make employees feel valued, and enhance over- Private Healthcare Global Working Group connect- all business performance. “We have proven that hav- Manufacturing, Agribusiness, ed the company to a community of practice to ad- ing exemplary women in leadership can successfully Forestry/Health, Education & Services dress gender gaps in the sector. Since then, Hemen lead a quality institution. IFC’s assessment helped us Sanola A. Daley (sdaley@ifc.org) has actively implemented several strategies from its to identify strengths and weaknesses and will help us Gender Action Plan and publicly declared its commit- to institutionalize our gender values in our company www.IFC.org/gender ment to creating inclusive workplaces and ensuring values,” explained Dr. Lakew. @WBG_Gender ENDNOTES 1.  World Health Organization. “A Universal Truth: No Health without a Workforce”. November 2014. https://www.who.int/publications/m/item/hrh_universal_truth 2. Turnover Rate = 100 times the (Turnover/Average Number of Employees in the Reporting Period). In partnership with the Government of Norway 8