Research
The Broken Rung: Lean In Factsheet
How women fall behind at the first step up to manager—and why
What is the broken rung?
The broken rung is the promotion gap between men and women at the first step from entry level to manager in US companies. For every 100 men promoted, significantly fewer women are. This gap—not the glass ceiling—is the #1 obstacle to gender parity in corporate leadership.
Because men outnumber women at the manager level, there are fewer women to advance at every subsequent level. The gap at the bottom compounds into a chasm at the top.
LeanIn.Org and McKinsey & Company named and defined the broken rung in Women in the Workplace 2019.
How bad is the broken rung today–and is it worse for women of color?
- For every 100 men promoted to manager, only 93 women are promoted.
- Women hold 49% of entry-level roles but only 42% of manager roles—a drop of 7 percentage points.
- This makes it nearly impossible for women to catch up at senior levels.
| Promotions to manager per 100 men, assuming equal numbers of each group at entry level. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men | Women overall | Black women | Latinas | Asian women |
| 100 | 93 | 60 | 82 | 82 |
How has the broken rung changed over time?
| Promotions to manager per 100 men, assuming equal numbers of each group at entry level. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Men | Women overall | Black women | Latinas | Asian women |
| 2019 | 100 | 72 | 58 | 68 | 83 |
| 2020 | 100 | 85 | 58 | 71 | 98 |
| 2021 | 100 | 86 | 82 | 86 | 116 |
| 2022 | 100 | 87 | 96 | 75 | 95 |
| 2023 | 100 | 87 | 54 | 76 | 89 |
| 2024 | 100 | 81 | 54 | 65 | 99 |
| 2025 | 100 | 93 | 60 | 82 | 82 |
What causes the broken rung?
The evidence indicates that the broken rung is mainly caused by bias. It can’t be explained away by differences in skills and ambition, since women rank similarly on these traits to men–or exceed them.
- Women’s education exceeds men’s:
- As of 2026, women hold 59% of U.S. bachelor's degrees, 63% of Masters degrees, and 57% of PhDs–and have made up over 50% of college graduates since the early 1980s
- Women of color are notably highly educated: Asian women, Black women, and Latinas all now attend college at higher rates than white men
- Women make up around half of entry level:
- Women are 49% of entry-level employees in corporate roles
- Early-career women are as ambitious as men:
- At entry-level, more young women than young men under 30 want a promotion to the next level.
- Gender bias has more room to impact entry-level employees:
- At this stage, track records are shorter, leaving more room for managers to rely on subjective judgments and gut feelings when making promotion decisions
- This can especially hamper entry level women, since men across levels are more likely to be judged competent, even when their qualifications are identical
- Assessments of potential also matter a lot at entry level, and women tend to receive lower "potential" ratings than men, even when their performance ratings are higher
Why did the broken rung improve in 2021-22?
Company commitment to advancement for women and people of color peaked in 2021—and has since fallen sharply.
- 2017: 88% of companies said gender diversity was a high priority
- 2019: 87% gender diversity was a high priority; 77% said the same of racial diversity
- 2021: 90% of companies said D&I was a high priority — the high-water mark
- 2024: 78% said gender diversity was a high priority; 69% said this of racial diversity — significant drops from 2021
- 2025: Only 54% prioritize women's career advancement; only 46% prioritize women of color's advancement
When companies prioritized racial equity (2020–22), the broken rung improved.
- Following the 2020 racial justice movement, companies dramatically increased focus on diversity and inclusion — and the broken rung for women of color measurably improved across all three groups
- Black women: The broken rung saw its greatest improvement in 2021–2022, coming close to parity — likely driven by increased focus on racial equity.
- Latinas: Promotion rates rose from 68 per 100 men in 2019 to their highest levels in 2021
- Asian women: Experienced the greatest broken rung improvements of any group across 2021–2023
When companies pulled back (2023–25), progress reversed.
- Black women: Promotion rates regressed to 2020 levels in 2023–2024, erasing most gains from the peak period of focus on diversity and inclusion.
- Latinas: Faced their worst broken rung on record in 2024, coinciding with a steep decline in company commitment to diversity and inclusion.
- The pattern is consistent: when companies treat diversity as a high organizational priority, the broken rung for women of color narrows. When commitment declines, progress reverses.
What can companies do differently to mend the broken rung?
Companies that take these steps see larger gains in women's representation at every pipeline level:
- Treating women’s and women of color’s advancement as high organizational priorities
- Having a company leader focused on diversity and inclusion
- Holding senior leaders accountable for diversity and inclusion outcomes
- Using clear, consistent criteria for hiring and promotions
- Tracking hiring and promotion outcomes to identify and target inequalities
Sources: LeanIn.Org & McKinsey & Company, Women in the Workplace 2019, 2020, 2022, 2024, 2025; LeanIn.Org, The State of Latinas in Corporate America (2024). Pipeline data reflects prior year-end. Broken rung figures assume equal numbers of men and women at entry level.