Study after study has demonstrated salary gaps for female executives versus their male colleagues, especially in large companies. Now new research by Harvard Business School professor Noam Wasserman demonstrates that the pay gaps persist in startups, too — although less so.
Looking at data on 2,200 executives from almost 480 private IT and life sciences ventures, Wasserman found that overall, men made $10,200 more than women. Women had their best chance of equal pay in the states of California and Massachusetts, and in early-stage ventures.
That number actually looks good compared to the 20 percent or more in gender-based pay inequalities found in larger organizations. Notes Wasserman: “Small, private ventures may indeed be a good place to escape the factors that cause wide gender gaps in large companies.”
Read his post for more details. He encourages readers to offer their own opinions and analysis of the results, and is especially interested in why these gaps exist. Here’s what one of his readers offered:
“Regarding the growing gender gap as companies mature, the obvious answer would be that early stage companies are meritocracies whereas mature companies are bureaucracies that reward factors other than performance which are biased against women.”
From our female readers, what has been your experience with compensation in startups?
