In January, retailer Mattress Firm launched an internal initiative to help women advance through the ranks within the Houston-based company. The “LeadHERship” program is the first in a series of efforts to promote the professional development of women at both the corporate and retail levels. It is of special importance, a company spokesperson said, as the average mattress shopper is a 51-year-old woman, but women leaders are grossly underrepresented in the mattress industry.
LeadHERship is meant to identify high-caliber female employees and provide them with the training and other resources necessary to advance within the company.
Mattress Firm is striving to be the industry leader for high-performing women, said Abby Ludens, Mattress Firm vice president of talent management. “We needed to acknowledge that there are in fact differences between men and women, both on the consumer side—how we make decisions—and on the employee side—how we lead and manage people,” she said. “By creating the LeadHERship program, we’re seizing the opportunity to close the gap between the number of male and female leaders in our organization and the mattress industry overall.”
The initiative is not for women, only, the company said. It educates both men and women on leadership development and management techniques, emphasizing how to lead different groups of people.
LeadHERship participants can take advantage of regularly scheduled training webinars with guest speakers focused on communicating with women and leading as a woman. Members also receive biweekly newsletters highlighting best practices and workplace-related articles. The intended goal is to educate and propel women within the workplace, and offer opportunities to teach and network with other employees.
With the support of senior leadership and input from women across the company, LeadHERship is one of many initiatives put in place to promote, engage and foster diversity within the company, Mattress Firm said.
