‘Walking the talk’: Exploring heterogeneity in gender diversity performance in mining

Although gender diversity has been an increasingly important criterion for investors screening for environmental, social and governance metrics, it has long been a challenge for the mining sector, given its strong legacy and reverence for masculine identity. Mining has consistently continued to significantly lag other industries and cutting across all levels of employment. Moreover, there is reported evidence of notable variations amongst different regions in the matter of gender diversity adoption. We investigate these issues through a qualitative empirical study of self-reported narratives of the 24 largest mining companies spread across eight regions. We find that stronger gender diversity performance is invariably evidenced in a higher degree of coherence between articulated diversity aspirations and specific diversity initiatives. While this interlinkage is more likely symptomatic than causal, we argue that a commitment to stated position drives strategic action and in turn stronger performance. On the contrary, lack of coherence between aspirations and action is likely reflective of a superficial approach to diversity management that in turn tends to derail the diversity agenda.