Gender Pay Gap
All organisations employing over 250 people are required to report annually on their gender pay gap. The gender pay gap is defined as the differences in the average earnings of men and women over a standard period, regardless of their role seniority.
At Focus Group we recognise that the success of our business depends on our people
Established in 2003, Focus Group is proud to be one of the leading independent providers of essential business technology. Delivering innovative solutions to keep your business connected. Focus Group are committed to the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment for all employees, regardless of sex, race, religion or belief, age, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity, sexual orientation, gender reassignment or disability.
At Focus Group we recognise that the success of our business depends on our people. Our staffing policy is simple, find good people and keep them. Operating from a place of complete authenticity is at the heart of Focus Group and we want to continue to be recognised as a company that cares about doing things right, that values its people, that encourages fun and allows its people to bring their whole selves to work.
However, we operate in an industry that is traditionally male dominated, both in the technical, engineering and software development roles which tend to command higher salaries, and the sales roles which deliver significant commission income.
Commentary – as at 05 April 2024
- The mean hourly rate for men is 17.22% higher than for women
- The median hourly rate for men is 16.67% higher than for women
- The median bonus for women is 10.25% higher than men (excluding commission)
We recognise there is progress to be made in closing the gender pay gap. We are committed to providing a fair and inclusive workplace for all our employees and this remains a key pillar of our strategy moving forward. We have a newly created Women’s network who will be working together to not only empower female employees to develop their careers but to also encourage women to apply for roles at Focus Group, some of those roles that may be historically predominately male dominated.
We are working on increasing our gender diversity at ELT and Director level as well as encouraging women to join us in our Sales roles and empowering them to earn more commission. We have also recently acquired Cellular Solutions, an acquisition that was 90%+ female sales business.
The summary tables below show:
- Our mean and median gender pay gap (based on hourly rates of pay at a snapshot date of 05 April 2024) and bonus and commission pay gap (based on bonuses paid over a 12-month period ending 05 April 2024);
- The gender distribution across 4 equally divided quartiles and;
Gender Pay Gap
|
Mean |
17.22% |
|
Median |
16.67% |
|
Mean Bonuses |
70.10% |
|
Median Bonuses |
22.33% |
|
Median Bonuses (Excl. Commission) |
-10.25% |
|
Mean Bonuses (Excl. Commission) |
45.9% |
Pay Quartiles
|
|
Male |
Female |
|---|---|---|
|
Top Quartile |
83.73% |
16.27% |
|
Upper Middle Quartile |
70.23% |
29.77% |
|
Lower Middle Quartile |
63.88% |
36.12% |
|
Lower Quartile |
60.71% |
39.29% |
2024/2025 Report
Since last reporting our gender pay gap, the headcount has increased by 44%. With the high growth Focus have experienced, the mean gender pay gap has increased by just over 2% and the median gender pay gap increased by 6.17%.
The gap between females and males who received a bonus, including commission payments, has increased by 1%, still remaining low at 2.1%.
The gender pay gap reporting requires that commission is included in the bonus figures, creating a mean gap of 70.10%, which is an increase of 2% from the previous year. Commission plays a huge part in the disparity of bonus’ paid to men and women at Focus as the majority of our Sales roles are occupied by males. Excluding commission from the bonus payments, the mean gap falls to 45.9%. The median gender pay gap for bonus pay excluding commission has decreased from the previous year, but females receive 10.25% more.
Although the number of women in the Top Quartile has decreased, the number of women in the Upper Middle Quartile has increased. This is due to women being internally promoted to higher level roles.
