What boards really want after pay gap reporting

Most companies treat pay gap reporting like a finish line. They publish the numbers, check the compliance box, and move on. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: If you’re not using that data to drive real change, you’ve just wasted everyone’s time."

Sound harsh? Maybe. But after years of working with organisations paralysed by “analysis mode,” I’ve learned one thing: Boards don’t need more data—they need direction.

 
To make sure that your pay gap report doesn't become another useless report you need these three things:

1. Clarity over complexity
"Data without explanation just creates doubts. And when the doubts set in, unrealistic expectations set in, too."

Your board isn’t asking for a spreadsheet—they’re asking for a story. Why does your pay gap look like this? What factors are within your control (hint: not all of them are)? Without context, you risk two dangerous extremes: panic-driven overcorrection or resigned shrugs of "This is just how it is."

A university I worked with couldn’t understand why their gender pay gap was stagnant—until we discovered that their promotions process was a bureaucratic nightmare, riddled with unchecked biases and unecessary blockers. The data had hinted at it for years. But without digging into the why, they kept throwing solutions at the wrong problems.

2. A focused, costed action plan (not a wish list)
"Saying ‘we’ll close our pay gap by X%’ isn’t a plan. It’s a hope. And boards don’t fund hopes."

Instead you should prioritise 3–5 tangible, high-impact areas (e.g., promotions, starting salaries, bonus allocations). For each area you focus on answer these questions:

• What’s the intervention? (e.g., bias training for hiring managers)
• Who’s accountable? (Spoiler: Not just HR.)
• What’s the cost and timeline?

This is how you turn vague aspirations into boardroom-ready strategy.

3. Visible ownership (beyond HR)
Pay gaps aren’t created by one team—they’re the result of systemic cracks across the employee lifecycle. Yet most organisations still treat them as an “HR problem.”

Ask yourself:

• Are your leaders equipped to explain the gap—and the plan—to their teams?
• Is accountability siloed, or shared across Reward, DEI, and line managers?

Without this, even the best plan will gather dust.

 
Ready to move from habitual reporting to impactful results?

If your pay gap report is sitting in a drawer (or worse, fueling boardroom anxiety), let’s change that.

🎧 Listen to the full podcast episode here  where I discuss in more detail what boards want from your pay gap report for the step-by-step breakdown.

Or, if you’re ready to act now here are two ways we can work together this summer:

Book a VIP Strategy-in-a-Day Session: We’ll distill your data into a board-ready action plan—in one focused day.

Join the Summer Strategy Sprint: Collaborate with me over 3 weeks to build and cost your roadmap.

Limited spots available. Book a call to secure yours before summer slips away.