The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania received a $2.5 million grant to launch the Workforce Futures Lab, a new research initiative focused on addressing barriers facing women in business. The lab will be led by Corrine Low, associate professor of business economics and public policy at the Wharton School.
“The data shows that women’s work is not optional for the economy. And yet, we’re still operating from outdated models where jobs are designed for a male breadwinner for a stay-at-home wife,” said Dr. Low. “Firms need to innovate to make care work possible for all employees, and the research shows they can do that without sacrificing productivity.”
The grant to launch Dr. Low’s new lab stems from the $60 million Workplace Innovation Now Challenge. Led by Aspen Digital and supported by Pivotal, the challenge aims to discover and scale transformative workplace solutions that help women thrive and everyone win in a rapidly changing workplace.
With her new funding, Dr. Low will bring together researchers and employers to study how companies can better attract, retain, and develop talent; how workplace practices interact with employees’ responsibilities outside of work; and how changes in technology and demographics are reshaping the opportunities and constraints workers face. By testing interventions in workplace settings, the lab aims to identify which changes improve women’s career outcomes and help firms make better decisions about their policies and investments. Dr. Low is the author of Having It All: What Data Tells Us About Women’s Lives and Getting the Most Out of Yours (Flatiron Books, 2025).
Dr. Low holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and public policy from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, and a Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University.