same reason why so many women don't pursue men romantically - they can't stand the possibility of rejection and failure. so many of the differences in outcomes in men and women's careers can be traced back to how navigate out personal lives. most women grow up taking a passive role socially and romantically by choice, waiting for men to approach them and while never risking direct rejection. meanwhile, men do not have the choice to be passive in their romantic live or else they will never find romantic partners. men are forced to take risks with their emotions and ego and deal with rejection starting at puberty, and those skills are very valuable to employers. our culture forces men to develop courage and confidence in spite what they factually have to offer and in spite of the risk of failure, and those skills serve us very well in the job market once we grow up. many women never step outside of their comfort zone by risking public rejection and humiliation because they simply never had to while growing up, and so they never develop the sort of irrational courage and confidence that helps people succeed in a competitive job market.
do you think that cowardly men who are afraid of failure and rejection get ahead in the workplace? hell no, they don't! they don't get the jobs that they are too afraid to apply for, and they don't get the raises and promotions that they don't request and negotiate. so why would we expect women to do any better when they behave in the same manner?
When I went into the work world as a young twenty-something, I was constantly surprised by how often, it seemed, the emperor had no clothes. Major decisions were made and resources were allocated based not on good data or thoughtful reflection, but based on who had built the right relationships and had the chutzpah to propose big plans.
as a grown-ass man, i can tell you that this is exactly how dating and love works from our point of view. while growing up, i was constantly surprised that women didn't choose men based on a strict meritocracy, but rather on which guys were popular and had the exciting courage and chutzpah to boldly approach and propose a relationship. business and industry are no different. you need confidence and game, and it's everyone's personal responsibility to learn it.
from what i've seen in industry, many women act exactly like all those frustrated timid guys who never get the balls to ask a girl out and whine that women never ask them out. they're constantly stewing over the fact that they aren't being recognized for their qualifications and resent the fact that their bolder, assertive, risk-taking peers succeed. "How can girls/employers pick those loud assholes over me? Can't they see that i'm really qualified and nice, and how that asshole is just full of overconfidence and isn't even as qualified as i am? It's not fair! Girls/employers should change to recognize my obvious virtues! Girls/employers only want dishonest assholes, apparently!" sound familiar?
toughen the fuck up, take some risks, pursue what you want, and learn to take rejection and criticism in stride, or else you will face the same fate of cowardly men: stagnation, no respect, and resentment about the fact that success, status, and respect weren't just given to them with a nice pat on the head.