See the article here: http://www.forbes.com/2010/04/23/management-issues-workplace-forbes-woman-views-worst-bosses.html

I couldn’t believe what I was reading!  It sounded so passé, the same kind of “in your face” mythology that used to be standard fare for discouraging the acceptance of women leaders, CEO’s, bosses, etc.  And the “cat fight” reference is SOOOO out of date.  Because the first survey was among students who haven’t yet been a part of the professional world, I can understand this attitude that is likely based on outdated stereotypes.   

But when the attitudes were ascribed to the Forbes women I had to ask myself, “what is seriously awry within that company”?  It could be that high achieving women there are required to adopt traits stemming from the male model of leadership, traits that aren’t nearly as acceptable when practiced by women.   It used to be that women found it necessary to do this in order to be accepted by their mostly male colleagues.  IF that is still the case, it is a perfect reason for women to leave these corporate jobs.  If they can’t find opportunities there allowing them to exercise the leadership traits that have been identified as the strengths women bring to leadership then they are squelching their capabilities, wasting time and energy, and losing too much soul. 

Marcia Reynolds of the Huffington Post weighs in on a similar topic stating that “top-talent women often don’t stick around long enough to be promoted because they don’t feel appreciated and positively challenged … after years of disappointment and frustration, they take their experience, knowledge and wisdom to work from the outside as consultants, coaches, trainers and yes, business owners.”  Reynolds concludes that many women take themselves out of the running for leadership positions in large corporations.

See the article here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marcia-reynolds/business-women-when-ceos_b_542264.html

I have met thousands of very successful women entrepreneurs who within their companies have created and nurtured a professional environment where the people AND the bottom line are thriving.  These “bosses” listen, they collaborate, they build relationships, they give back and most importantly, they remain true to their values (a quality that is easily recognized and much admired).  Inevitably, their employees are willing to give their all in service of the company and wouldn’t wish to work for anyone else.  That’s the prevailing attitude about women in the 2010 business world I know. 

Sounds like there’s some much needed catching up to do in some high places.

See the article here: http://smartblogs.com/workforce/2010/04/05/more-women-in-the-workplace-but-still-not-enough-opportunities/

I find Dr. Sasha Galbraith’s contentions to be true.  There aren’t enough women “at the table” making decisions that directly affect organizations and their clients.  One lone voice is never sufficient.  I’ve been that lone voice and here’s the sequence I faced.  First, it takes a long time to gain the trust of one’s colleagues.  They wait until they’re sure you’re a safe choice to be among their ranks.  Eventually, one of the senior leaders, usually a man who’s self confidence has been deeply grounded (maybe he’s thinking of his talented daughter who will face others like him), will reach out and offer a kind of acceptance.  Then the others follow, or not. 

Seeing things from a different perspective is part of the value women bring, but for them it can be dicey.  Very frequently a new idea from a woman will float in the air for awhile, going nowhere until it resurfaces from one of the men. Once he has restated the idea, it’s worth talking about.  That’s the Ownership Game.  Women are left to decide whether the value is in implementing the idea or taking credit for it even though that could jeopardize its implementation. 

These dynamics (games) sap energy from the organization and underutilize the diverse talents of the “team”.  Studies demonstrate that results are better when there is a strong presence of women in key decision-making positions.  However, we continue to move at a glacial pace in arriving at something that resembles balanced leadership.  A lot of visible, covert or even unconscious opposition remains.  As Dr. Galbraith mentions, people are given high positions because they look like the ones who are already there.  In the long run, that practice can be destructive for the organization.  In preserving the mostly male bastion, they protect the few benighted individuals but diminish long term prospects for the institution they’ve been trusted to lead.  

And they call themselves leaders.

Link to Becoming ATHENA: http://marthamertz.com/?page_id=50

For my first blog post I was inspired to write on an article posted on www.amazingwomenrock.com called, “If Women Ruled The World, Would Business Be Any Better Off?” 

I couldn’t agree more that we need a balance in leadership in all sectors of business.  Organizations would no doubt benefit from a gender balance in their leadership positions.  By drawing experience from both women and men the organization benefits from the diversity of each of their unique strengths.

However, I disagree with her sentiments on the differences in leadership styles.  I passionately believe that women do things differently than men, and that absolutely includes their ways of leading.  Women are better collaborators, listeners, and relationship builders.  We operate with less (not none) ego involvement, with different definitions of what success really means and are better at merging our values into our business practices, living them rather than simply intoning them. 

That is not to say that men do not possess these skills, certainly there are men that do operate along this same leadership style, but habitually these leadership strengths are female.  And I feel strongly that if there were more women in leadership roles, the face of business as we know it would transform from one of command and control to one of collaboration.

Link to Article:

http://www.amazingwomenrock.com/myblog/if-women-ruled-the-world-would-business-be-any-better-off.html