Leadership Lessons: Sorting through the Trip to the Top

SylviaContributed by Dr. Sylvia Lafair, Award Winning Author and Workplace Relationship Expert

Frustrated, she shook the ladder she was too tired to climb, had been climbing for years. It was just one more step and yet it looked like a mountain of ice. The call had been in the early morning, time when most would still be wandering down the paths between dreams and deep sleep.

They wanted her. They were offering her the CEO position. The meeting was set for day after tomorrow in London. It was all very hush-hush. Only the key people were in the loop. A diagnosis of inoperable cancer had changed the game. She knew she was a contender, yet that was in the succession plan for a future time – not now. But suddenly that last step on the ladder was to right here, right now.

She got up and started to plan her wardrobe. And then it hit her, like a hardball smack in her gut. Tomorrow was the day she was to be a chaperone with her son’s fourth grade class; an all day visit to the zoo. The trip she promised she would not change, no way, never, as she had done so many other times.

Her husband stirred from sleep. They talked. No – their son had enough of dad time; this one was a promise from a mom who was the major breadwinner, and because of that, was rarely available for school outings.

The demands were weighing down on her. Was the trip to the top really worth it? And so what’s the big deal about the trip to the zoo; she’s only a chaperone for crying out loud. This true story belongs to so many of us: moments of conflicting demands, moments of loyalty binds that choke us.

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Working Mothers: Role Models to the Next Generation

iStock_000003367609XSmallBy Cleo Thompson (London), founder of The Gender Blog

Alex Crawford, whose coverage of the capture of Tripoli for UK news channel Sky News made recent headlines, has declared that it’s “offensive and sexist” to ask how she raises her four children and adds that she objects to the way in which female war correspondents are asked if they can juggle motherhood and frontline journalism when their male counterparts do not face similar questions. Speaking to the Edinburgh International Television Festival via satellite link from Libya, Crawford added that she thinks that “as a woman, you bring a different view to the whole thing … a woman who’s been through the same experiences, even if it’s giving birth, that gives you an empathy.”

Crawford would therefore doubtless be pleased to read some recently published research from the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, which suggests that children whose mothers work outside the home are no more likely to have behavioural or emotional problems at age 5 than kids whose mums stayed at home.
“We don’t see detrimental effects on children’s behaviour with maternal employment,” says study researcher Anne McMunn, PhD, a senior research fellow at University College, London.

Living with two working parents seems to be best for kids, and this effect was apparent even after researchers took into account the mothers’ education level and household income.

Girls may even fare worse if their mothers stay at home. Girls whose mums weren’t working at all in the first five years of their life were twice as likely to have behavioural problems at age 5, the study showed.

“Working mothers should not feel guilty that this will have any impact on the social, emotional, or behavioural development of their children and if anything, they may be doing a service in terms of increased income and some positive effect for girls,” McMunn says.

The new study analysed data on parental employment when children were infants, 3 years old, and 5 years old. The researchers compared this information with social and emotional behaviour at age 3 and 5 to see if the mothers’ work status had an effect on risk for problems later on.

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Flex and Job Security: The New Balancing Act

Hispanic Woman Working In Home OfficeBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

According to a recent study in the Journal of Vocational Behaviour, there is a huge disconnect in policy and practice when it comes to corporate flex programs. The study, “Influences on employee perceptions of organizational work–life support: Signals and resources,” found that even though many companies have flex policies in place, employees aren’t taking advantage of them.

Why? Workplace cultures often do not support actually using human resources policies as they are written.

As the report’s author Ariane Ollier-Malaterre told the Financial Times:

“Employees aren’t using the policies because they feel that if they did it would negatively impact their career. They feel that if they were to say, take a leave or go part-time, they would not be conforming to the ideals of a loyal committed worker, and it would [harm their opportunities for advancement.] Quite frankly, the consensus in the work/life community is that work/life doesn’t work.”

Ollier-Malaterre indicated that a workplace culture unsupportive to flex utilization may be driving women out of the workforce – that at the manager level and beyond, women tend to drop off the career ladder. The reason, she says, is that companies have a hard time acknowledging that many women have significant priorities outside the workplace.

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Voice of Experience: Jennifer Fitzgibbon, Managing Director, Treasurer, Americas, RBS Global Banking & Markets

jenniferfitzgibbonBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“Think about how you are going to distinguish yourself in this industry,” advised Jennifer Fitzgibbon, Managing Director and Treasurer, Americas at RBS‘s Global Banking and Markets division. “What are the things I can do to stand out and establish myself as a go-to person?”

This is something Fitzgibbon has worked hard to do throughout her career. She recalled attending an off-site ski trip in Austria early in her career. She didn’t know how to ski but managed to connect with a colleague whom she had not previously met). He convinced her to ski down the black diamond slope with him.

“Later, I found out he was actually our new global head, and subsequently had recommended me for a large role because he thought I could handle anything. That’s the importance of putting yourself out there and taking a risk. Just try to do it without so many bruises!”

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Celebrate Women’s Equality Day – Exercise Your Right to Vote

iStock_000000292856XSmallBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Today, August 26, marks Women’s Equality Day here in the US. Today we celebrate the passage of the 19th amendment, which granted women the right to vote. It’s shocking that less than 100 years ago, women weren’t considered capable of exercising good judgment over who they would like their leaders to be.

Now we know that’s not true – women are smart, strong, and effective decision makers. And a day like today provides us with the opportunity to reflect on how far we’ve come. Today, women do more than vote on leaders. Women are leaders. Just consider the achievements of the individuals included on this year’s Forbes’ Most Powerful Women list.

Of course, this day also serves as a reminder that in many ways, our society has not yet achieved gender parity. As President Obama pointed out in last year’s Women’s Equality Day Proclamation:

“Women comprise less than one-fifth of our Congress and account for a mere fraction of the chief executives at the helm of our biggest companies. Women hold only 27 percent of jobs in science and engineering, which are critical to our economic growth in a 21st-century economy. And, almost 50 years after the Equal Pay Act was enacted, American women still only earn 77 cents for every dollar men earn. This gap increases among minority women and those living with disabilities.”

One of the most important ways women can help strive for parity is to serve as role models for others – men and women – looking up. It’s time to start seeing yourself as the leader you are and mentor or sponsor promising young people. As Catalyst’s recent research on sponsorship shows, by making a difference in the lives of others, you can boost your own career as well.

Readers’ Poll

On this Women’s Equality Day, we invite you to exercise your right to vote. The Glass Hammer is your community and we want to make sure we’re providing you with the informative, empowering, and inspiring content you’re looking for.

Last year, we asked you, our readers, what you’d like to see more of on The Glass Hammer. The answer was loud and clear – more advice on management and career navigation. We’ve worked to ramp up content on these topics, and we hope we’ve come through for you. This year, we’re asking you again. Please consider the topics below, and let us know which topics would be most valuable for you.

[polldaddy poll=5453088]

Finally, we encourage you to take stock of those senior women who’ve helped you throughout your career, and in the comments section below, nominate someone you’d like us to profile.

Thanks for your help. Happy Women’s Equality Day!

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Women in Philanthropy: Tania Mulry, Founder and CEO, DDx Media and edRover

TaniaMulryBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“There’s security in staying with what you know. But there are a lot of other interesting pursuits out there,” said Tania Mulry, Founder and CEO of DDx Media and edRover. “Take a chance and do something you’ve always dreamed of doing.”

Mulry took the plunge herself – leaving her career at a mobile marketing strategy company to pursue her dream of doing something that would help the world – and eventually founded edRover, a mobile app that helps families direct donations from businesses to a school of their choice.

She continued, “It’s about taking a risk. At the end of the day, you don’t want to say “I really wish I had…”

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Add Women, Get Smarter: What’s the Deal with Social Sensitivity?

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iStock_000004512689XSmallBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

You may have been surprised recently to see a few articles explaining that adding a few women to a group can raise the group’s intelligence as a whole: add women, get smarter.

Well, maybe you were not so surprised, really.

The MIT study, cited in the Harvard Business Review, set out to explore how the the individual intelligence levels of group members combined to produce an overall group intelligence level. The researchers, Anita Woolley, Thomas Malone, and Scott Berinato, were surprised at what they found.

It seemed group satisfaction, group cohesion, and group motivation had no effect on group intelligence, and they expected to see group intelligence levels increase as gender diversity increased up to the point of gender balance. But what the study really revealed was: the more women the better – to heck with balance!

Well – not quite, the researchers explained. It turns out group intelligence is not exactly a matter of gender. According to Woolley, it’s not simply all those extra X chromosome that makes majority-female groups smarter – it’s the higher degree of “social sensitivity” that often comes along with women.

She said, “What do you hear about great groups? Not that the members are all really smart but that they listen to each other.”

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The Non-Traditional Route for Women in Accounting: The Importance of Mentoring

Contributed by Sandra B. Richtermeyer, Ph.D., CMA, CPA

The accounting field offers great opportunities for women; however, it is unfortunate to see that while more than 55 percent of undergraduate accounting majors are women, only nine percent hold senior level roles, according to a recent CFO article. Although this data is disheartening, the disparity offers women a great opportunity to close this gap by playing a leading role in the growth and success of their peers. But how?

For the past five years, I have been involved with the Educational Foundation for Women in Accounting (EFWA), an organization with a primarily educational mission that stresses the importance of women’s involvement in mentoring. While there are scholarship and mentoring programs geared toward traditional undergraduate lifestyles, EFWA supports the nontraditional route for women in need – either due to a life changing circumstance, women in a career transition or for those who may not have had the opportunity to attend a four year college following high school.

Beyond monetary assistance, the need for emotional and moral support along the path of professional development is immeasurable. Mentoring encourages, enables and empowers women to seek and achieve equal opportunities and equal compensation.

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Caring for an Aging Parent? Five Tips to Find the Job that Works for You

iStock_000002618796XSmallBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

According to a Gallup poll conducted this year, over one in six American workers (between 13% and 22%), is providing care to an elderly or disabled family member, relative, or friend – and the majority of caregivers – unsurprisingly – is female.

The poll also revealed that “Nearly one-third of all working caregivers are in a professional occupation, with another 12% each in service and management roles.” On average, caregivers reported missing 6.6 workdays per year.

As any member of the “sandwich generation” can tell you, becoming a caregiver to an aging parent is often difficult – emotionally, financially, and logistically. But according to Gallup, finding an employer who can support your needs can ease the transition for all parties involved. The survey revealed that most employers were aware of the demands on their caregiving employees, but less than 25% of caregivers receive workplace support that can make a difference in easing their situation. The report explains:

“Most caregivers (71%) indicate that their employer is aware of their caregiving status, but another 28% believe that their employer is unaware. Furthermore, an analysis of knowledge of workplace support programs shows that about one-quarter or less of working caregivers have access to support groups, ask-a-nurse-type services, financial/legal advisors, and assisted living counselors through their respective workplaces.”

The report goes on to say that employees are looking for these perks.

“Ultimately, providing an organized support system for these employees may prove to be a fruitful investment for businesses, given the high percentages of working caregivers who would like to work more if they could. Many working caregivers are likely interested in seeking support in work-life balance to help them meet their responsibilities as caregivers and employees alike, and the accessibility to assistance could potentially go a long way toward greater productivity in the U.S. Workplace.”

Are you caring for an aging loved one? Finding a job that provides a flexible scheduling or similar programs that enable work/life effectiveness can make your situation must easier – for you and your parent. Here’s what to look for.

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Being Fully Present: How to Avoid the Technology and Work/Life Clash

iStock_000006926918XSmallBy Tina Vasquez (Los Angeles)

Last year we may have “officially” declared that technology helps work/life balance. But there’s also the flip side: for example, a new study by specialist insurer, Hiscox, found that only 5 percent of the 304 people surveyed reported not working on weekends and only 3 percent keep their mobile devices away from both the bedroom and dinner table. According to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 83 percent of American adults own some kind of cell phone – and the Hiscox study shows a lot of people find it difficult to switch off once they’re at home.

Many are divided on whether new communication devices help or hinder work/life balance. For some, smart phones, tablets, web cams, and other gadgets are freeing, offering them more flexibility in their work schedule by enabling them to work remotely. For others, the fact that bosses, co-workers, or employees can find them anytime, anywhere, everywhere, feels a lot like being on call 24/7 and constantly being shackled to their metaphorical desk. According to leadership expert and management consultant Eileen McDargh, communication technology is a wonderful, terrible thing.

McDargh wrote the book on work/life balance – literally. Her book Work for a Living & Still Be Free to Live, published in 1985, is considered the first book on work/life balance and according to the expert, when people say they’re “struggling” with work/life balance, it means they’re exhausted.

“I have grave concerns about technology,” McDargh said. “If we choose to be connected 24/7, it can hinder the work we hope to accomplish, damage the relationships we hope to discover, and it stalls us from thinking critically; technology has us thinking at a very flat, shallow level. Because of technology, we have to make an extra effort to develop our own pace. First the pendulum swung too far to the right. Now it’s swinging too far to the left. We need to make it swing back to the center.”

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