Contributed by Karol Wasylyshyn, author of Behind the Executive Door: Unexpected lessons for Managing Your Boss and Career
When historians write about business in late 20th and early 21st century America, they will say it was a time of intense leadership scrutiny – not only of executives’ results but of how they achieved them. This focus on leadership behavior has been my life’s work.
Or, in other words, I’ve been in the right place at the right time to deliver on a distinctive value proposition. Specifically, my integration of a business background and training in clinical psychology has enabled me to provide the behavioral guidance necessary for senior business leaders to thrive and win in a global business climate.
In my consulting experience, thriving and winning in a business climate that has become exponentially more complex and volatile is as much about effective leadership behavior as it is about smarts, industry knowledge, and classic leadership competencies such as strategic thinking and innovation management. Even a cursory examination of the flame-outs of well-known business leaders to include Carly Fiorina, Robert Nardelli, Al (“Chainsaw”) Dunlap, Ken Lay, Jeff Skilling, Tony Hayward and Mark Hurd bear this out.
A few years ago I became intrigued by a couple of questions. First, Do the executives with whom I’ve worked fall into any particular behavior patterns? And second, If they did represent specific behavioral patterns (they did), how could this information be helpful to both them and the people who report to them?
Based on my analysis of 300 executive coaching cases, I identified three distinct behavioral patterns or leadership types that I named Remarkable, Perilous, and Toxic. Subsequent empirical research found these three types to be empirically distinct based on two commonly used psychological tests – one based on the Big Five Factor theory of personality and the other a measure of emotional intelligence.
Managing Through the Holidays: Five Tips to Remember
Office PoliticsWe’ve now passed Thanksgiving – which means the holidays are right around the corner. And when sugarplums are dancing in your employees’ heads come the holiday season, it can be hard for work to compete. An Accountemps survey published last year revealed that one-third of senior managers surveyed said their employees are less productive the week before a major holiday – and this season is full of them!
At the same time, this is the busiest time of year for most firms whose clients are clamoring to meet year-end goals. Here are five ways managers can get their people to produce top results through the holidays.
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Happy Thanksgiving!
NewsToday The Glass Hammer is taking time to celebrate the things we’re thankful for. Our new office, a packed slate of fab events in the next few months (more info coming soon…), and even the slightly unseasonably warm weather here in New York (cheers for sweater weather!) are some of our reasons for giving thanks.
Another thing we’re grateful for is you, our audience – a bold group of women (and a few men) working diligently to help break the glass ceiling. If you’ve got some extra time this week, take a look at a few of our recent profiles on women we’d like to emulate.
We also decided to designate November as a month to discuss why and how women can be better negotiators. Are you ready to ask for a raise or promotion, time off, or a new budget for your team? Read through our guide and prepare yourself today.
Finally, we’re always looking for inspiring, effective, dynamic women to profile on The Glass Hammer – if you know someone you’d like to nominate as a Voice of Experience, a Mover and Shaker, or a Rising Star, email melissa@theglasshammer.com. And if you’ve got a great story to share about how you managed to test your own physical or emotional limits, you might be perfect for our Intrepid Woman series.
Last Thanksgiving, we encouraged you to give thanks to those mentors who have helped you get ahead in your career. This year, in addition to those individuals who have been your shoulder to lean on, your sounding board, or your sponsor, don’t forget to thank those direct reports and assistants who’ve helped support you as well.
What Type of Leader are You?
Expert AnswersWhen historians write about business in late 20th and early 21st century America, they will say it was a time of intense leadership scrutiny – not only of executives’ results but of how they achieved them. This focus on leadership behavior has been my life’s work.
Or, in other words, I’ve been in the right place at the right time to deliver on a distinctive value proposition. Specifically, my integration of a business background and training in clinical psychology has enabled me to provide the behavioral guidance necessary for senior business leaders to thrive and win in a global business climate.
In my consulting experience, thriving and winning in a business climate that has become exponentially more complex and volatile is as much about effective leadership behavior as it is about smarts, industry knowledge, and classic leadership competencies such as strategic thinking and innovation management. Even a cursory examination of the flame-outs of well-known business leaders to include Carly Fiorina, Robert Nardelli, Al (“Chainsaw”) Dunlap, Ken Lay, Jeff Skilling, Tony Hayward and Mark Hurd bear this out.
A few years ago I became intrigued by a couple of questions. First, Do the executives with whom I’ve worked fall into any particular behavior patterns? And second, If they did represent specific behavioral patterns (they did), how could this information be helpful to both them and the people who report to them?
Based on my analysis of 300 executive coaching cases, I identified three distinct behavioral patterns or leadership types that I named Remarkable, Perilous, and Toxic. Subsequent empirical research found these three types to be empirically distinct based on two commonly used psychological tests – one based on the Big Five Factor theory of personality and the other a measure of emotional intelligence.
Read more
Negotiation November: Why You Need to Tell Before You Ask
Office PoliticsLast month Catalyst’s President and CEO Ilene Lang addressed roughly 2,000 women at Deutsche Bank’s Women on Wall Street event, regarding the organization’s latest report “The Myth of the Ideal Worker: Does Doing All the Right Things Really Get Women Ahead?”
The report analyzes the effectiveness of a number of career strategies – and while men seem to come out ahead no matter what career strategies they employ, women did benefit significantly from talking up their accomplishments.
Surprisingly, the report showed that although there is plenty of discussion around women “not asking” or women “waiting to be rewarded” for their work, in fact, women are negotiating.
She said, “Women and men negotiate the same. Women are less likely to negotiate compensation in their first job, but after that they learn from that.”
Why, then, aren’t women getting as far as men when it comes to asking for more? One part of the solution may be a simple as engaging in a little show and tell.
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Women, Age, and Ambition – A Fresh Perspective
Featured, Next LevelRecently More Magazine released the results of a survey on ambition, work/life issues, and other topics. According to the survey of 500 college educated women over 35, 43% of respondents said they were less ambitious now than they were ten years ago.
The headline that many news outlets and websites ran with was along the lines of “Women are Losing Ambition.”
Well, not exactly.
In fact, the survey revealed quite the opposite. Because, while 43% of the survey respondents said they were less ambitious now than they were ten years ago, the majority (57%) said they were just as or more ambitious today.
I repeat: the majority of women in the survey said they were just as or more ambitious now than they were 10 years ago. Amazing what insight you can gain by shifting your perspective.
It is curious that so many ambitious women’s voices (the majority!) have been ignored. Why is it easier to pretend that ambitious women don’t exist?
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Voice of Experience: Kathleen Hughes, Managing Director, Head of Global Liquidity Sales, Goldman Sachs Asset Management
People, Voices of ExperienceAnd, she said, how you build that brand depends significantly on your firm’s culture. “Our culture here tends to be team-oriented. Relationships matter.”
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National Women’s Law Center’s 2011 Awards Dinner
NewsOn Wednesday, November 9, 2011, the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) welcomed over 2,000 attendees to its 2011 Awards Dinner. The event featured President Obama as the keynote speaker, paid special tribute to the women Freedom Riders, and raised over a million and a half dollars to continue the National Women’s Law Center’s mission to “advance and protect women’s equality and opportunity.”
The events of the evening spanned the past and the present. What has been accomplished, and what’s still left to do. Many remarked upon a renewed sense of optimism after hearing President Obama’s words: “That next generation of smart, powerful women? They’re already knocking on the door. They’re coming, and we need to get ready.”
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5 Reasons to Say No Now
Office PoliticsFinding it hard to say “no” at work? Very often, women try hard to please everybody, from bosses to clients, but it’s not always the most productive way to get ahead in your career. Saying “no” can actually open up opportunities and provide options for others if used at the right time. Learning to say “no” is a skill that all women should learn to use diplomatically for maximum career benefit.
Even as professional women, many of us were raised thinking that we’re meant to support the needs of others – and as a result, being a “yes girl” comes naturally. It can become painfully obvious in the corporate world that being a people-pleaser whilst trying to stay in touch with personal career goals are opposing factors.
Patti DeNucci, author of “The Intentional Networker: Attracting Powerful Relationships, Referrals & Results in Business,” says that learning to gracefully decline some tasks is, “the essence of not only connecting more intentionally, but living and working more intentionally as well. And as women, we so easily get into the trap of trying to please everyone and be friends with everyone, when a more focused and mindful approach would serve us (and others) much better.”
Saying “no” is a skill every woman can effectively use, at any stage of her career. If you want to experience this focused and balanced approach to managing your career, here are five reasons why you should start saying “no,” and fast.
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Plugging the Leaky Pipeline at the Mid-Management Level
Industry Leaders, LeadershipFor years, we’ve been led to believe that once women had the “right” education, the “right” training, and the “right” work experience, not only would they succeed at the highest levels of business, but they’d also reach parity in the c-suite. According to the Catalyst report The Pipeline’s Broken Promise [PDF], the premise of this assumption was that the pipeline for women into senior leadership was robust, but it appears that the hopes surrounding parity were too optimistic.
Catalyst reports that when it comes to top talent, women lag in advancement, compensation, and career satisfaction and in order to combat this systematic gender inequity, companies must better develop and fully leverage highly talented women in the workforce.
The good news is that there are major companies, like Time Warner, American Express, and McKinsey, that are working to plug the leaky pipeline at the mid-management level.
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Op Ed: Working Moms’ Work-Life Choices
Expert AnswersWomen have wondered since the beginning of feminism whether it is possible to have it all: a challenging career, healthy kids, and a satisfying marriage. And there isn’t a mother around who hasn’t occasionally questioned her choice from time to time, whichever one she has made. For some, it’s all the time.
The latest issue of Working Mother (November 2011) contains the results of the Working Mother Institute survey of 3,700 mothers to inquire about how they handle the question of striking work-life balance. The article that details their findings is titled “What Moms Choose.”
The “Working Mother Report” sheds light on what women feel about the paths they have chosen. Some of their results are surprising and even seem to contradict other results. But it is a fascinating exposition of the banes and blessings of being a working mom and a stay-at-home mom.
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