Tag Archive for: the glass hammer

Want More Women at the Top? It’s Time to Fix the Leaky Talent Pipeline

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iStock_000017642294XSmallBy Michelle Hendelman, Editor-in-Chief

Previous research has identified that women do not get as many career-changing jobs as their male colleagues. This imbalance is one of the main reasons why the talent pipeline in many organizations is not as diverse as it should be. The question persists in the gender equality arena: why aren’t there more women in leadership positions? Yet, there is evidence that managers and key decision makers are not giving equal access to women when it comes to opportunities that can positively impact a career trajectory.

This begs the question: is the talent pipeline being managed properly with respect to gender diversity initiatives and leadership development strategies in a firm? Catalyst reports that between 2009 and 2012, the percentage of Fortune 500 female executive officers has remained at a near standstill, increasing slightly from 13.5 percent in 2009 to 14.3% in 2012. What factors are contributing to the stagnancy of women’s career advancement in traditionally male-dominated industries such as finance, technology, and professional services?

In order to get to the bottom of why talented women are not being ushered through the talent pipeline at the same rate as their male colleagues, let’s take a look at some key factors creating roadblocks in corporate gender diversity at the most senior levels of management.

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Voice of Experience: Philippa Nesbit, Chief Risk Officer, Citi Private Bank and Citi Holdings

Philippa NesbitBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Reflecting on her early career, Philippa Nesbit, Chief Risk Officer at Citi Private Bank and Citi Holdings, encouraged junior women to seek out broad opportunities to learn. “Really, the important thing is getting a diversity of your knowledge base. It’s easier to learn more and get a breadth of knowledge when you are junior. When you are a managing director, it’s hard to get those different experiences. I hadn’t appreciated the importance of that 20 years ago.”

She continued, “Tied to that, make sure you grasp every opportunity. Be really flexible and adapt the ways that you work. Our junior colleagues are from a generation with lots of tools and options to manage their careers – from day one, develop and build your network every day.”

“I attribute a lot of my success to being able to call many people – to get both business perspectives and career perspectives. I will always advise people to ‘push yourself’. Put yourself out of your comfort zone and into decision making roles,” she added.

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Tips for Managing Your Personal Brand at Work: Are You Doing All the Right Things?

iStock_000018133371XSmallBy Michelle Hendelman, Editor-in-Chief

In our conversations with top female executives, we have noticed that one of the most popular topics discussed is the importance of managing your personal brand and how this influences your career advancement. But what exactly does it mean to manage your personal brand and how can you do it effectively? Believe it or not, your personal brand consists of more than your outward appearance. Of course how you present yourself at work is very important, but when you think about your personal brand, you need to take more factors into consideration.

Your personal brand is always working. Whether or not it is working for or against you is completely in your control. Every time you enter a conference room, a networking function, or a team brainstorming session, you need to be thinking about how other people perceive you.

Take a look at the list below to see what factors are the building blocks of your personal brand. Making sure that you are always putting your best self forward can help you get noticed by the people who matter. This could lead to career changing opportunities such as getting a sponsor or being chosen for an overseas assignment.

When managing your personal brand at work, you should take the following factors into consideration:

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Movers and Shakers: Natalie Runyon, Director, Global Security, Thomson Reuters

Natalie RunyonNatalie Runyon, Director of Global Security at Thomson Reuters, wishes she had known just how important it was to seek out leadership training and development early on in her career. Since she cannot go back in time, Runyon is doing the next best thing. She is developing female leaders through the “How to be the CEO of Your Career” program that she created and launched through the New York City Chapter of the women’s network at Thomson Reuters. Supporting the advancement of women through this program has certainly been one of the most rewarding aspects of Runyon’s career because she gets to combine her passions of leadership training and providing a resource for professional women.

Career Path

One might say that Natalie Runyon’s career path was anything but linear. Yet all of her experiences have contributed to her becoming an influential leadership strategist for women who want to change the world, in her own words. Runyon was born and raised in Louisiana, and after graduating from Louisiana State University with a degree in International Trade and Finance, she was ready to explore life outside the Pelican State. Runyon headed to Washington, D.C. to work for the CIA, an opportunity she secured the year before when working as an intern the summer before her senior year of college. Determined to find her way to Wall St. to work in the financial services industry, Runyon attended The George Washington University part-time, while working for the CIA, eventually earning her MBA.

In 2003, Runyon packed her bags for New York City to begin her career in the Global Security group at Goldman Sachs. “This was shortly after 9/11, and I had the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of the crisis management program,” said Runyon. She continued, “It was in this role that I discovered my love for training at all organizational and operational levels.” Runyon excelled at crisis management, but after a few years she began to feel the symptoms of burnout set in. “Crisis management is 24/7, and when you are working in global security, the work never stops,” she said.

Recognizing the signs of burnout, Runyon took advantage of a unique opportunity in 2008 to work on rebuilding the go to the Gulf Coast and help victims of Hurricane Katrina recover and begin to rebuild from the disaster that hit the area in 2005. “I had a personal stake in this cause,” said Runyon, “since my grandmother lost her home in the hurricane. Helping with the relief efforts also gave me the opportunity to connect with people outside of the office, which was so rewarding.”

During this time, Runyon received her Leadership Coaching Certification, which was a skill she would be able to apply effectively during her time helping the coastal communities of Louisiana get back on track and in her next endeavor. That same year, Runyon had the opportunity to visit Ghana to do humanitarian work with impoverished children. Speaking about her experience working in Africa, Runyon said, “For the first time, I understood on a much deeper level what it meant to be part of the non-dominant group.” She continued, “It was through these experiences that I learned how important it was to give people the confidence to speak up.”

With a renewed sense of purpose and an interest in how to pursue equality in the workplace through leadership development, Runyon returned to her position at Goldman Sachs. By 2011, Goldman Sachs had undergone major restructuring and Runyon’s position was eliminated after several rounds of layoffs. However, like all of the events in Runyon’s career, this bump in the road had a silver lining.

In 2012, Runyon accepted a job at Thomson Reuters in the security team. Following a series of events, Runyon quickly rose to become the most senior person in her region after 5 months on the job. Runyon was able to apply her experience in crisis management and leadership training and development to take charge.

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Flexible Work Arrangements: Why Workplace Flexibility is Good for Business

iStock_000004026171XSmallBy Michelle Hendelman, Editor-in-Chief

The desire for more flexible work arrangements is not limited to just one group of employees. Although workplace dynamics are changing as companies are experience more diversity within their halls than ever before, a common denominator among all employees, not just female employees, continues to be the interest in flexible work arrangements. As more in-depth research is conducted on the benefit of flexible schedules for both employees and companies, there is strong evidence that catering to employees’ needs through more flexible schedules can improve productivity, employee satisfaction, and have a positive impact on the talent pipeline.

A paper on flexible work arrangements published by PwC suggests that newer generations of workers –Gen X and Gen Y –are driving the trend of increasingly flexible work arrangements, but older generations, including Traditionals and Baby Boomers, support flexible schedules as well. This is well supported by the paper, When Work Works [PDF], which indicates that “80% of workers say they would like to have more flexible work options and would use them if there were no negative consequences at work.”

With more employees seeking flexible work arrangements and technology innovations allowing for increased mobile connectivity among employees, firm leaders should take note of the potential opportunities and positive impact flexible schedules can have on a workplace environment.

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Voice of Experience: Laila Worrell, New York Metro Office Managing Director, Accenture

Laila Worrell, AccentureBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Laila Worrell, Managing Director of Accenture’s New York Metro Office, says some of the most important advice she’s received is, “when given a choice, choose on the side of generosity.”

She explained, “We all have demands on our time and resources that we must prioritize.  The advice I share often is to remember to err on the side of generosity.  If given the opportunity to support or mentor someone, view it as a privilege.”

Worrell also emphasizes the importance of building strong networks internally and externally. She noted, “Many of us feel too busy with other responsibilities, but it’s important to prioritize building and maintaining your network.  It can be an incredible resource to you throughout your life and career.”

Career Path

Currently Worrell is the leader of the company’s New York Metro Office, where she is responsible for 4,000 people in New York and New Jersey. She serves on the company’s North America leadership team and CEO Advisory Council, and she also leads the company’s work in the private equity sector.  Initially, though, Worrell didn’t anticipate a career in business.  She recalled, “I joined Accenture immediately after completing my undergraduate degree.  I had majored in liberal arts and was passionate about the academic world. I thought I would eventually return to academics.”

“However, I had an incredible experience with Accenture, and I found I was very passionate about business and helping clients solve some of their most complex business problems,” she continued.  She enrolled in Harvard Business School, graduating with her MBA in 1998.  After several years leading strategy and corporate development for a major media company, she had the opportunity to rejoin Accenture, shaping the company’s growth initiatives in the North American market.

Today Worrell works with clients in the financial services industry and is also involved in the company’s initiative around skills and competitiveness. “Accenture is undertaking work to support an initiative to increase the competitiveness of the United States in the global economy, including by leveraging skills as a driver of economic growth.”

This ties into Accenture’s Skills to Succeed global corporate citizenship initiative, she continued. “One of our economy’s key growth levers is our base of skilled resources.  Accenture is committed to helping even more individuals in our communities gain the skills they need to get a job or start a business.”

The topic of competitiveness is relevant to her work with financial services clients as well. “I spend a lot of time with our clients in the financial services sector. We’re going through an unprecedented period of change in financial services. There is an enormous amount of competitive pressure. The question is how can institutions continue to innovate, transform, and compete in a rapidly evolving environment. It’s fascinating working with our clients on these issues.”

Worrell says the part of her career that has been the most rewarding is helping others advance in their own careers. “When I’ve helped people build confidence to fulfill their potential, to see what’s possible, these are the types of achievements I’ve found rewarding, absolutely.”

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Are You Risk Averse at Work? Learn Why Challenging Yourself Will Help You Get Ahead

iStock_000017439589XSmallBy Michelle Hendelman, Editor-in-Chief

What does it mean to be a risk taker at work? For many people, the idea of asking for a raise, going for a big promotion, or taking on a challenging project is daunting, but these are exactly the types of actions that risk-taking employees, especially women, should be doing in order to drive their career advancement in the right direction. Previous studies on risk appetite have indicated that women generally do not take as many risks as men, but is this hypothesis true, and does it apply to business women in a corporate setting?

In a recent working paper, researchers at Tufts University suggest that the idea that women are more risk averse than men needs to be revisited. The paper’s author, Julie A. Nelson, states, “Taken as a bald statement, the statement might be taken as indicating something that is universally true for every individual member of the classes ‘women’ and ‘men.’ In this case, it would have to be true that every individual woman is more risk averse than every individual man. This exceedingly strong implication is not likely intended by those who write such statements, since just one example of a cautious man and a bold woman disproves it.”

According to the research, not all women are more risk averse than men. It suggests why we shouldn’t base our assumptions of women in business on stereotypes – which exactly why we must move beyond tokenism in diversity hiring.

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Opportunities Abound for Shareholder Activism on Gender Diversity

Group of businesspeople having a meeting.By Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

By now, the connection between women and business success is well-known. But as many times as studies have linked diverse boardrooms with better performance, companies seem to be making few moves toward gender balanced boards.

This spring, Deloitte released the third edition of its report, “Women in the boardroom: A global perspective,” which detailed the excruciatingly slow pace of progress in boardroom gender balance. Despite rapid elevation of discussion on the topic of boardroom diversity, action has been slow. Even in places like the UK, which initially put a concerted effort behind hiring more women to FTSE 100 boards, hiring of women to director seats is plateauing.

Deloitte believes that it may be possible to speed this process up. Up to now, relatively few shareholders have gotten involved in efforts to change the gender balance on the boards of the world’s largest companies. Dan Konigsburg, managing director of the Deloitte Global Center for Corporate Governance, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, comments, “Given that shareholders are the owners of the company, one might expect they should have the strongest interest in the benefits of more diverse boards, an interest that should benefit the value of their portfolios.”

So far, Deloitte says, there have been very few shareholder proposals addressing diversity in the boardroom. This is a mistake, Konigsburg says. “We see diversity as a business issue. …We also believe that greater diversity – not just in gender but in background, in experience and in diversity of thought – makes for more effective teams of people.”

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The Cycle of Sponsorship in the Workplace: You Get What You Give

iStock_000007832712XSmallBy Michelle Hendelman, Editor-in-Chief

If you feel like you are stuck in a plateau in your personal career development, it is probably time to take a step back and assess what you should be doing to remain relevant in your company and in the eyes of upper management. The key to your success may not be found in the typical areas of corporate training and development. Instead, you may benefit by becoming a sponsor to someone within your organization who you feel can turn into a rising star with the right guidance and representation.

How does sponsoring someone else help you advance? While the idea of sponsoring someone may feel one-sided to you, this is actually not the case. Anna Beninger, Senior Research Associate for Catalyst, states, “One of our major research findings around the idea of sponsorship is that paying it forward pays back. Developing others really increases your own visibility.” She adds, “Essentially what you are doing is showing the company that you are not only about your own advancement, but that you are invested in the future of the organization.”

By taking on a sponsor role, you automatically align yourself with other influential players in your company. People will notice. You will inevitably get the attention of the decision makers as they start to recognize the impact of your institutional knowledge and experience. What this means is that by helping a young executive navigate their own career path, you reinforce and display your real value to the company, not just your perceived value.

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Mentoring the Millennial Generation: Advice for Senior Female Executives

girlpowerBy Michelle Hendelman, Editor-in-Chief

What is the best way to find out what makes NextGen employees tick? Ask them. This is exactly what PwC, along with the University of Southern California and The London Business School did in their groundbreaking study, PwC’s NextGen: a global generational study [PDF]. With over 40,000 responses collected and 18 global territories represented, this study identifies the attitudes, perceptions, mentality and overall work preferences of the next generation of the world’s workforce – Millennials.

Although Millennials and non-Millennials hold many similar viewpoints about flexible schedules, the ability to work occasionally from home, and the importance of healthy work/life balance, it seems as though PwC’s NextGen study reveals one important difference between Millennials and the generations before them. Millennials are not as inclined to make big sacrifices in their personal lives in order to climb the corporate rungs at work.

In fact, according to the study, 15% of all male employees and 21% of all female employees would accept less pay and extend the pace of their personal career advancement to work fewer hours. The study also suggests, however, that Millennials value different contributing factors to their personal advancement. What is the impact of these findings?

“Millennials are not afraid of working hard,” says Terri McClements, US Human Capital Leader for PwC, “it’s that the experience is equally important to them as putting in the hours it takes to achieve a certain title or role.”

While the results of the NextGen study have the potential to significantly affect workplace culture as corporate leaders adapt to accommodate the needs of this emerging workforce majority in an effort to improve employee retention and create effective talent development programs, the real impact just might be felt in the mentor/mentee relationships between non-Millennial senior level executives and Millennials.

This is especially true in the case of senior level female executives who choose to act as mentors to Gen Y rising stars within their company. With Millennial attitudes differing from non-Millennials in some key areas, how can these two generations of female workers connect in a way that is meaningful and beneficial for everyone involved, including the company?

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