leadership & glass ceiling wk 51 gender, glass ceiling & leadership styles “ the glass...

Leadership & Glass ceiling wk 5 1

Gender, Glass Ceiling & Leadership Styles

“ The Glass Ceiling” – the invisible artificial barriers created by attitudinal and

organizational prejudices that bar women from top executives. Domestic & International

Perspectives; Facilitating, Working in teams, Communication, Leadership & Motivating

others

Any Gender Differences ? (Week 5)


Studies of Glass Ceiling in the US

Early 1990s, the Centre for Creative Leadership. 1995 survey on HR mgrs from 304 large industrial & service firms from Fortune1000, 500 & 50 companies. 2 key findings:

• White male mgrs uncomfortable with those unlike themselves (women, women of color)

• The lack of accountability or incentives in organizations to develop diversity.

In1996, Catalyst (nonprofit res organization for women in business) examined perceptions & experiences of the Fortune 1000’s most senior level women & CEOs (male & female).

When comparing with 2003 study on women in corporate leadership:


1. Compared with 23 % women in 1996, in 2003 only 30% of women believed the opportunities for senior positions in their own organizations have greatly improved in past 5 years.

2. Only 11 % of women believed opportunities in US have improved in general.

CEOs views women’s advancement are critical in supporting women’s talents in high-ranking positions.

The 2003 Catalyst’s survey of CEOs (no gender breakdown) from Fortune1000 companies & compared with those of senior-level females:

1. Women & CEOs agreed that the lack of general management or line experience as top barrier to women advancing into senior leadership roles.

2. Almost 2/3 (64%) of CEOs believed that organization is responsible to change to meet women in management’s needs


4. 3. 47 % of women indicated that exclusion from informal networks was a barrier to advancement, in contrast to 18% of CEOs.

5. 16 % of women noted lack of mentoring, in contrast to 21% of CEOs.

6. Differences in management/leadership styles bet men &women as discussed by glass ceiling literature. Typically most valued communication styles in corporate world are those of men (being direct & factual) rather than interpersonal styles women use. Therefore, women using more direct communication may be more likely to advance than women who do not.However, recent study shows that women tend to be more flexible

in leading than men & engage different styles & approaches.Another report comparing highly successful women executives in

senior leadership positions with successful men executives & less successful women – Fortune 400 companies inc. PepsiCola, IBM, Unilever, Prudential


1. Successful women executives are twice as likely to use a more interpersonal style than men.

2. Women also use directive & authoritative style typically used by men

3. The study points: the best leaders be women or men do not use the style they are comfortable with, but rather use style best suited to the situation/people.

A 2004 study shows those companies are able to “break through” the glass ceiling” has prospered financially: Of 353 Fortune 500 companies, having the highest representation of women as top mgmt teams experienced better financial performance than those with lowest women’s representation.

However, Statistics Don’t Explain Earnings Differences. Pay inequities: In spite of women’s large share in the labor

force: 45% women & 55 % men in 1998, women’s labor expected to rise in 2008 in the US & elsewhere)

In the Soviet Union (2001 survey in N. Vinokurova, Gender Related Aspects of Mgmt, 2007) women faced multitude of obstacles: Advancement blocked by a system of social

barriers. Both men & women – i) ideological obstacles (required

membership in the Communist Party ii) Socioeconomic obstacles (territorial restrictions-

residence permits governing rules.Specific to women: gender discrimination. Other things being equal, in making appointment, man is preferred

Women’s careers impeded by family obligations, the birth of children..


Women in Management: Closer to breaking through the glass ceiling? Linda Wirth in Women, Gender & Work (ILO, 2001 ed. Martha Fetherolf

Loutfi.

Women have made enormous progress in many countries in obtaining a greater share of professional and management jobs. The data show the significant role played by education

and the growing diversification of women’s careers. Nevertheless, research findings demonstrate how unbreakable

the glass ceiling is. Women’s overall share of management jobs rarely exceeds 20 % in most countries, yet they represent

>40% of the world’s labor force. The higher the position the more glaring the gap bet men & women. It is suggested that

some career-building strategies & enterprise policies can help to speed up women’s advancement to the top jobs.


Women as ministersWomen as presidents

Women governors/presidents of central banks

Women as Women as commissioners (Human Rights)

Women as state governorsWomen as Vice ChancellorsWomen as board of directors


Movement of women into managerial jobs – are they even

across different economic sectors?

Where are they fared better? Services versus industrial sectors (manufacturing & contstruction)


Education & TrainingAlthough the overall picture is positive with girls in

most countries perform better than boys, the number of graduates & post graduates amongst women

increased, the question remains isthe application of gender criteria in the choice by girls

& boys of subjects & courses. Thus, when women work in paid employment outside their home, their jobs have often been an extension of

reproductive activities in areas such as welfare, education, health, catering, services a& administrative

support functions.


Although women are often better educated & qualified than men in the same job, women still find it

difficult to reach top positions. They had to work harder & perform better than men to move ahead

Studies: In Jamaica, women had more years of schooling

before joining labor force than men, advanced more quickly than men at middle management level but took significantly longer to achieve top level mgmt

positions (Gershenberg, 1994)Turkish Civil Service –women progress in overall managerial jobs but stuck at middle mgmt level

(CEDAW, 1996) Leadership & Glass ceiling wk 5 11

What is a real & practical constraint for women to achieve high level positions?

1. Disproportionate responsibility –family, raising children, household tasks. Professional/managerial jobs often require long hours of

recognition and eventual promotion. 2. Career progression structures & policies are around the ages of 30-

40 as most important for career development which is the most intensive years for child rearing. Women who want both career & family

must juggle heavy responsibilities in both domains. Women without family are often seen as potential mothers, thus even with education & trng, they are often given less attention than that of

their male counterparts.3. Women in developing countries may have fewer difficulties obtaining

mgmt jobs due toa) smaller proportion of the population attained higher education, so

the skills & knowledge of qualified women in demand.b) extended family/inexpensive domestic help provide crucial support

for childcare & household maintenance


Potential Barriers (Kelsey Julian) Negative assumptions of abilities/commitment

Discrimination & sexual harassmentLack of management commitment to establish

systems & policies for achieving workplace diversity & upward mobility

Sex, race, and ethnic-based stereotyping and harassment

Lack of family-friendly workplace policiesLimited opportunities for advancement to decision-

making positionsInequitable appraisal & compensation


Tackling the obstaclesWomen perceived sex stereotyping regarding their ability & willingness to accept positions of responsibilities esp if long hours, ravel & relocation are involved- attitude that assume all women have similar interests, ambitions & constraints when in fact they do not form a homogeneous group –just

as men do not. Thus, many women as a result of this attitude are placed in less strategic areas of activity, not being given varied and challenging assignments & not being exposed to the full

range of operations of activities of an enterprise/organization –crucial factors for climbing the

ladder to top mgmt jobs. No wonder the surveys of CEOs of companies revealed

that few women possess appropriate business experience & not been long enough ina variety of mgmt positions to be

selected for top exec. Jobs. Leadership & Glas ceiling wk 5 14


Leadership Style (Crampton & Mishra, Public P. M. 99)

• Successful women describing their leadership styles often as: transformational – getting workers to transform or subordinate their individual self-interests into group consensus directed towards a broader organizational goals.

• Power attributed by personal characteristics: charisma, personal contacts & interpersonal skills rather than org structure.


• Others suggest female managers are more situation-based-adapting their strategies to the contingencies of the situation. Whereas men are more likely to view their leadership style as Transactional – jobs are seen as involving a series of transactions bet themselves & their subordinates, leading to rewards or punishment.

• Flattening structures & requiring more participative management, which style would best suit this environment?


• Some suggested women with their natural style enabling tem to lead and manage successfully within this new corporate environment compared to more male dominated pyramid-shaped hierarchy.

• However, women in upper mgmt positions are mainly in HR & communication/public relations where their “softer” participative style of management viewed as better utilised.

Participative

Transformational

Situation based

Women Leadership Style


Research on equal pay & career advancement (US General Office –GAO report), failed to explain the magnitude of earnings differences bet men & women, nor why these differences exist. Investigated only differences bet work patterns of men & women, as well other key factors such as women earned on average, 80% of men’s earnings in 2000. What about the remaining earnings differences?

The report suggests: pay differences cld be the result of managing work & family responsibilities.


• The Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) differences of earnings include:

• Work experience, education & lack of opportunities. Historically, women’s wages lag behind men plus the gap on their earnings increases with age.

• For example, in 2002 (The US Bureau of Labor Statistics) the differences was much greater among workers of 45-54: women in this age earned 75% as much as men. But women of 16-24 earned 93 % of men’s wage.

• Young women closing wage gap; they earned 82% of young men’s earnings in 2000 compared with 68% in 1979.

• HR Professionals – a learning lesson.


Women of Color`Face additional challenges – impact of glass ceiling: gender based

barriers & racial & ethnic obstacles at times to advance the corporate ladder.

2004 research report of African-American women found:• Exclusion from informal networks & even conflicting relationships

with white women.Although 75% of Fortune 500 companies have formal diversity

programs, 37% of African –American women stated opportunities to advance to senior positions are declining. Primary barriers:

1. Negative race-based stereotypes2. Lack of institutional support3. Frequent questioning of African-American women’s authority &

credibility.To combat, these women recommended 3 proactive success factors:

communicating effectively, exceeding performance expectations, & building positive relationships with managers & colleagues.

CP/Nina Long


• Findings from Catalyst slightly more optimistic for women of color & glass ceiling. Overall

experienced VE+ career growth. Eg. 57% were promoted at least once (consistent with other studies on white women & women of color).

• While this research indicates women of color adopt several strategies for advancement &

emphasise greatly on networking & mentoring, it also reports women of color are less hopeful abt

their career prospects as past barriers still remain today.


International Implications for HR ProfessionalsKnowledge of their own extraterritorial laws that

apply to their own firms conducting business outside their own incl Civil Rights Act, Age Discrimination in Employment Act & Disabilities Act.

To abide International laws requiring nondiscrimination in employment:

• European Union (EU) – Equal Pay Directive• International Labor Organization (ILO) – equal

Remuneration Convention No. 100• Organization for Economic Cooperation &

Development (OECD) – Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises

• United nations – Global Compact


Lack of global talent as an emerging issue of aging workforce. Where to find the right people for the organization as the baby boomers gen retires? HR Professionals need to address this.

Seen as missing key ingredient – female global mgrs. Women employees offer a wide range of talent & potential but are largely underdeveloped in the global managerial ranks. Top 3 barriers for women gaining Global Business Experience (Catalyst, 2000)

1. Getting selected-the biggest obstacle to enter the global business arena

2. Perceived as less internationally mobile than men due to work & personal responsibilities

3. Lack of mentors & networks on international assignment.


Therefore developing global leaders requires experience outside home country, & increasingly, international experience is a must for global senior leadership positions.

International studies on Glass CeilingA 2002 report indicated stereotypes & preconceptions

of women’s roles & abilities, & the lack of mentors & visible successful female role models as to barriers to women taking international leadership roles. Analysis:

1. Many of the male & female respondents who are in senior positions at large corporations across 20 European countries reported that the opportunities for women’s advancement have greatly improved in the past 5 years

2. Almost 25 % of women stated no change; 9% of men agreed


3. For women who aspire to advance in the global arena, they still face barriers of tokenism, exclusion and isolation.

A study of women expat mgrs representing a wide range of industry & service sectors in Europe found the disadvantage is due:

Lack of organizational support seemed to be readily available to their male counterparts.

Findings also noted few organizations have developed career models for women expats.

1. All women managers in the study – hit the glass ceiling in their organizations in their early careers. Affirmed glass ceiling is very real in Europe


2. Only 25% believed they can break the ceiling & make it to the top of their professions.

3. Choices in lifestyles are more difficult for women expats than for domestic women managers, mainly due to the strain on personal relationships & poor quality of life arising from commuter marriages

4. Career success – still based on a male career model ignoring factors of marriage, pregnancy, children & household duties. Plus, these women in their early careers faced gender stereotypes.


Catalyst interviewed & surveyed over 1,000 employees in US based global companies, incl. 522 HR executives to answer why so few women on international arena. Key Findings:

1. Only men often are assumed interested in expat positions. No so as 42 % of women indicated stating their interest was an important factor to being offered a global assignment compared to 29 % men

2. Women are perceived to be disadvantaged, compared with men regarding international assignment, balancing work & personal responsibilities, & building business relationships outside the US.


3. There is a shortage of experienced international talent for the traditional 3-5 year international assignment largely due to dual-career marriages. Thus women seemed to be burdened by this demographic. Among married expats, 91% of women were in dual-career marriages, compared with 50% men.

4. Internationally assigned women tend to be more isolated than their male counterparts, often lacking formal support such as mentors & networks from their organizations.

Women in Senior Positions in the US & AbroadWith many barriers still remain, although there have been

some movement for women advancing to senior positions, women are not gaining the required experience to compete with men:


• ` Overt & Covert Barriers for Women to Domestic & International Senior Positions.

•Balancing home life & career•Isolation & loneliness

•Constant awareness of being a woman in man’s world•Lack of access to male networks•Having to prove oneself to others

•Having to work harder & be better than male counterparts•Having to ask for promotions

•Having to ask for international assignments•Less time available for networking due to domestic commitments

Source: Linehan, M., & Scullion, H (2001). European Female Expat. Careers: Critical Success Factors. J of

European Industrial Trng.


• In 2002 women held only 10% of the 6,428 total line corporate positions in Fortune 50.

• Women successfully attained senior positions recommend several career strategies:

1. Consistently exceed performance expectations

2. Develop a style with which male mgrs feel comfortable

3. Seek out challenging & visible assignments

4. Obtain support from an influential mentor

[Townsend & Mattis, 1998. Gender Gap in the Executive Suite. Breaking the

Glass Ceiling. The Academy of Management Executive, 12.1]


• 1 critical measure of women in senior positions – numbers of women in corporate directorships.

• EG. In US in 1995, 10% of women as board directors, increasing to 16% in 2002. In Canada, 11% of women in the board in 2002 & 2003. In UK, 101 women as directors of FTSE 100 board, when the number of companies with female directors increased from 61-68.

• However, as CEOs, women score lower than as directors. In 1995, the Fortune 500 had 1 woman CEO. Today, 7 female CEOs (increase of 0.2% - 1.4%)


Women Entrepreneurs. Women moving into entrepreneurship as a path around

glass ceiling.Key factors in business ownership are:Leadership recognition & the authority to make decisions.

Why wld women leave corporate world?• Increased compensation• Opportunity to develop new skills/competencies• Greater advancement opportunities• Increased intellectual stimulation• Different type of work• More authority to make decisions• Organizational values• [Catalyst, 2003].


Women Entrepreneurs Mgmt Styles

• Buttner (2001) reports that the management styles of women entrepreneurs was best described using

relational dimensions such as mutual empowering, collaboration, sharing of information, empathy and

nurturing. Importantly, these dimensions, which have also been associated with women in different professional occupations, were deemed to be

associated with firm performance. Women do work differently from men. According to Heffernan (2003), female negotiating styles have been shown to be different and it has been demonstrated that they are

significantly more beneficial to long term business success. The most recent study that explored a genetic basis for special attributes of women in social ability and

empathy imply a better performance of companies created and run by women because of their ability to communicate better with employees, suppliers and customers (Valencia,

2006).


Motivation & Business Performance

• According to Brush (1990), individual motivations and goals such as profitability, revenues and sales growth have been found to be related to performance in women-owned businesses, albeit their tendency to perform less well than their male counterparts (Fisher et al., 1993). Researchers found that women typically are motivated by a more complex set of objectives for starting a business than male counterparts. Factors related to the desire to achieve flexibility between work and family lives are valued differently by the genders (Cinamon & Rich, 2002; Stephens & Felman, 1997). In addition, Hisrich and Brush (1987) found that individual motivations and owner/founder goals are related to performance in women-owned businesses where opportunity motivation was related to survival and independence was associated with “no growth”. As a result, motivation shows a strong relationship to performance (Lerner et al., 1997).


Entrepreneurial Networking & Mentoring • According to Fraser (1995) and Wheeler

(1995), the use of informal mentoring supportive relationships is one of the best ways of establishing a business and these relationships helped the new entrepreneur

bypass the obstacles which impede growth, success, and personal fulfillment. However, women are often excluded from social networks or informal networks of information such as male-only clubs, old

boys networks, and business lunches compared to men (Brush, 1990) due to

lack of time (Belcourt et al, 1991).


Entrepreneurial Networking & Mentoring • In Malaysia, women entrepreneurs faced a shortage of

peer support networks compared with men [Women Institute of Management (WIM), 1997] even though various women entrepreneurs and industry associations have been formed (FEM, NAWEM, USAHANITA) which generally serve as a platform for women entrepreneurs to establish networks and exchange information and experiences as well as to conduct training programmes, seminars and workshops on motivation, leadership and entrepreneur development and to provide other means of support.

• This is due to the fact that women may not join these associations as they might be overloaded with business and family responsibilities. This limits the women entrepreneurs’ ability to seek informal advice and peer financing as well as the information networks needed for survival and growth. This might pose a challenge to women entrepreneurs in establishing networks which are helpful to the survival of their businesses.


• Globally, the growing number of women owned or majority women-owned businesses proved that women entrepreneurs are breaking through the glass ceiling.

• Survey of Women-Owned Business Enterprises reported women owned 51% or more of 5,417,034 firms in 1997. The 4 industries with the largest total revenues for women owned businesses: wholesale trade, service, retail trade & manufacturing (US Dept of Labor, the Census of Bureau)

• Women of color also made significant inroads as entrepreneurs. Bet 1997 & 2002, the number of owned businesses by minority increased by 32%. 1 in 5 women owned businesses in the US was owned by a women of color in 2002.

• In recognition of their work & their growing companies, The Veauve Clicquot Business Women of the Year Award acknowledges women as the leading edge of entrepreneurship.

leadership & glass ceiling wk 51 gender, glass ceiling & leadership styles “ the glass...

Documents

men women

ministers women

bar women

women of color

successful women executives

interpersonal styles

state governors women

vice chancellors women