Women 's Talent As A Leader

A recent study by the Australian Government Department of Social Services (2008) looking at the challenges facing women in leadership roles highlighted the following areas as being significant;

leaders. However, more people prefer male than female bosses. That has made it more difficult

This myth has been perpetuated throughout history and in result; we have barriers such as the glass ceiling in existence. If we were to pull up a list of the Board of Directors for any given company, the probability of it being a predominately male group is high. This notion alone shows how companies have continued to dwell in olds days where men are considered more capable than women. The Glass ceiling effect has continued to place barriers against women endeavor in achieving success in their careers and participation in their work place. Women have not been able to realize their potential in their work places since they are not offered equal chances as compared to their men counterparts who enjoy great opportunities in organizations. The fact that an organization is ran by men, may cause an adverse effect on the performance of men. Obviously, a man thinks differently than a woman. It is likely that a decision made by men only is likely to ignore the interests of women in the organization. This creates a domino effect because it affects the woman’s performance in business since they only get limited chances to learn, and limited job assignments that will enhance their skills. Hence, low or limited skills and experience will lower their overall

Second, I would like to talk about the gender roles that play while both men and women are working for the same job or trying to get a job with the same field. When it comes to hiring people mostly go for men because they assume that men will get the job done better than a women would. “Most leadership positions are held by men, so women don’t expect to achieve them and that becomes one of the reasons they don’t” (Anna – Marie Slaughter). With that being said it makes the competition for a job more challenging for women. They have to not only reach all the qualifications that is needed for the job but to go above and try to beat what the men is going to

"Women's advancement often stops short of the general management level" as a partial result of discrimination by white men in positions of power, which include the differences of developmental job assignments they are afforded (Ohlott 46). "Developmental job assignments have been found to be one of the most important factors in preparing both men and women for upper-level management positions" (Ohlott 46 - 47).If women do not experience these same job assignments, they may be less prepared than men for handling future upper-level management jobs. These types of job assignments lead to high-level positions, make managers more visible, and prepare them for future jobs. With men being in the top ranks of organizations in most cases, they are less likely to assign these challenging tasks to female subordinates (Ohlott 49). "Organizations more often move women into staff positions and out of functions central to a business" mainly because those making the staffing decisions are more interested in advancing their own careers (Ohlott 49).

On the other hand, it is said that women are seen as being more supportive and less managerial. Women tend to display high levels of compassion and team-building skills. Additionally, women leaders are able to view situations from many different perspectives, enhancing their persuasive ability and making them better at persuasion than males. Women are also said to like a challenge. “An international study found that 70% of businesswomen asked their bosses for new challenges at work, which is less than half of the businessmen that did so.” Lastly, it is said that women are honest and hard workers. It was found that 54% of women worked 9-11 hour days compared to 41% of men. It was also found that women are more likely to do work during their vacations and less likely to spend their “sick days” playing hooky.

According to the article, Stop Blaming Women For Holding Themselves Back at Work, women are in less managerial positions because of the culture in the workplace. Women are blamed, they are told to “try harder,” or to “be more aggressive,” although lack of aggression and effort might not be the problem. The problem, according to author Lisa Miller, is that they are women.

I would like to start by mentioning that there may be decision making abilities and cultural differences that are affected by gender. Women are usually expected to be nurturing and less aggressive than men. Under attribution theory (ORGB), female managers may be less likely to attribute their success to their own abilities. It is not hard to guess that management may end up not having an entirely accurate assessment of a woman’s skills due to her modesty in that area.

Career outcomes require people to be proactive, take initiative and ask for a pay increase and increased work benefits. Men are more likely to be more aggressive and create their own opportunities to advance. “Social mores and male attitudes make an effective barrier to women rising above certain points; this tendency brings to mind a glass ceiling” (Toussaint 1).

Men In the work force are often seen as superior, a better fit worker compared to women 's who are often seen as weak and a better fit for the housework and mother duties.

In a Forbes article written by Glen Llopis, The Most Undervalued Leadership Traits of Women, Llopis, highlights his theories and opinions on each undervalued trait. Llopis provides specific details that make women effective leaders. The author predicates his assessment on women and leadership from his personal and professional experiences. Within the article, Llopis identifies six leadership traits that women naturally possess, which are undervalued:

Women already in managerial jobs know one thing men do not, and that is how to prevail in situations where the odds are against them.

However, in fact, women are more employable due to femininity if compared to men. This is because, traditional feminine work is aimed for maintaining good relations with everyone in the society for instance, peers, supervisor, working conditions and job security whereas traditional masculine aims for recognition, challenge, earnings and advancement according to Kriszta, 2006. Men are more focused on material success, but women focused on quality of/ on life and caring for others.

More and more women are rising to the leadership challenge, even in some of the most male-dominated industries. The increase in the number of women attending college, the increasing number of women in the workplace or starting their own business has demonstrated to men who own businesses that women can be both managers and mothers, thus showing their male counterpart that women can in fact "do it all".

Gender and leadership? Leadership and gender? A journey through the landscape of theories start off by giving a statistical summary of percentages of women in higher echelon position in the workforce. With this information in the intro, the article quickly highlights the limited representation of women in exclusive positions in Fortune 500 companies. Next, the paper examines multiple theories why this problem exists in the workforce. The four theories examined are biology and sex; gender role; causal factors; and attitudinal drivers (Appelbaum et al, 2003, p. 44).