Guardian: When will women achieve gender equality in leadership at work?

Source: www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/women-leadership-companies-equality-jobs

Quotes:

“A compelling new study shows that top global companies in Asia, Europe and the US have advanced little beyond mere tokenism when it comes to placing women in leadership roles.”

“Men hold 83% of the executive committee positions within top US companies, leaving 11% of women in staff roles and 6% in line roles. In Europe’s top 100 companies, the situation for women was even less promising. Men hold 89% of executive committee jobs; women hold 6% of staff roles and 5% are in line roles. The gender balance was even worse in Asia, where men hold 96% of senior roles, leaving 3% of women in staff roles and 1% in line roles.”

“If companies want to balance, those in power must lead the change, reframe gender balance as a business not a women’s issue. … Not advancing women into leadership roles is sad for the women talent, but also tragic for the company which faces an unfortunate loss of talent, creativity and innovation.”

“We need a new model for leadership that eliminates the depressing syndrome of ‘the second’ and instead places greater value on those who lead more with emotional intelligence than with ego,” he adds. “Who says that coming top is the best and only option for all aspiring leaders?”

NYTimes: Technology’s Man Problem

Source: www.nytimes.com/2014/04/06/technology/technologys-man-problem.html

Quotes:

Among the women who join the field, 56 percent leave by midcareer, a startling attrition rate that is double that for men, according to research from the Harvard Business School.

A culprit, many people in the field say, is a sexist, alpha-male culture that can make women and other people who don’t fit the mold feel unwelcome, demeaned or even endangered.

Computer science wasn’t always dominated by men. “In the beginning, the word ‘computers’ meant ‘women,’ ” says Ruth Oldenziel, a professor at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands who studies history, gender and technology. Six women programmed one of the most famous computers in history — the 30-ton Eniac — for the United States Army during World War II.

But as with many professions, Dr. Oldenziel said, once programming gained prestige, women were pushed out.

… (read more at the source.)

Guardian: Sexism is Driving Women Out of Science

Source: www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/blog/2014/mar/15/women-science-research-university-discrimination-academics-anonymous

Quotes:

“Strenuous efforts are being made to get girls to consider science, engineering and mathematical careers. … But further down the line, there are a large number of disillusioned women leaving science and academia. What are we doing about that?”

Guardian: Benevolent Sexism: The Real Barrier Holding Women Back

Source: www.theguardian.com/women-in-leadership/2013/aug/06/benevolent-sexism-holding-women-back

Quote: 

“Two types of sexism prevail: overt and benevolent. Overt (aka hostile) sexism – like the exclusionary Muirfield policy – is easy to spot, especially in parts of the world where we have seen the most progress towards equality. Reasonable people call it for what it is – the belief that women are not equal to men, and due to their ‘second class’ existence, should not mind being ignored, excluded, violated, you name it.

Benevolent sexism is different – it is seemingly innocuous but is just as damaging and far more enduring.

The belief that women are kinder, more moral, more fair, more nurturing, and generally, more virtuous than men seems positive on the surface.

In reality, these benevolent stereotypes hurt women because they maintain inequality. Whether she’s the “little lady” or the “woman behind the man” or the soothing creature who exists simply to make men nicer, woman’s “natural” goodness becomes a rationale for why she should be protected from activities and occupations that require stereotypically “macho” qualities.

In the workplace, all sexism, both overt and benevolent, thwarts women’s opportunities to contribute …”

“It’s everyone’s job to tackle sexism, like racism, wherever it appears …  As Benjamin Jealous, president of the NAACP commented, “Ultimately, only men can end sexism, and only white people can end racism.” Men must step up”

NewMusicBox: Why Women Aren’t Equals in New Music Leadership and Innovation

Source: www.newmusicbox.org/articles/the-power-list-why-women-arent-equals-in-new-music-leadership-and-innovation

Quotes:

“My quartet once sought feedback on a Barber quartet from a male coach I had come to love and respect. “Honestly, you sound like a bunch of polite women,” he said during the coaching. I likely don’t need to clarify that this was not a compliment.”

“Why aren’t more women being recognized for visionary artistic leadership in Chicago’s contemporary music scene—and why aren’t more women providing that visionary leadership in the first place? … the research Sandberg discusses in Lean In can help us answer these questions.
1. Women musicians, like all women, pay a “likability tax” when they are self-promoting, assertive, and successful. …
2. Women musicians are less likely to embark on high visibility projects, take professional risks, and conceive of themselves as leaders—which leaves them at a distinct disadvantage in developing entrepreneurial careers. …
3. Women consistently underestimate their own talents and abilities, leaving them at a disadvantage in the essential realm of self-promotion. …
4. When choosing who to hire, men are significantly more likely to choose a man. …
5. Similarly, senior men are more likely to mentor young men than young women. …
6. Women are taught from an early age to worry about whether they can have children and a career. …

I bring these findings, and my own experiences and observations, forward for three very important reasons:
1. I believe that women rarely get the opportunity to discuss the psychological and emotional limitations that gender socialization has created within them. …
2. I believe that many men are not aware of these issues, because their life experience has not required them to be. … But I also believe that my male colleagues care deeply about equality and want a thriving musical ecosystem where all voices can be heard. …
3. … I had a responsibility to share what I had learned.”

NYTimes: Sponsors for Women

Source: www.nytimes.com/2013/02/05/opinion/sponsors-for-women.html

Quotes:

Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl Sandberg, the chief operating officer of Facebook, suggest that women are partly responsible for their absence in the executive suite in all professions. What might help is a sponsor, someone with power in the organization who sticks (more likely) his neck out to endorse a woman in whom he sees leadership potential.

Much of this comes by way of those informal networks that women lack but that come so easily to men by virtue of simply being, well, men.

… Data suggest that women with sponsors are more likely to attain a leadership role than those not sponsored.”