I think it's true that the glass ceiling does actually exist. Not all men are sexist, so it would be unfair to portray them as such. Despite a trend towards more gender equality, many men (and women) still hold the traditional belief that women should stay at home to care for their children. For the most part, i agree, but i think that it is a highly personal decision which should not be criticized. Some women have to work. that's just the reality. And some women have to take a break from their career to raise their children. While they do lose out on experience and career growth, i think employers should really cut them a little slack for that and not see it as a negative. and if i were president, i would recommend social security credits for women who take off work to raise their children! It's a full time job! The glass ceiling is a real barrier to accessing male-dominated positions in business, most of the people say that it exists mostly because women choose to focus more of their time on family and, in the end, cannot dedicate as much time to their career. Others claim that women think they want to focus on their career, but in reality choose family over career.
Since I can remember taking a business class in high school, there has always been a conversation about the glass ceiling that popped up. That being said, i think it is important to realize the changing roles of men and women in the work place today, and that a glass ceiling may exist for men as well. Predominantly once "female" industries like nursing, childcare, and even marketing have larger amounts of men not only entering these fields - but succeeding. But the question becomes how far can they rise? Often times men today go for the job that pays the higher salary, but if I asked any of my friends in public accounting or on wall street if they could do something else, i doubt many would drop their 60+ hour week busy seasons for a job that makes them feel fulfilled but might pay less. But for all the research done on the glass ceiling, I wonder if in fact men are sometimes curtailed in career choices that have been traditionally dominated by women.
Despite of issues regarding the gender differences in leadership the upward mobility of women can be compared to glass ceiling and continue to be the focus of considerable concern.There might be a possibility of ethinic differences in leadership at the same time .Women have faced man difficuties in business organiations. One possible ramification is that women managers mighthave to rely on such leadership behaviors in an attempt to gain tolerance in a social structure ,to which they are hooked. women in an organizations may be under strong pressure to conform to the nurturing behavior often expected of women have suggested that female executives seek ways to both demonstrate their managerial competence and develop a style that their male colleagues feel comfortable around. It is likely to be detectable in differences in interpersonal leader behavior between women and men at the middle and executive levels of organizations. There are several reasons for this. Firstly, based on socialization models suggesting, that women tend to be socialized toward interpersonal concerns prior to initiating full-time work life Secondly, career development and performance evaluation literatures indicate that women generally tend to be more concerned than men about interpersonal relationships, particularly in areas in which such relationships potentially impact their jobs and career development . Thirdly, power arguments emanating from structural-cultural theories suggest that interpersonal approaches might be more readily accepted by organizational members .Thus,making glass ceiling camparitive to the upward mobility of women
Examining the past, we find that in 17th and 18th century America, women worked at home with their husbands to contribute to the family's economic support. Employment opportunities for women were scarce. By World War I, women were poised to enter the workforce in great numbers and spurred into the workplace by the absence of men on the home front. As men returned from the war and the economy gradually worsened into the Great Depression, women suffered displacement from the business world. Throughout the 19th century, and for much of the 20th, women were paid less than men despite doing the same work. At that time, women earned approximately 58 cents to a man's dollar. On closer examination of the present, we find that a study by the Federal Glass Ceiling Commission (1995) reported lower representation of women and minorities in occupations in the higher echelons of the corporate world. In fact, in the United States, women only make up less than 16% of corporate officers and less than 15% of members of boards of directors within Fortune 500 companies. This is not to say that women do not participate in the work force. There have been clear advances, with women progressively moving into spheres that had long been all-male preserves. For example, women's participation in work outside of the home has risen dramatically in recent years. In the United States, it rose from 20% to 59% between 1900 and 2005 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2007). Moreover, a growing number of women have achieved senior positions within organizations (Equal Opportunities Commission, 2006; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2005). In particular, the proportion of women managers rose from only 18% in 1972 to 42% in 2005 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2006). Still, the low rate of women in positions of high power and authority is alarming. In addition, even after 30 years of equal opportunity policies, the few women who are successful are still dealt the blow of being paid substantially less than their male counterparts. Though it is common to only speak about women when discussing a glass ceiling, women are not the only group affected by the glass ceiling. The misconceptions and negative attitudes that have been shown to derail the successful careers of women also have a clear and negative impact on members of other racial and ethnic groups. It is shown that a workplace that is homogenous in terms of master statuses such as sex or race will differ qualitatively from environments that were “skewed” (those with a 15% or less minority) or “balanced” (those with a 40–50% minority).
Women have a foothold in most professions today,but lawsuits are documenting how tenuous that can be.Expanding the "comfort factor" between the mostly male bosses and credentialed, up-and-coming women is a challenge.It is made harder,of course,if the corporation handicaps women by sponsoring male-only "outings".That happens all too often at huge financial services corporations, say glass-ceiling legal experts.
Women are becoming more enterpreneurial because they can exercise control of a business and it has become easier to get capital.
The glass-ceiling phenomenon is proving peculiarly persistent.The top of the corporate ladder remains stubbornly male, and few women who reach it are paid significantly less than the men that they join there.
Despite the fact that companies are trying harder than ever to help women to climb higher with diversity programs(which are aimed at promoting minorities as well as women) they are not implementing them properly.
Why is it proving so difficult for women to reach the top of corporation? Are they simply less ambitious, less excited by the idea of limitless travel, late nights and the onerous responsibilities imposed by mounting regulations?
The research shows that women and men have equal desires to have the CEO job."Ambition knows no gender" says Ilene Lang, teh president of Catalyst and once a senior executive in Silicon Valley.
I just read an interesting article in recent USA Today, “Have women shattered the glass ceiling?”
And according to the author, the answer is sadly “No”.
Among Fortune 500 companies, women occupy 15% of board seats and are 3% of CEOs. In Canada, women make up 14% of board seats and 4% of CEOs at Financial Post 500 businesses. There are only four female CEOs leading the 100 most highly capitalized blue chip companies listed on the London Stock Exchange, while 10% of board seats in Europe are held by women — a percentage largely buoyed by Norway's strict boardroom diversity laws.
In the U.S., there is a 23 percentage point earnings gap between men and women. In the United Kingdom, women earn 23% less than men. While more women today are entering business school, they graduate into a corporate environment fraught with inequity. Female MBA grads worldwide start at lower positions than equally qualified men, are paid less and get fewer promotions.
The author went on to give some advice to companies about how to shatter the glass ceiling. In her opinion, at a minimum, organizations should build in checks and balances that root out unconscious biases. They should collect and review salary growth metrics and provide development across all levels. Managers must guard against stereotypes influencing judgment and make assignments based on qualifications. And it’s also important for companies to take care to level the playing field from the start.
This is probably a politically incorrect thing to say AND IT IS ONLY MY HONEST OPINION and I do not think most people would admit this but...I have had some great female bosses but there is just something about the presence of a powerful man holding court in his office. When I say that I am not talking about all men in a position of power. I am talking about a small set of men who you can instantly tell have a powerful persona. It is not a bias I have or maybe it is but when a powerful man is sitting behind his desk listening to subordinates talk and then decisively making decisions and handing out orders there is something primal about that. I AM NOT saying a woman cannot do the same job! And I AM NOT saying I haven't had capable assertive female bosses. I am only saying that a powerful man in charge of a room puts out a presence that even 99% of other men cannot put out. When you have an intelligent, powerful, capable and fair man in front of you in charge it kind of mesmerizes you. I think of it like meeting the President of the United States, a high ranking general or the CEO of a company...no matter what you think of them I bet they give you the impression that, "Wow! That guy is a leader and his presence is intimidating."
I think women can try to project that same persona but I actually think they would be doing themselves a bit of a disservice. I think women lead in a different way and for a woman in a position of power to try to take on the persona of a man in charge actually ignores their other obvious strengths they could use. I think many women make that mistake.
I think it's true that the glass ceiling does actually exist. Not all men are sexist, so it would be unfair to portray them as such. Despite a trend towards more gender equality, many men (and women) still hold the traditional belief that women should stay at home to care for their children. For the most part, i agree, but i think that it is a highly personal decision which should not be criticized. Some women have to work. that's just the reality. And some women have to take a break from their career to raise their children. While they do lose out on experience and career growth, i think employers should really cut them a little slack for that and not see it as a negative. and if i were president, i would recommend social security credits for women who take off work to raise their children! It's a full time job! The glass ceiling is a real barrier to accessing male-dominated positions in business, most of the people say that it exists mostly because women choose to focus more of their time on family and, in the end, cannot dedicate as much time to their career. Others claim that women think they want to focus on their career, but in reality choose family over career.
ReplyDeleteSince I can remember taking a business class in high school, there has always been a conversation about the glass ceiling that popped up. That being said, i think it is important to realize the changing roles of men and women in the work place today, and that a glass ceiling may exist for men as well. Predominantly once "female" industries like nursing, childcare, and even marketing have larger amounts of men not only entering these fields - but succeeding. But the question becomes how far can they rise? Often times men today go for the job that pays the higher salary, but if I asked any of my friends in public accounting or on wall street if they could do something else, i doubt many would drop their 60+ hour week busy seasons for a job that makes them feel fulfilled but might pay less. But for all the research done on the glass ceiling, I wonder if in fact men are sometimes curtailed in career choices that have been traditionally dominated by women.
ReplyDeleteDespite of issues regarding the gender differences in leadership the upward mobility of women can be compared to glass ceiling and continue to be the focus of considerable concern.There might be a possibility of ethinic differences in leadership at the same time .Women have faced man difficuties in business organiations. One possible ramification is that women managers mighthave to rely on such leadership behaviors in an attempt to gain tolerance
ReplyDeletein a social structure ,to which they are hooked.
women in an organizations may be under strong pressure to conform to the nurturing behavior often expected of women have suggested that female executives seek
ways to both demonstrate their managerial competence and develop a style that their male colleagues feel comfortable around.
It is likely to be detectable in differences in interpersonal
leader behavior between women and men at the middle and executive levels of organizations. There are several reasons for this. Firstly, based
on socialization models suggesting, that women tend to be socialized toward interpersonal concerns prior to initiating full-time work life
Secondly, career development and performance evaluation literatures indicate that women generally tend to be
more concerned than men about interpersonal relationships, particularly in areas in which such relationships potentially impact their jobs and career development . Thirdly, power arguments emanating from structural-cultural theories suggest that interpersonal approaches might be more
readily accepted by organizational members .Thus,making glass ceiling camparitive to the upward mobility of women
Examining the past, we find that in 17th and 18th century America, women worked at home with their husbands to contribute to the family's economic support. Employment opportunities for women were scarce. By World War I, women were poised to enter the workforce in great numbers and spurred into the workplace by the absence of men on the home front. As men returned from the war and the economy gradually worsened into the Great Depression, women suffered displacement from the business world. Throughout the 19th century, and for much of the 20th, women were paid less than men despite doing the same work. At that time, women earned approximately 58 cents to a man's dollar. On closer examination of the present, we find that a study by the Federal Glass Ceiling Commission (1995) reported lower representation of women and minorities in occupations in the higher echelons of the corporate world. In fact, in the United States, women only make up less than 16% of corporate officers and less than 15% of members of boards of directors within Fortune 500 companies. This is not to say that women do not participate in the work force. There have been clear advances, with women progressively moving into spheres that had long been all-male preserves. For example, women's participation in work outside of the home has risen dramatically in recent years. In the United States, it rose from 20% to 59% between 1900 and 2005 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2007). Moreover, a growing number of women have achieved senior positions within organizations (Equal Opportunities Commission, 2006; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2005). In particular, the proportion of women managers rose from only 18% in 1972 to 42% in 2005 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2006). Still, the low rate of women in positions of high power and authority is alarming. In addition, even after 30 years of equal opportunity policies, the few women who are successful are still dealt the blow of being paid substantially less than their male counterparts.
ReplyDeleteThough it is common to only speak about women when discussing a glass ceiling, women are not the only group affected by the glass ceiling. The misconceptions and negative attitudes that have been shown to derail the successful careers of women also have a clear and negative impact on members of other racial and ethnic groups. It is shown that a workplace that is homogenous in terms of master statuses such as sex or race will differ qualitatively from environments that were “skewed” (those with a 15% or less minority) or “balanced” (those with a 40–50% minority).
Women have a foothold in most professions today,but lawsuits are documenting how tenuous that can be.Expanding the "comfort factor" between the mostly male bosses and credentialed, up-and-coming women is a challenge.It is made harder,of course,if the corporation handicaps women by sponsoring male-only "outings".That happens all too often at huge financial services corporations, say glass-ceiling legal experts.
ReplyDeleteWomen are becoming more enterpreneurial because they can exercise control of a business and it has become easier to get capital.
The glass-ceiling phenomenon is proving peculiarly persistent.The top of the corporate ladder remains stubbornly male, and few women who reach it are paid significantly less than the men that they join there.
Despite the fact that companies are trying harder than ever to help women to climb higher with diversity programs(which are aimed at promoting minorities as well as women) they are not implementing them properly.
Why is it proving so difficult for women to reach the top of corporation? Are they simply less ambitious, less excited by the idea of limitless travel, late nights and the onerous responsibilities imposed by mounting regulations?
The research shows that women and men have equal desires to have the CEO job."Ambition knows no gender" says Ilene Lang, teh president of Catalyst and once a senior executive in Silicon Valley.
Please could you guys spare a moment and take this short survey about Online Social networking
ReplyDeleteClick here to take survey
I just read an interesting article in recent USA Today, “Have women shattered the glass ceiling?”
ReplyDeleteAnd according to the author, the answer is sadly “No”.
Among Fortune 500 companies, women occupy 15% of board seats and are 3% of CEOs. In Canada, women make up 14% of board seats and 4% of CEOs at Financial Post 500 businesses. There are only four female CEOs leading the 100 most highly capitalized blue chip companies listed on the London Stock Exchange, while 10% of board seats in Europe are held by women — a percentage largely buoyed by Norway's strict boardroom diversity laws.
In the U.S., there is a 23 percentage point earnings gap between men and women. In the United Kingdom, women earn 23% less than men. While more women today are entering business school, they graduate into a corporate environment fraught with inequity. Female MBA grads worldwide start at lower positions than equally qualified men, are paid less and get fewer promotions.
The author went on to give some advice to companies about how to shatter the glass ceiling. In her opinion, at a minimum, organizations should build in checks and balances that root out unconscious biases. They should collect and review salary growth metrics and provide development across all levels. Managers must guard against stereotypes influencing judgment and make assignments based on qualifications. And it’s also important for companies to take care to level the playing field from the start.
This is probably a politically incorrect thing to say AND IT IS ONLY MY HONEST OPINION and I do not think most people would admit this but...I have had some great female bosses but there is just something about the presence of a powerful man holding court in his office. When I say that I am not talking about all men in a position of power. I am talking about a small set of men who you can instantly tell have a powerful persona. It is not a bias I have or maybe it is but when a powerful man is sitting behind his desk listening to subordinates talk and then decisively making decisions and handing out orders there is something primal about that. I AM NOT saying a woman cannot do the same job! And I AM NOT saying I haven't had capable assertive female bosses. I am only saying that a powerful man in charge of a room puts out a presence that even 99% of other men cannot put out. When you have an intelligent, powerful, capable and fair man in front of you in charge it kind of mesmerizes you. I think of it like meeting the President of the United States, a high ranking general or the CEO of a company...no matter what you think of them I bet they give you the impression that, "Wow! That guy is a leader and his presence is intimidating."
ReplyDeleteI think women can try to project that same persona but I actually think they would be doing themselves a bit of a disservice. I think women lead in a different way and for a woman in a position of power to try to take on the persona of a man in charge actually ignores their other obvious strengths they could use. I think many women make that mistake.