• “Programs promoting diversity, mentorships and affinity groups may or may not be good, but they are not how women get ahead.”
• There is no such thing as work/life balance. (HR conference in 2009)
• “…the HR teams out there, most of them are for birthday parties and picnics.”
• Referring to women’s groups as “victim’s units.”
• Getting tough assignments and line experience, and embracing serious performance reviews and associated coaching are the ways to get ahead.

The only comment Mr. Welch made at the conference, highlighted in the article written in The Wall Street Journal, that represented sage advice is “…it is results and performance that chart the way.” The other comments demonstrated how out-of-touch he is for today’s workplace.

1. I agree that tough assignments, line experience and embracing performance feedback and coaching are the ways to get ahead. What he misses is that there is unconscious bias in the workplace toward giving men those differentiators.
2. There may not be real work/life balance. I like to coach my clients toward role integration. However, Mr. Welch’s comments “Step out of the arena to raise kids, and don’t be surprised if the promotion passes you by.” And “there are work-life choices, and you make them, and they have consequences.” These comments show how out of touch he is with maximizing the performance of the multiple generations. Gen Xer and Millennials are about work/life balance or role integration. They watched the previous generation work crazy hours with little life outside of work and then, worse yet, saw them get ‘pink slips.’ Career progression is taking many forms and technology is an enabling vehicle.
3. Mr. Welch may not have valued his HR Department and relegated it to birthday parties and picnics. He needs to take a current look at what HR is involved in today…company strategy, talent management, inclusion, career development to name a few areas that attract, develop and retain valuable employees. All keys to winning the talent war.

Several of the attendees said it best.

• “…we can all do more to help people understand their unconscious bias.”
• He missed the point of the need to take “…a cold, hard look at some of the subtle barriers to women’s advancement that still exist.”
• “His comments were not tailored to how women can attain parity in today’s male-dominated workplace.”

Perhaps, Mr. Welch’s view of women in the workplace would fit into an episode of Mad Men.

The Center for Gender in Organizations indicated that “…dissatisfaction with advancement opportunities around the world was the most critical factor influencing women’s consideration of leaving organizations…This concern is most prominent among women who see themselves as leaders. The lesson for organizations is that constraining possibilities for women to lead will result in the loss of talent.” 

The Harvard Business Review article, Off-Ramps and On-Ramps by Hewlett and Luce echoed this finding. “Large numbers of highly qualified women are dropping out of mainstream careers.”

And if these reports are not enough to convince those in charge of assuring an attractive environment, the World Economic Forum stated that, “There is a financial, marketing and societal business case for growing the number of women leaders.”

In view of this compelling argument, what can organizations do to attract and retain these valuable high potential and current women leaders? I have spent the last several months interviewing successful senior-level women across a spectrum of industries for my new book, Women Driven to Success: Integrating Multiple Roles & Defining Leadership Success. (Due out in later 2012) According to these women, learning strategies to manage the stress of being everything to everybody enables them to lead with purpose and power. These strategies come from two places: the individual and the organization.

Here are some tips from the personal side of the equation:

1. Be a strategic planner by planning work and family responsibilities, at least, two weeks out. (Several planned further out.)
2. Create a great support system; make your spouse/partner a significant part of that network. (I recently read a quote from a female CEO that said that when her child woke up in the middle of the night and cried “mommy,” she convinced her husband that the child was really calling for “a parent of either sex!”
3. Take a seat at the table at work and speak up.
4. Be “light” with yourself. You don’t have to be perfect. In fact, one senior leader said that when it was 80% good, it was good to go.

Several of these women work in organizations that support them through women’s groups, flexibility in work hours, and coaching. One woman indicated that when she became a partner right after the birth of her first child, a senior partner asked her what kind of partner she wanted to become. She replied that she wanted transparency and ease of partnership for women. She formed a women’s group in her company. Within first month, it grew to 75 members and, several years later, is now inclusive of all theAmericas. The need is great. The Coca-Cola Company sponsors Women’s Linc. Home Depot has two women’s groups. Cisco has one as well 

A 2010 Women’s Leadership Development survey (Mercer, Talent Management & Diversity Magazine) indicated that “Despite efforts by organizations around the world to achieve a diverse workforce, the majority (71%) do not have a clear strategy for developing women for leadership roles.” What is your organization doing to attract, support and retain talented women?

I was recently reflecting on a comment my son made after a few months on his first job at a large law firm. He said, “What is all this required ‘face time’ about (and he wasn’t referring to iPad Facetime)? I know what I need to do. I’m networked so I can work just as well from home and when I am my most productive.” I replied, “The senior partners are Baby Boomers and that’s what they know and want. Over the years, as I have spoken to many audiences, consulted and taught at colleges, I hear versions of the same theme from Gen Xers and Millennials. “What is this ‘face time’ requirement?”

Baby Boomers were raised by parents who lived through the depression. Their parents felt lucky to have a job that provided a roof over their heads and food on their tables. The Boomers were the “have generation.” They had a roof over their heads and food on their tables so they searched for meaning in their work. Working longer hours than your friends became bragging rights. Even if you came to work on Saturdays just to open mail that could wait until Monday, the hours counted. Work and life were, typically, out of balance. And…they didn’t have the technology advantage.

The message is clear from Xers and Millennials. They want work-life balance; what I call work-life integration. How can Boomer bosses accommodate this need?

1. First recognize that this is not your father’s workplace. The notion of a straight-line career in one organization is gone. In fact, if you stay at an organization too long, you are suspect in the job market—Quite a difference from the Boomer generation of being suspect if you changed organizations too many times.
2. Technology has enabled many jobs to be done remotely/virtually. I challenge you to review the jobs in your business and identify the ones where people need to be at the brick and mortar place of business. Okay, a receptionist maybe, or others who need to be consistently customer-facing.
3. How can you lead this perceived new chaotic environment and still keep a handle on things?

•  Hire right. Attract and retain employees who are self-motivated to go the extra mile and align with your business’ values.
• Agree on expectations and objectives of the person in the job. Be clear about the “what.” Let the employee figure out the “how.” (Xers and Millennials want training and coaching but not micromanaging.)
• Provide feedback to recognize contribution toward expectations and coaching to help the employee get back on track or develop additional skills.
• Reward based on achievement of expectations and objectives. (By the way, Xers are not afraid to challenge authority.  Millennials don’t necessarily respect position/authority. It’s what you have accomplished today that gives you credibility.)

It’s time to give up the Baby Boomer paradigm of face time if you want a successful and sustainable business. That requires next generation leaders, Gen Xers and Millennials who want flexibility to do the work their way and work-life balance.

One would have thought we fought that battle a long time ago. Women, especially, would be sensitive to another women’s choice of work, whether in the home or in the paid workforce. Hopefully, our choices come from core strength (personal mission, vision & values), knowing who we are which provides a strong sense of self and a North Star for decision making. From outward appearances, it seems that Ann Romney, Michelle Obama, and Hillary Clinton are examples of women who have a strong core with very different paths.

Yes, some of us have the luxury of the choice whether to enter the paid workplace or not. Others of us do not. But life is a series of trade-offs. Even with the choice, we are making trade-offs. As I have written in my soon-to-be published book Women Driven to Success, “Ambitious American women can be doing diapers, dishes and million dollar deals – all in a day’s work.” That freedom invites new challenges which some of us choose to juggle; others of us follow a different path. Different is good.

Trying to be everything to everybody creates stress (which I probably don’t need to remind you) and exacts a heavy price from our minds and bodies. So, what do we know about stress and its affect on our bodies?

There are three different types of stress: eustress, stress and distress. A formal definition of stress, according to Dr. Hans Selye, the father of the General Adaptation Syndrome, is:  “…the nonspecific response of the body to any demand, whether it is caused by, or results in, pleasant or unpleasant conditions.

Eustress is the “good” kind of stress; the stress that comes from planning a wedding, the birth of a child, moving to a new home or getting a promotion. It is a happy event that has a time-limited stress associated with it. It can be the type of stress that gets us in our “zone,” when we feel pumped. Stress is the everyday stressors that we encounter– waiting in traffic, standing in line at the checkout counter, or concern for our children when they are out at night. Distress is the detrimental kind of stress that can wreak havoc on us. The body tends to respond differently. 

Hans Selye, an Austrian endocrinologist, identified three stages of stress reaction: the Alarm Stage, the Resistance Stage, and the Exhaustion Stage. The Alarm Stage is the one we hear most about. The body recognizes a challenge and goes into a “fight or flight response. Our body pumps adrenaline and cortisol due to the stressful incident and, at that moment, we make a decision about how to react. Sometimes, we react appropriately and the stress is dealt with while, at other times, we react inappropriately and the stress remains. At this point, we move into the Resistance Stage. This stage keeps us in a constant state of unrelieved stress, wearing down our immune system. We get sick with colds, high blood pressure, heart attacks and increasing symptoms of ill-health. If we continue to stress, we enter the Exhaustion Stage.  The immune system is impaired, long term damage and continued illness may result. Finally, continued stress in this stage, causes our organs to begin to shut down, resulting in death. Dr. Selye indicated that we are all born with a certain amount of adaptive energy which should carry us through life. However, the more stress we adsorb, the more adaptive energy we use. When our adaptive energy is gone, we die. We have exhausted our bodies…a great case for overcoming the ‘everything to everybody syndrome.’

 “Every stress leaves an indelible scar, and the organism pays for its survival after a stressful situation by becoming a little older.”          Hans Selye

 Do you want to be a little older? I don’t know many women who want to accelerate the process!

(Adapted from Dr. Jane Goldner’s upcoming book, Women Driven to Success: Everything to Everybody, Fall 2012)

“Typically, high achieving women with multiple roles who want to excel in those roles but it can be any woman, any age and position who tries to juggle multiple roles and desires to achieve.”

Dr. Braiker stated that the net result is that these women “…overextend their time and resources to accommodate and acquiesce to others’ demands.”

When I was writing my dissertation on stress and leadership, the research on stress was focused on Type A behavior. I related to some of the behaviors but the totality of Type A did not seem like me. Taking a deeper dive into Type A research, I discovered that all the studies were done on men. Enter Harriet Braiker and her book about the Type E woman; that was me! Certainly, each of the sexes may identify with behaviors of either Type. What about you?

          Type A                                                      Type E

Men tend to be singularly focused so they become “workaholics,” for example. Women, on the other hand, are so fragmented, they can’t focus. When they are at work, they worry about home. When they are at home, they worry about work. And with technology, the fragmentation is exacerbated

Men are time urgent so they typically arrive to appointments early. Women tend to underestimate the amount of time it takes to accomplish a task so they arrive late or skid in just in time. Either approach creates stress. Men are competitive, which they are taught from a young age as they participate in sports. Men believe that a teammate can play a great first base but he doesn’t have to be his friend. Translated into the workplace, as long as he is competent to do his job, I don’t have to like him. Women, on the other hand, want to be liked by everybody, want to like everybody and take them home for dinner. We are very collaborative, which, in and of itself, is a great attribute in the workplace but carried to the extreme can become very dysfunctional. Witness what sometimes goes on in offices comprised of all women

When men set objectives and reach them, they celebrate and pat themselves on the back because they believe they are responsible for their successes. Women say, “I can do this even better next time,” and raise the bar. In addition, they attribute success to the help of others and often luck, being in the right place at the right time. Lastly, men define success as success in their professional lives. Women don’t count success until it is in both their professional and personal lives.

To summarize, Harriet Braiker defined the Type E Syndrome as:

• The more a woman demonstrates that she can do, the more people demand of her. (If you want something done, give it to a busy person.)
• This behavior starts the distress cycle.
• As the woman begins to recognize her limitations, her self-esteem becomes threatened. (If I say “no,” they will think I’m incompetent or they won’t like me.)
• This thinking creates a sense of inadequacy so she does more to fight her perceived sense of inadequacy and maintain her self-esteem.

And so continues the cycle of becoming more perfect and more perfect.

Next: What is the price we are paying for all this perfectionism?

 

Rosie the Riveter was right when she proclaimed, “We can do it!” The year was 1941 and Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, deploying thirteen million men overseas. Suddenly, millions of jobs were vacant. Uncle Sam created a campaign, featuring Rosie the Riveter, to draw women into the workplace. This fictitious woman drew six million real women into jobs that supported the war effort. Women were not only domestic divas, they became successful hard workers.

In 1945, the war ended and men wanted their jobs back. Employers laid-off the women or put them in lower paying jobs. So there she was, in her shirt-waist dress and pearls, with her vacuum once again. (Picture Father Knows Best and Leave It to Beaver.)  Fast forward a few years and even with a law degree from Harvard, Sandra Day O’Connor had a difficult time finding a job as an attorney.

The 1960s were memorable. Women fought gender discrimination and made headway. John F. Kennedy created The Commission on the Status of Woman to investigate the unfair treatment of women at work.  The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was also created for similar reasons. The Women’s Liberation Movement flourished. NOW, the National Organization for Women was formed and the book The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan was published, demanding equal rights for women in the workplace. Women were winning.

Women pursed higher education in the 1970s and 80s. By 1977, 50 percent of all undergraduates were women. Then, they jumped into the banking industry: women held 39 percent of all financial and management positions by the early 80s. In the 90s, more women became politicians. The first female US Secretary of State, Madeline Albright, negotiated peace with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. Justice Sandra Day O’Connor became a Supreme Court Justice, while Dianne Feinstein and Barbra Boxer became the first female senators. From banking to politics, women did it – like Rosie said they would.  

By 2007, there were a huge number of women in the workforce, though still earning less than men. But there is hope. The gap is narrowing. A woman’s potential today is limitless; she has a rolodex of role models to emulate– Oprah Winfrey, Michelle Obama and Meg Whitman– although still not enough at the higher levels in corporations. Ambitious American women are doing diapers, dishes and million dollar deals – all in a day’s work. Yet freedom invites new challenges: How can a woman safeguard her sanity juggling a family and a career?  

 Next: The Price of Being Everything to Everybody

(Adapted from Women Driven to Success: Overcoming the Everything to Everybody Syndrome to be published in 2012)

Over the coming weeks and months, I’ll be sharing my findings from the interviews, as well as strategies and tools for women and their organizations.

Onto the business case…

In an article in the Harvard Business Review titled “Managing Diversity” by David Thomas and Robin Ely, the authors stated that, until recently, many organizations concerned themselves with diversity because discrimination is morally and legally wrong. With the working population projected in the next few years to be 70% minority and 48% female, these same organizations are beginning to believe that diversity is good for business.

In a January 21, 2011 conversation with Ernst & Young Chairman and CEO, James Turley, MuhtarKentdescribed The Coca-Cola Company’s global leadership strategy and why it pays off so well

James Turley asked: How might a company’s failure to lead inclusively hurt its competitiveness — in the short and long term?

MuhtarKentresponded: If you’re behind in this regard today, you’re already at a disadvantage. Once a culture of exclusion has been established, it can be hard to change, and that’s detrimental to your long-term talent development and competitiveness.

Zeroing-in on the almost half of the workforce becoming female, organizations have a leaky pipeline as described in the 2011 Wall Street Journal Special Report, Unlocking the full potential of women in the U.S. economy. There is still such a disparity in the number of female leaders compared to the number of male leaders.

What are the critical stages for women in their careers?

• Stage 1:   Young women enter workforce with confidence. They are hired because of competence. Like many others, they want a promotion. They are career focused. A major objective is to learn the unwritten rules.
•  Stage 2:   These women have now gotten a promotion and are still career oriented. At this stage, they begin to question their careers and want to find the appropriate identity. They are looking for role models and to figure out how to bring their whole self to work.
• Stage 3:   At this stage, women begin to see life in the context of more than work; it is work in the context of life. They become more task focused so they can focus at home. Many of these women tend to skip career enhancing activities, like after hours networking. In fact, the first 100 days after having a baby have been found to be the most critical in terms of whether women get back into work or leave. This stage is the most critical for women and their organizations.
• Stage 4:   This stage is the senior leader level. Only 10% of original 50% of women that were hired as first-line supervisors are becoming leaders at this level. There are few role models. Women question whether they want to pay the price to have the job. For many women, it is a question of confidence, “Can I do what it takes to be successful in the job?”
• Stage 5: This stage is the Board level. There are plenty of statistics that support the very small number of women at the Board level. Women need to understand the role more clearly, the commitment, and what it takes to successfully deliver results.

(Reference: Coaching Women to Lead, Leimon, Moscovici & Goodier)

Next: How women got here: A brief history

Jane S. Goldner, Ph.D. brings her 30 years of internal and external corporate experience and her degrees in counseling and human resource development to coach and counsel high-potential and women leaders.  A  focus of her practice is to help women integrate their multiple roles and define leadership success for themselves.

Gen X bosses view Gen Ys as impatient:

• The threat of terrorism and other uncontrollable events has caused us to live life to the fullest and want it now.
•  I am concerned that paying my dues slowly won’t get me anywhere. I want challenging work now because I need to shine now.
• We have been raised in an age of instant information so it’s only natural that we conduct ourselves with the same expectation.

Gen X bosses view Gen Ys as helpless and hapless (needing trophies, parents writing resumes for their children & moving back in with parents):

• We are simply closer to our parents than other generations. Parents are our mentors. Maybe, some take it to a codependent place.
• I think it is parent and child dependent. I was taught to be an independent person.
• My parents are my heroes. I have little to no problem relying on my parents to help me meet challenges.
• Gen Y is not helpless, however, they are not focused

Gen X bosses view Gen Ys as needy trophy children:

•  Trophies can reinforce productiveness but may be overdone.
• We are competitive because of our parents. We like to bring home recognizable awards that get us the pats on the back.
• Getting trophies and winning have been drilled into our brains.
• The video games we play pit us against each other. We carry that into the workplace and want to win.

Gen X bosses believe that Gen Ys crave constant attention:

• I want coaching and advice. Waiting until my formal review to find out about mistakes makes me mad and limits my success.
• Feedback is a way to “bypass mistakes.”
• I love the idea of receiving feedback from my peers though I am selective about whom I choose to get it from.

Gen X bosses believe that GenYs are disorganized:

• I believe that disorganization can be misinterpreted with the ability to recognize when changes are needed.
• Why should we plan an event when the means of instant communication is readily available?
• Gen Y may be disorganized but the results are there. Shouldn’t the focus be on the results instead of the manner in which the information was retrieved?

Gen X bosses believe that Gen Ys are uncontrollable:

•  I agree because our mindset is not to go through traditional channels to get things done. We are self-empowered.
•  I am not shy by going to the highest authority first with an issue. This approach may be interpreted as brashness.
• Gen Ys think outside the box more, and take more risks. Do you want results or control over employees?

Next: Given these perspectives, what can leaders do to engage Gen Y?

Last post, we talked about leaving a small tire track on the earth’s resources, focusing on sustainable and restorative actions. It is analogous to driving in the HOV lane with multiple folks in your car instead of going solo.

 The large tire track is the flip side of being a good steward of the earth’s resources (small tire track). This tire track has everything to do with recognizing that your business is part of a community system. You won’t get to the next level of success without becoming part of the community in which you operate. How do you give back? Do you provide time for your employees to perform volunteer work? (By the way, some of the best learning experience for development is accomplished through volunteer assignments and it is free development.) Do you partner with a school for tutoring, mentoring or making presentations for career day? Which community organizations do you financially support? There are endless ways you and your business can give to the community.

Cheryl Kortemeier, Executive Director of the Corporate Volunteer Council of Atlanta said, “Strategically designed volunteer programs not only help direct human and financial resources toward causes where they are most needed, but also help improve consumer, employee and stakeholder relations. Now more than ever, companies of all sizes are learning that investing in civic engagement is essential for healthy employees and community as well as a healthy bottom line.”

Some notable examples include Alston & Bird law Firm whose employees work with the Georgia Senior Hotline as well as helping to fight hunger at the Atlanta Community Food Bank. Cisco’s “civic councils” made up of employee “champions” manage the volunteer programs, focusing on education, critical human needs, and community leadership. Cox Enterprises won a project award from the Corporate Volunteer Council of Atlanta for making a park more attractive, safe and sustainable.

Corporate Social Responsibility makes great sense, especially with the coming talent war. Gen Ys are looking for organizations that give back in meaningful ways. Does yours?