According to this Time article, Catalyst research group found that Fortune 500 companies with the most women in senior management had, by more than a third, a higher return on equities. Based on research from Cambridge University and the University of Pittsburgh, Time suggests that this is because of the management style of women. "Women manage more cautiously than men do," the article said. "They focus on the long term."
Another reason these companies may be doing so well, women are less competitive. This is a good thing, Time says:
"They're consensus builders, conciliators and collaborators, and they employ what is called a transformational leadership style - heavily engaged, motivational, extremely well suited for the emerging, less hierarchical workplace."
There are two things that really struck me about this article.
The first, apparently there is a looming talent shortage approaching. There will be a six million person gap between the number of college graduates and the number of workers, with college educations, needed to cover the jobs, the article stated. And these days women are receiving a greater share of college degrees. I had no idea there was a looming talent shortage. This may be a pleasant surprise for students who will graduate from college or grad school at the time and have been worried that there will not be jobs for them.
The second, women are changing the work environment to better suit their needs. The are focusing more on results instead of time spent at their desk. The article argues that this focus is a smart business strategy. Best Buy is called out for their ROWE system. ROWE stands for Results-Only Work Environment. Best Buy saw productivity increase up to 40%. I can imagine that in a lot of industries and workplaces, employees would be more productive if they could get to the office an hour or two later and stay later or leave when their work for the day is complete.
It'll be interesting to see how industries change as more and more women take leadership rolls at major companies. Will some women stick to the current work norms? Will others shake it up and let their employees work when they want? And will more women really mean more money?
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8 comments:
I guess the baby boomers are starting to graduate, explaining that talent shortage. From 6 kids in a family to 2... Pretty drastic!
Now if only every man realized the importance of women in the workplace...
hmmmmmmmmmmmm.....blessings, hope you are well and enjoying life.
Sounds misogynistic if you ask me. When women dare to do what men do and do it better the are maligned, degraded and disrespected. I say, deal with it cause they not going anywhere!
hopefully baby boomers continue to retire given the economy ... have heard they are expeted to stay as long as they can now ..
Women in leading postions will shake up a lot of things. Perhaps the workplaces will be more considerate and forgiving. Hey, and if more money is made in the process, all the better!
good post. more women definitely need to be in higher positions in teh workplace. i hate when men treat women different just for being in a higher position and they just think they are bitches. men need to grown and realize that this happening and we are here to stay. things need to change. if they dont, thats not good.
You may be interested in this post http://www.brooklynrecessionista.com/2009/07/death-of-macho-great-he-cession.html about the decline of macho culture in modern U.S. culture. Could have profound impact on the workplace!
"women aren't as competitive"? - this is bullshit.
i want to smack this guy. it's because of the fact that women are competitive that they look for and find new ways to conduct business.
i'm all riled-up now.
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