Roaring All the Way to the Top

by Ann Pace, Intelligence

In 1968 the standing of women in the labor force was deteriorating to the point that President Lyndon B. Johnson described the underutilization of women’s skills as “the most tragic and the most senseless waste of this century, a waste we can no longer afford.”

Forty years later, the outlook is quite the opposite. More than 1 billion women constitute nearly half of the global workforce today, and many are confident executives who embrace challenges to advance.

Six out of 10 female executives believe that their careers are successful or very successful, and 81 percent of these women take on additional responsibilities and complexity to advance their careers, according to a recent Accenture study, “Untapped Potential: Stretching Toward the Future,” which details findings from an online survey of 3,600 global business executives.

Nellie Borrero, director of global inclusion and diversity at Accenture, says that by seeking stretch opportunities, women are positioning themselves in the workplace today to stay relevant, add value, and therefore grow.

“Women who stretched themselves said that they enjoyed more success compared to those who didn’t,” Borrero says. “Stretching means that they would find opportunities through which they could learn a new skill or ask leaders for more responsibility.”

Women also reported slightly greater confidence in their professional skills and capabilities compared to their male colleagues. These skills include the ability to manage their workload and deadlines (70 percent), delegate tasks (68 percent), and negotiate (65 percent).

Borrero believes the high percentages are a result of companies effectively empowering their female executives to be confident in their high-level positions.

Patrick Sweeney, president of Caliper, an international management consultancy, concurs that women are more apt to seek out challenges.

“Women leaders are more open to taking risks than their male counterparts,” he says. “They are low on cautiousness and not driven by the rules.”

Another important finding in the Accenture study was the correlation between technology use and reported success. While 79 percent of respondents who identified themselves as “very successful” said that they rely on technology, 70 percent of men identified themselves as “innovators” or “early adopters” of technology, compared to 56 percent of women.

“Often, women executives have a different set of priorities from men and are pulled in many directions outside of the workplace, such as toward family commitments,” Borrero says.

Organizations need to provide training for women within working hours so that they can adapt quickly to new technology, she adds.

Most female respondents noted the importance of mentor relationships for career advancement. However, Borrero was surprised to discover that only 14 percent of women stated that they actually had a formal mentor.

Borrero suggests several reasons for this discrepancy. Unless an official program is in place, most women will not ask for a mentor. However, most formal mentorship programs are too forced and are not effective. The ideal model would allow employees to volunteer themselves as mentors and provide professional profiles from which mentees can select mentors whose interests and goals match their own.

“Mentoring relationships are critical, but a mentor isn’t for life,” Borrero says. “Look at multiple people who can mentor you in different parts of your life, for your short-term goals.”

Sweeney adds that many aspiring female leaders are looking for mentors with whom they can establish an informal, personal connection, and they think they do not have enough hours in the day to establish such a relationship. They may also struggle to find a woman with the professional experience and expertise to fill a mentor role, since previous generations did not see as many women executives in the workplace.

For nearly half a century, Caliper has been helping companies achieve peak performance by advising them on hiring the right people, managing individuals most effectively and developing productive teams. The accuracy, objectivity and depth of our consulting approach enable us to provide solutions that work for over 25,000 companies.

To find out more about how Caliper can help you identify and develop people who can lead your organization to peak performance, please visit us at www.caliperonline.com, write us at information@calipercorp.com, or call us at 609-524-1200.