It depends on your perspective. Women as ceos are becoming a larger part of the corporate landscape. While the percentage of women at the top of Fortune companies is still low, the number of women in senior roles is increasing. Aside from being viewed as trailblazers, it is also creating a different mindset in younger employees, the so-called millennial generation who see women as ceos as nothing special or unusual. They’ve grown up seeing more and more women in senior roles
So is this a good or bad? We believe it’s both, bad because we still have a long way to go as women at the top are still very rare; good because it’s not viewed as unusual or unexpected which will in the long term create more opportunities as organizations become more willing to give women a shot.
For younger women this represents a great opportunity to change the paradigm in their thinking to help more of them view this as a valid and realistic career objective. To encourage this, women as ceos really need to make a concerted effort to engage and support upcoming younger employees. Many times people in senior roles can themselves become barriers to innovation and growth. They get stuck in their ways and don’t seem flexible.
Younger workers however are inquisitive and interested in growth, learning and development. They want to create the next Apple or Google. They are impatient and not likely to want to wait around. Women as ceos will need to make special efforts to give them a forum or they will turn away and leave.
More senior women have often faced barriers and subsequent frustrations in their search for career growth and opportunities. They still view women as ceos as an unrealistic career objective. Many feel that the game is stacked against them. They also may believe that successful women don’t do enough to help others reach their levels. To help change this thinking and provide them with more opportunities, women as ceos should continue to focus on becoming positive role models for these women.
Reach out to them and encourage them to seek the more increasingly available positions for women towards the top. The message should be – Now is not the time to give up; now is the time to push your way through. Let me show you how.
With these various points of view, women as CEOs should take a more proactive view of diversity. Not just diversity in demographics but in thinking, ideas, interest, etc. They have experienced the positive and negative results of women moving toward the top and have a unique perspective. The goal for women as ceos is to leverage this experience to improve the path for others. To create opportunities for others to join them and achieve their own goals.
One area where they can make the most impact is with career choices. Women as ceos are good at finding what they do best. How to put themselves as well as others into jobs that make sense and give the greatest opportunity. Where they can use their best skills. It’s not just getting the brass ring but the journey to get there. They can be helpful in advising others on what positions, opportunities they should go for, based upon their own experiences as well as their talent and interests.
Would you like to start solving some of your toughest business problems? Looking for problem solving strategies or a methodology to help? Follow this link to find resources that can help you solve your toughest business problemsWayne Tarken is a performance coach and business adviser to business leaders and employees. He helps them increase their performance and get better results. He has spent many hours trying to find the most effective ways to solve the most ingrained propblems. He has made all of the mistakes that you have or will make in the future. Why not learn from his mistakes? He created this short article to help you save time and find what you want. www.WayneTarken.com
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