1. Don't Let Your Career "Just Happen" - Ruth Malloy - Harvard Business Review
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HBR Blog Network
Don't Let Your Career "Just Happen"
by Ruth Malloy | 11:00 AM September 6, 2013
We all know The Statistic: Only 4.2 percent of Fortune 500 CEOs are women
(http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2013/05/09/women-ceos-fortune-500/) . But the gender split in mid-level
management is now nearly even (http://www.forbes.com/2011/02/18/women-business-management-forbeswoman-leadership-corporate-boards.html) . While women have made progress in being recognized as
managers, why aren't they making it to the top?
In many cases, they've climbed to the last rung of a ladder that simply doesn't go all the way up, like a business
function (HR, perhaps) that isn't generally tapped for the CEO position. In others, they lack the critical
experiences or skills required to take the next step, such as an international assignment, high-risk project, or
major P&L responsibility. While many complex factors contribute to women hitting the glass ceiling, more
proactive career management and clearer manager guidance would help them identify and use the right tools to
break through.
When Hay Group examined the performance and paths of 12 of the highest leading women in one Fortune 500
company and other executive women in large, global organizations, we found that, like their male counterparts,
the highest-performing women had in common a strong orientation toward achievement. But more than men, this
was manifested as a lifelong focus on continuous learning, which helped them prepare for the roles they took as
they moved upward.
But we also found that these traits are not synonymous with proactive career management. Women — even high
-performing women — still have a ways to go in becoming intentional and specific in their efforts to drive their
careers up a particular ladder.
Our study found that women are less deliberate than men in their career progressions, thinking, "I will learn,
grow, and build my capabilities," rather than, "I will create opportunities to learn X and gain experience in Y to get
to position Z."
The former mindset can drive advancement to a point, but we found that without specific career plans, women
often weren't the ones behind the wheel: Many high-performing women who participated in our study felt that
their careers "happened" to them — driven by recognition from sponsors who gave them opportunities. Which is
fine, unless you want to be the CEO, and the sponsor-identified opportunities don't give you the skills or
perspective required to get there.
Those who want to move all the way up must create opportunities to understand how the organization works,
how it makes money, and who its key people are. And they need to do so early in their careers. Sometimes a
lateral move to gain experience across business lines is a better choice than a promotion within a department,
and it can help women avoid being promoted up a functional silo by managers seeking to use their talents to
advance their own agendas.
Because women won't be handed the experience they need, they must speak up. Many women in our study felt
uncomfortable with the self-promotion of "asking for a job." Some have found it easier to think of such
conversations as expressing interest in or speaking up about new ways to be helpful. Regardless of your
approach, do speak up. You don't want management to pass you over because they thought your silence meant
satisfaction with stasis, or there was a squeakier wheel.
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2013/09/dont_let_your_career_just_happ.html
10/09/2013
2. Don't Let Your Career "Just Happen" - Ruth Malloy - Harvard Business Review
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Our research also indicates that women tend to hesitate when offered promotions because they didn't expect
them, felt unprepared, or needed time to address work-life considerations. This is where women's tendencies to
forego informal networking (like after-hours drinks) can hinder them: that inkling you're about to be promoted
might be more apparent in a social setting than it is in the office. So stay in touch at work.
And stay in touch at home. While you're thinking about what your future job could be and learning new skills and
roles to take it on, keep conversations open at home about how your life outside work could change if those
career opportunities came to pass, and what would have to adapt. Having a forward-thinking home plan can help
you say "yes" without hesitation.
Part of the blame for the c-suite gender gap lies with recognition and advancement policies — or lack thereof.
Managers can help ensure the strongest leaders rise through the ranks, regardless of gender, by:
1. Providing employees with an orientation to the organization and the business, and advice for navigating one's
career.
2. Clearly defining the criteria and experiences necessary to qualify for key leadership positions.
In doing so, the organization gives employees clearer pictures of the work, skill, and knowledge required to rise,
and they help eliminate hiring biases that could otherwise push particular constituencies onto career ladders that
don't go all the way up.
Women managers, of course, have a symbolic role to play once they reach the top, though many tend to shy
away from it and hide family and "feminine" aspects of work-life balance. Please don't. Be a mentor. Join
women's leadership groups. Show those coming up behind you how you prioritize, share your rationales for your
personal and professional boundaries (yes, this means it's OK to say you're leaving early for the school play),
and be as intentional in these realms as you are in your career decisions.
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2013/09/dont_let_your_career_just_happ.html
10/09/2013
