Friday, July 25, 2014

A511.8.3.RB -Gender_DiazBrian



Rosabeth Moss Kanter discusses several relevant issues that women face in today's workplace.  Kanter mentions how "getting up to the very peak is still an issue" for women in the workplace.  She explains that the one of the reasons for this is that these top managerial positions require dedication and commitment on a 24-7 basis.  These demands make it difficult for the people that have these jobs to have any other responsibilities.  She feels that there may be discrimination and behind the scenes discussions about the best candidates for these positions.  Women might not be viewed as viable candidates because they may not be as dedicated due to familial obligations.  Kanter says "It's the greedy and demanding nature of these jobs."


Another issue of contention Kanter touches on is compensation for women in managerial positions.  Do women earn less because they are less valuable than men?  Is it because they are not very good negotiators?  At high levels in organizations, women are disproportionately found as opposed to their male counterparts.  These positions often pay more.  So then the question become do men make better decisions than women?  Is it fair to say that the two reason differently when reaching conclusions?  Based on statistics, I do believe women are unfairly paid less than men. This practice of discriminating salary based on gender needs to be eradicated and there is no reason women cannot and do not earn as much as their counterparts. 




Another issue Kanter discusses is the challenge of  having a work-life balance.  This issue is one I believe affects both men and women but more often than not moms are the one that stay home to take care of their families.  When my wife had our son she was home with him for 3 months.  We felt extremely fortunate that she was able to be home with our baby for 3 whole months and more importantly that she had a job that paid her for her entire stay at home.  What we didn't anticipate however, and I believe many professional women wind up feeling this way, is the sense of guilt about having to go back to work and leaving their newborns in someone else's care.  My wife cried almost everyday for a week when she arrived at work because she missed our son.  Being with him basically 24 hours a day for 30 days really left her feeling like she was abandoning our baby.  My director is currently 8 months pregnant and this is her first child and I wonder, will she want to come back to work?  Men don't form the type of bond that mothers due with their children.  

In talking about sex-based discrimination Yukl (2014) says "Widespread discrimination is clearly evident in the ow number of women who hold important, high-level leadership positions in most types of organizations.  The strong tendency to favor men over women in filling high-level leadership positions has been referred to as the 'glass ceiling'." (p. 371).  These points seem to parallel Kanter's feelings on the subject of sex-based discrimination.

While I am aware that women might not hold as many high level positions as men, I don't believe that there exists outright discrimination in all organizational leadership positions simply based on gender.  Am I saying that sex-based discrimination does not occur?  I would not dare to be so naive.  I am sure that there are certain corporations that will only consider men for their highest positions.  Organizations that practice this from of discrimination have no moral values and I would not want to associate myself with a company that didn't give consideration to the bet candidate regardless of gender, ethnicity, or personal beliefs.  As Yukl (2014) noted "Throughout the twentieth century, gender-based discrimination was supported by age old beliefs that men are more qualified than women for leadership roles." (p. 371).  We are no longer in the 20th century and I think it's time women should be not only considered for the highest leadership positions, I think it is time for them to make claim for these positions.  If it is not far fetched to see a female President in the White House, how far fetched would it be to fro a woman to be CEO of Microsoft or Apple?


Kanter, R. (2010). Women, Ambition and (Still) the Pay Gap. Harvard Business Review, Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhquUOlBuOY&feature=youtu.be&t=5s

Yukl, G. A. (2013). Leadership in organizations (8th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

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