A Guide For HER To Reach Top Managerial Positions

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We have often noticed/heard about the absence of female executives in top management positions. The ratio of females to males is significantly low. Numerous people have provided their hypothesis for this scenario pointing out the following reasons:

• Sub-conscious bias against females
• High-ranking men connect more easily with other men and hence prefer them.
• The issue of sex stereotyping leads to resistance to women’s leadership.
• Demands of family life disproportionately fall on women

Although disheartening, according to research by Fast Company and the Center for American Progress, women make up only 5% of Fortune 500 CEOs, 7% of top executives at Fortune 100 companies, and only 10% of top management positions in S&P 1500 companies.

But there are many women who manage to establish a stronger network and influence people. What makes these women successful? What is it that they are doing differently? Few pieces of research have identified some distinguishing characteristics among the networking behaviors of more successful women from those of their peers.

Here are some points to keep in mind if a female intends to climb up the corporate ladder and reach the top positions.

The importance of saying ‘NO’

Whereas the female managers with the strongest networks understand the importance of taking a stand and saying a ‘no’, several studies show that many women, when compared to their counterparts men tend to absorb more collaborative demands in the workplace. 

While it is crucial to not waste time on things that can be avoided, by canceling nonessential appointments and meetings, and deflecting low-priority decisions and requests, when asked about the downside of saying a ‘no’, most women said that they would feel bad. Even the many successful females feel an urge to help colleagues and be a team player, but they also know the importance of time and tend to resist such time leakages. 

The female networkers who make it to the top are more thoughtful, particular, and strategic about how and with whom they spend their time. By ensuring that the unseen collaborative work is spread amongst males and females evenly, organizations can do their part and push all leaders, especially women, to unabashedly prioritize their most important tasks.

The art of letting go

When it comes to binding together, most relationships that women have, particularly with other women tend to be stickier than men’s and it grows to become stronger and interwoven over time. These relationships might prove to be beneficial at times as an old connection might offer a new opportunity or employment prospect. But in case you work in a dynamic organization that requires rapid adjustments to changing demands, always relying on the same old people can hurt your performance.

On the other hand, female executives who are successful portray a much more fluid behavior. Although it might sound a bit selfish, when it comes to business and professional goals, high-ranking men and women know when to let go of old connections in favor of new ones. No matter what your goals are, whether political, developmental, innovation-oriented or related to best practices, it is important to surround yourself with the people who will help you reach your goal or at least will work as a catalyst. Some women find this kind of behavior inauthentic, selfish, and even Machiavellian, but in contrast to the men interpret the same behavior as putting the work first. They see nothing wrong with it. 

But this does not mean that one should cut all ties with old acquaintances, but only with the ones who are hampering your growth or leading you to deviate from your goals. Women should, of course, maintain some long-known advisers and they should consistently initiate new connections, and prudently analyze which connection is actually worth the time and energy.  

Grow your network

Female networkers have a tendency to shy away from connecting with people to broaden their network because it makes them uncomfortable and feels as if it is overly promotional. Spanning boundaries makes them wary of backlash and stresses them out. On the flip side, it has been noticed that the females who are successful and good at networking connect with people in a wide variety of functions, geographies, and business units. 

But it is important to acknowledge that whether it is men or women, networking is critical to accessing new information, leading innovation, and pursuing advancement in professional life. Rob Cross, a professor at Babson College, Massachusetts suggests that it is important to keep a tab on your network and assess periodically by asking yourself, “Who isn’t in my network but should be?” He suggests approaching them “not with ‘Here’s what I need’ but with ‘Could we grab a coffee and explore ways of working together?.’” This kind of networking, according to him, plays a significant role in catapulting one's career. 

Trust building

It is known that both men and women bring different sets of energies to a relationship. Women who are successful demonstrate emotions and qualities that build trust- like competence, patience, warmth, intelligence, and emotional intelligence. “The most successful women don’t downplay their knowledge, skills, and accomplishments; they show evidence that they can do things,” Cross says. “But they also use humor, presence, and small gestures to signal caring and positivity, and they employ listening skills to spur creative thinking among their colleagues.”

Although organizations play a crucial role in uplifting women employees and extracting the best out of them while making them feel equal and competent if more females adapt to the aforementioned networking behaviors, the chances of them reaching the highest step on the ladder will improve drastically. According to Cross “The goal is to embed these behaviors and practices so that they’re the norm for everybody.”

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