Susan Colantuono's Video Summary

In the video lecture presented by Deborah Tannen, He Said, She Said, Tannen emphasizes that men and women grow up in very different social worlds. When boys grow up, they learn that there is often going to be an inequality of force in any conversation. For girls, however, they feel that equality is very important and that it needs to be enforced through sympathy-based bonding. As adults, these different messages behind socialization can often lead to confusion, miscommunication, and, sometimes, hurt feelings. Tannen explores the difficulties of cross-gender communication and how we can overcome them by understanding where these conversational rituals come from. As a reflection on Tannen’s lecture, this paper will analyze how the different developments of boys and girls lead to the different views men and women have on the world. First of all, childhood and friendship is perceived differently by each gender.

In the United States, study after study continues to show that women have fewer opportunities to advance in the workplace than men. These disadvantages are a result of society’s views of women in leadership positions and how women may view themselves in these roles. Women have been making progress in terms of equality in pay and job positions, but significant gaps remain. Women who strive to be promoted into higher levels of responsibility in their companies often meet resistance that prevents them from achieving the goal of a senior or executive level of management. This barrier is referred to as the “glass ceiling” and it is a controversial issue in our country today. The glass ceiling called this because women are able to see the higher level positions, but can reach them because of an intangible barrier. One can look at the Fortune 500 companies, which are the most successful companies in the U.S. in terms of revenue to see how few women are in leadership positions. Clearly, women are significantly underrepresented in these companies, as less than 5 percent of these companies have female chief executive officers (CEO) today (Dockterman 105). Providing the opportunity for women to move into management positions, like CEOs, would bring a unique talent and a new perspective on how the company can operate to perform better (Buckalew 147). The “glass ceiling” is a real obstacle that creates an intangible barrier that puts women at a disadvantage in advancing in a company.

This case study involves Deborah Westman and her work at the Bank of Montreal (BMO) as a junior employee. Deborah has aspirations of progressing within the bank to higher levels of leadership, but is concerned about possible barriers due to her gender that have prevented other women from advancing. The bank is actively seeking to provide better opportunities for women to attain key leadership positions through the use of a task force and new policies. Deborah is uncertain if she can take advantage of the increased awareness of women in the bank, and if the barriers to higher leadership will actually be removed. Possible strategies will be recommended for Deborah in order to assist in her career.

Although in 2012, only 18 women served as CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. Furthermore, in a recent report, women only held 16.6% of board seats in 2012 in the fortune 500 companies (Aguilar). Women are somehow being held back from achieving their higher potential, and is is not due to lack of education. The department of education found that “140 women will graduate with a college degree at some level this year for every 100 men”(Aguilar). Most people believe the reason is because of the phenomenon of the “glass ceiling”. Many large companies do not hire women for the upper level positions, because they have always hired men, and many companies may believe that they do not see women in that position. This is also influenced by the media as well, as “women hold only 3% of clout positions in telecommunications, entertainment, publishing and advertising.”(Newsom 2011). With so few women leaders in the media industry, women are rarely portrayed in highly respected executives roles. This in turn communicates to young girls and the public in general that women are not supposed to hold these

My main objective for the interview was to understand how we as women can utilize our own skills and talents as leaders within the workplace. Throughout the interview we discussed how our own talents can be used to lead certain projects in our workplace and even to reach out to our community. Mrs. Draluck demonstrates her leader skills through partnering with businesses where women make up 50% or more of the population within the

This myth has been perpetuated throughout history and in result; we have barriers such as the glass ceiling in existence. If we were to pull up a list of the Board of Directors for any given company, the probability of it being a predominately male group is high. This notion alone shows how companies have continued to dwell in olds days where men are considered more capable than women. The Glass ceiling effect has continued to place barriers against women endeavor in achieving success in their careers and participation in their work place. Women have not been able to realize their potential in their work places since they are not offered equal chances as compared to their men counterparts who enjoy great opportunities in organizations. The fact that an organization is ran by men, may cause an adverse effect on the performance of men. Obviously, a man thinks differently than a woman. It is likely that a decision made by men only is likely to ignore the interests of women in the organization. This creates a domino effect because it affects the woman’s performance in business since they only get limited chances to learn, and limited job assignments that will enhance their skills. Hence, low or limited skills and experience will lower their overall

c) From this comparison, suggest lessons about different types of effective leadership by a female in the world of modern business and / or modern politics.

In modern america sexism is slowly diteriating, but it has not complitly disappeared. Women have worked hard to become astronaut, Ceos, presidentsdoctors and more, but even with these accomplishments women are still discriminated against. Women face a variety of stereotypes in the work place that prevent them from progress, some company's really think that women don't need equal pay because they are not the head of the house hold and their husbands paycheck should do the job. Other business corporations believe that women can not committed to a job because they are the primary caregiver of their children which causes companies to lose money every time there is an emergency. "The paradox is that the world of rigid and hierarchical sex roles

"Women's advancement often stops short of the general management level" as a partial result of discrimination by white men in positions of power, which include the differences of developmental job assignments they are afforded (Ohlott 46). "Developmental job assignments have been found to be one of the most important factors in preparing both men and women for upper-level management positions" (Ohlott 46 - 47).If women do not experience these same job assignments, they may be less prepared than men for handling future upper-level management jobs. These types of job assignments lead to high-level positions, make managers more visible, and prepare them for future jobs. With men being in the top ranks of organizations in most cases, they are less likely to assign these challenging tasks to female subordinates (Ohlott 49). "Organizations more often move women into staff positions and out of functions central to a business" mainly because those making the staffing decisions are more interested in advancing their own careers (Ohlott 49).

According to the statistics presented in the article, The Problem With Women In The Workplace Is Men, 50% of the US work force is comprised of women (Ferro, The Problem With Women In The Workplace Is Men). This data is simply an “illusion” of equality. The ratio between women and men in the workplace may be the same, but the distribution of men and women are not equal in all fields of work as well as the different rungs of management within specific companies. In fact, according to the article, How Men Drown Out The Voices

Thank you for sharing such an excellent post and drawing attention to such a profound and systemic issue in our global culture. Researcher Daniel Levinson in A Conception of Adult Development addresses the issue of the role of gender in adult life development. Levinson and his colleagues believed that women go through the same developmental periods as men, although some of the specific issues might differ between men and women. Based on the study, “the small proportion of women at senior management levels suggests that many women do not move beyond jobs in lower and middle levels of management” (Greenhaus, Callanan and Godshalk 323), indicating the reality of a proverbial glass ceiling.

Nadler and Stockdale mention how women face the most challenges in receiving higher positions in the workforce (282+). Nadler and Stockdale claim that women are viewed as competent, but individuals who are both competent and likeable are most likely to be promoted (287+). Nadler and Stockdale declare, “Women endeavoring to succeed in a masculine work role, such as upper management, currently face obstacles based on their perceived gender role” (283+). Women who succeed in earning a managerial position will have to eventually pay the cost of receiving that position (Nadler and Stockdale 282+). Many women will postpone relationships or having children to succeed in the workforce (Nadler and Stockdale 282+). Nadler and Stockdale add that women

Women have a harder time excelling in the job industry than men do, due to an unspoken term called, “The Glass Ceiling.” Essentially, this refers to an

As the author points out, the figures on women in leadership is staggering in disparity. The article takes time to focus on identifying and highlighting reasons what makes a successful leader. Having an opportunity to attend a leadership meeting, in which we discussed improving inclusion at my company, this article presented many of the same reasons that as a company we tried to understand, “Why do we not have more women in leadership?” This article really underscores that in order for a business to survive and grow or for that matter, any organization to flourish you need to find individuals that embody the above-mentioned leadership traits not just seniority.

The business world today is competitive. It's full of fierce, educated, and motivated people. For some people it's tough to rise to the top and for some people it comes much easier. It's not always about hard work! One might ask for a map to the yellow brick road, but few people are ever provided with it. Most people are stuck in an ocean making calculated guesses as to how they can reach land. Which route is the best? How much school is enough? How many certificates of accreditation is enough? How much work experience is enough? All of us ask these questions attempting to navigate our ships in a competitive world were only a few individuals ever get to their targeted career position. How many of those in leadership positions are women?