How You Respond To New Study On Female Leadership Says A Great Deal

According to a July 2014 article in Executive Grapevine, female leaders are more supportive and nurturing than their male counterparts because they are not governed by a "solo ‘superman’ model".

The report upon which the article has based its conclusion also indicated that "leadership styles in corporate companies are more akin to ‘masculine’ leadership traits, such as authoritative, assertive, command and (in) control".

Conversely, the majority of women (60 percent) associate their management style with traits that are "democratic, collaborative, nurturing, calm, and egoless".

The conclusion is that while one should not adhere to a single management style, the truth of the matter is that corporations would be far better off with more female leaders than men. It also issued a call to action challenging all women to step up to the plate in terms of advancing this needed and long-overdue shift in leadership sensibilities.

So there you have it, women are better leaders than men because they are unencumbered by an ego-driven superman complex.

Good thing we are still needed to open jars and kill bugs.

Beyond the subject matter the above article, and in particular the report itself, has the ability to both encourage or offend the reader depending on your personal perspective.

The Politically Correct

Those who are politically correct will undoubtedly cry sexism in that any suggestion that there is a difference between men and women because of gender - no matter how accurate said assessment might be - is wrong.

This enlightened group will then fall back on their tried and true mantra that leadership is based on individual experience and expertise that has nothing to do with sex, and as such the report's (and article's) authors should be publicly shackled in the town square until they repent of their misguided line of thinking.

The Male Movement

Reminiscent of the line from the movie Network in which Howard Beale shouts from the highest rooftop "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!", the male movement denizens will undoubtedly raise their knuckle-scarred hands and proclaim enough is enough.

Men are not the enemy nor should men have to apologize for being who they really are.

The Feminists

If you listen carefully, you can hear a universal cheer of F-I-N-A-L-L-Y, our time is at hand! As a side note, and contrary to the suggestion related to Adrian Cronauer's comment in Good Morning Vietnam, not all feminists wear comfortable shoes.

The Rest Of Us

Known as the silent majority, whenever contentious issues arise that enrage the usual combatants these individuals, similar to the small mammals who remained in hiding throughout the Mesozoic period i.e. dinosaurs, scurry for safe cover until things cool down.

Upon emergence from their hiding places, the silent majority offer a thoughtful more balanced perspective based on their assessment of the facts as opposed to personal agendas.


So tell me, what do you think of the Executive Grapevine's article that suggests that female leaders are "more supportive and nurturing", and that men suffer from a "solo superman" complex?

Scott Scioli

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ATTORNEY • Call for Complimentary IP Consult • Biotech/Life Sciences IP Expert • Startups to SMEs.

9y

"All generalizations are false - including this one." While the author of the article apparently believes it is "more likely" for a woman to demonstrate such supportive and nurturing traits, it is important to consider the underlying data that reveals the distribution of the supposedly gender-based trait as 60-40 within women. That is hardly enough to propose making changes solely based on gender. Organizations that want such traits should seek individuals who demonstrate a sincere belief in them, and a track-record of practicing them, rather than stereotyping based on gender. I would not deny that there may be some underlying gender-based differences, however while there are no doubt other components and determinative factors, in most cases management approaches and leadership styles are primarily learned behaviors and philosophical or belief-based.

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Thank you, John, for the article, and the wit. I read the article you referenced. Disappointingly, Dr. Collins based her findings on a report of 1,200 professional women. No men were asked. Based on my 20 years in construction, I'd say a lot of men prefer a collaborative work environment, too. The solo superman type often finds himself undermined, ridiculed and sabotaged precisely because everyone in construction knows it's a team effort. Sadly, there are enough barbarians on every side of this issue to consistently and continuously hide the truth. Leadership isn't about gender. I wonder whether researchers such as Dr. Collins have ever reviewed the results of motivational surveys. When people (both sexes) are asked what motivates them, they answer with things like personal fulfillment, empowerment and recognition. When those same people are asked what motivates other people, their answer tends to be simple "more money." Leadership isn't about gender. Leadership is about service.

Senka Sobot

Principal BDN Holdings

9y

its new

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Sunil Bhaskaran

Global Business Community Builder, Mentor, Speaker, Author

9y

I agree with the basic premise that all gender based studies (in fact any study!) should be taken with a grain of salt: too easy to come up with oversimplifications. Leadership, teamwork.. and heck life is already fairly complex - need to assess each situation very differently.

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