4 Reasons for More Female Bosses

Look, I know there is enough machismo on this site to pump-up the whole New England Patriots locker room. But to be completely honest, I really enjoy working under women. On similar note, I also enjoy working in offices that have a higher female to male ratio. For whatever reason, when there are more women around, I tend to stay away from the usual office clicks and messy politics.

More importantly, all my female bosses have always been empathetic my all-nighters and even more motivating during those late-night, shiny-eyed hours. More than their male counter parts, I always thought that these women were able to demand high quality work without being complete dicks about it. Does anyone else feel this way?

Recently, McKinesy & Company published a report for the Wall Street Journal titled Unlocking the Full Potential of Women in the US Economy. In this report, McKinesy seems to agree with me. It appears that having women in the workplace seems to benefit even the most chauvinistic of males. I know there are be many doubters, so here are four great reasons why we should all have more women bosses:

McKinesy & Company:

1) Catalyst, the U.S. non-profit focused on expanding opportunities for women in business, continues to deliver research on the relationship between the representation of women on boards of directors and corporate performance. In its 2011 research, Catalyst found a 26% difference in return on invested capital (ROIC) between the top-quartile companies (with 19-44% women board representation) and bottom quartile companies (with zero woman directors).

2) When the McKinsey Women Matter team asked business executives globally what they believe the most important leadership attributes are for success today, each of the top four—intellectual stimulation, inspiration, participatory decision-making and setting expectations/rewards—were more commonly found among women leaders.

3) Reviewing about 100 companies in McKinsey’s Organizational Health Index (OHI), we found that companies with three or more women in top positions (executive committee or boards) scored higher than their peers. OHI measures nine factors, ranging from external orientation to coordination and control, that are linked to well-functioning organizations. Companies with a high score across the nine metrics of organizational health (in the top quartile) have also shown superior financial performance.

4) In the 2010 McKinsey Centered Leadership research, we found that more than 90% of the women and men who mastered each of the five leadership dimensions felt equipped to lead through today’s challenges compared to only 21% of those who mastered none.

So what do you say monkeys, we need more women on running Wall Street, right?

 
dogboo:
Anacott_CEO:
I like "working" under women too.

^ Beat me to it

Same here! Oh man.

[quote]The HBS guys have MAD SWAGGER. They frequently wear their class jackets to boston bars, strutting and acting like they own the joint. They just ooze success, confidence, swagger, basically attributes of alpha males.[/quote]
 

The irony is that if women ruled the world we'd probably have much more war.

But to be completely serious, however, female rulers from Queen Elizabeth to Queen Victoria to Margaret Thatcher to Hillary Clinton (as Sec. of State) to Cristina Fernadez--you see no real dropoff in levels of war/violence. A woman becomes a global or natoinal leader because she exhibits the traits of powerful males--aggression, decisiveness, egomania, and in some ways ruthlessness. The Legally Blonde type chick is not the type of woman who rules over mankind.

Array
 

Have you ever dealt with an office full of hormonal PMSing lunatics? Wasn't the CIO at JPM's hedge desk a woman? I'm not so sure that selling men out is a good idea.

I do like equal integration of women into the workforce, and if an individual (male or female) runs things well, then they are judged on the basis of their individual acheivement. Remove the barriers of discrimination and build the support systems for both men and women. Let everyone compete on the equal basis of their efforts.

And yes, I like working with women and having women bosses just as well as men, as long as they are competent. But I do not feel the need to kiss their asses and tell them "they should run the place because they're better than men at it". No sexism means men and women are recognized equally for their contributions, not in spite of the others'.

Get busy living
 

Work environments with members of both genders have the best balance. I once worked in all-women environment, and the constant bitchiness, back-stabbing and grudge-holding (which I naively hadn't expected!) took the fun out of the job. Turnover was very high.

"The light at the end of the tunnel may be you." --Steven Tyler
 

Had female supervisors as well. Don't think it makes a difference. People get promoted for their performance. And once any analyst (both men and women) reach MD level, they are all the same. Previously, I also interviewed with female MDs for jobs, they are as hardcore/ruthless as male MDs in grilling the shit out of you. Absolutely no difference.

"I am the hero of the story. I don't need to be saved."
 

We used to have a female MD who would bring all the Analysts breakfast twice a week and generally look after the analysts like a mother figure. She even had 3 analysts at her house for christmas dinner as they couldn't go home.

Generally, everyone was willing to work harder for her than anyone else.

 
Best Response

I have only worked for one female boss in my finance tenure, thus I only have the following anecdotal evidence:

So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

Or so it goes...

 
labanker:
I have only worked for one female boss in my finance tenure, thus I only have the following anecdotal evidence:

So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

Or so it goes...

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

"Well, you know, I was a human being before I became a businessman." -- George Soros
 
labanker:
I have only worked for one female boss in my finance tenure, thus I only have the following anecdotal evidence:

So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

Or so it goes...

Haha. You got her fucking good.

 
labanker:
I have only worked for one female boss in my finance tenure, thus I only have the following anecdotal evidence:

So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

Or so it goes...

Awesome shit man!

Simplicity is the highest form of sophistication ~ Leonardo da Vinci
 
labanker:
I have only worked for one female boss in my finance tenure, thus I only have the following anecdotal evidence:

So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

Or so it goes...

some one want to do the DD on which bank in LA this is? my guess is UBS.

 
labanker:
I have only worked for one female boss in my finance tenure, thus I only have the following anecdotal evidence:

So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

Or so it goes...

This feels LSO-ish enough for me to give you an SB. Well done.

I hate victims who respect their executioners
 
labanker:
So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

andddddddddd this just made my day.

 
M Friedman:
labanker:
So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

andddddddddd this just made my day.

Hahaha, same! SB to labanker

 
labanker:
I have only worked for one female boss in my finance tenure, thus I only have the following anecdotal evidence:

So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

Or so it goes...

normally i'm against the blatant sexism but this is just toooooo funny. +1.

Money Never Sleeps? More like Money Never SUCKS amirite?!?!?!?
 
sayandarula:
labanker:
I have only worked for one female boss in my finance tenure, thus I only have the following anecdotal evidence:

So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

Or so it goes...

normally i'm against the blatant sexism but this is just toooooo funny. +1.

ahhh blatant misogyny, a close second only to my favorite... subtle misogyny...

 
labanker:
I have only worked for one female boss in my finance tenure, thus I only have the following anecdotal evidence:

So I'm a first year analyst sitting in a management presentation for this sellside deal we're working on. The VP on the deal is a female - and a pretty smoking one at that. Half-asian, half-white, got her hair pulled back all professional-like, wearing a nice little purple button-up shirt. I'm on the same side of the table as her, a couple seats over. The CEO is droning on about god knows what - some shitty new product line or something. The VP chimes in with a comment - raising her arm ever so slightly in the process. All of a sudden my tit radar goes wild. What is this? WHAT IS THIS? An ever-so-slight gap has formed between the buttons on her shirt right in the money zone? Unfortunately, I'm just out of range for a perfect view. I fidget in my chair, trying to get in the optimal viewing position. She gives me an annoyed look like "what the fuck are you doing?" I quickly flip a page in the management presentation, punch some random keys on my HP-12C and furrow my brow. Decoy successful - she looks back at the droning CEO. I slyly rotate in my Office Depot standard issue conference room chair - a little more, a little more...BAM - there it is. I lock in that glorious mammary flesh cupped ever so gently by a lacy black brassiere. She moves, erasing the gap in her shirt but it's too late - the image is locked in - saved in the memory bank for a more "appropriate" time. I push back in my chair with smug satisfaction, thinking to myself, you may be able to make me do comps, but I'm going to beat off to your side boob.

Or so it goes...

Believe or not, I did the same thing to a female superior. She has a negligible face but nice double D's.

The Auto Show
 
huanleshalemei:
Believe or not, I did the same thing to a female superior. She has a negligible face but nice double D's.

Wait a minute. Didn't you say in another thread that you are female? I generally think of admiring ample bosoms as a male pastime, but I can see how double Ds would inspire awe from the fairer sex as well.

What were the details here? Were you actively seeking a peek or was it merely an errant wardrobe issue from which you happened to benefit?

 

Or maybe it's just the women that actually manage to make it to the top that are better at their job on a proportional basis?

By which I mean perhaps the filtration system as you go up the hierarchy is more effective against women? It is possible that the men that are 'Dicks' just made it through regardless of their inherent dickishness.

I find society is harsher on women that are 'bitches' than men that are 'dicks'.

 

Have to completely disagree with the op...I've been about 50/50 with male / female bosses and the females have been absolutely horrible to work for. Even though they were all ok outside of work when working for them they just turned into she demons.....personally I would avoid women as bosses at all costs....even if my mother or girlfriend where bosses I know they would be fvcking terrors.

 

My experience with them has not been the greatest. My previous boss brought a lot of emotional drama to the office quite frequently... It made the work environment quite unpleasant.

 

more from my female friend

I stand by my statement. There would NOT be more wars.

Men like Nelson Mandela don't rule the world either.

Perhaps that is the problem.

Blaming PMS is exactly the things that make your site incredibly annoying for women to want to actively participate in discussions.

WSO Content & Social Media. Follow us: Linkedin, IG, Facebook, Twitter.
 
AndyLouis:
more from my female friend
I stand by my statement. There would NOT be more wars.

Men like Nelson Mandela don't rule the world either.

Perhaps that is the problem.

Blaming PMS is exactly the things that make your site incredibly annoying for women to want to actively participate in discussions.

EDIT: I'm tired and stressed today, so this reply came in bits and pieces:

Women never fight? Pretending a problem doesn't exist is the best way to deal with it? Sometimes a good fight solves a lot. Sometimes someone is right and they HAVE TO WIN: bad things happen when good people do nothing. Sometimes you just have to clear the air. But I do agree that war is aweful...many generals have said that war is hell, and shame on the assholes that start them. Everyone loses in a war, even when they win.

Listen, I agree that women are underrepresented and that they have a lot to add. The first step towards getting ahead is taking responsiblity for their actions, not blaming men (or PMS, sorry about that, low blow on my end). I'm a guy who tries to honestly do what I believe is right, and there are plenty of men that do, so implying that the world's problems are men's fault is unfair and ignorant. More men need to grow up and do the right thing, and the definition of what that exactly is has changed, so realize that a lot of men don't even know exactly what's expected of them, it's very frustrating.

This era of history has seen more progress than ever before, and I'm happy to see it. Women have much to offer, so do it. Sitting around and talking about how things "would be better" if a woman was in charge takes a back seat to women actually DOING IT. If your friend doesn't consider the people here worth engaging directly, then she needs to realize that the "open and honest" communication that women talk about is lacking on her end.

To make the olive branch peace offering, I'm going on a feminist blog to see what women are thinking.

Get busy living
 

Really, I don't think it has anything to do with being a man or a woman. If you're good at it and you make your subordinates want to work well for you, that's it. Some of this stuff is so forced and contrived it's ridiculous.

Metal. Music. Life. www.headofmetal.com
 

This is a McKinsey study. I have seen McKinsey's Centered Leadership model up close and was not impressed. Women were encouraged/supported in being part-time at all levels of the organization.

Yeah. Part-time engagement managers. Part-time partners. Of course men were allowed to be part-time as well... but they didn't choose to be. And from what I saw, trying to do a key role part-time typically doesn't work. You can't convince me there's any such thing as a part-time CEO.

I don't care what gender leaders are. Here's what I do care about:

1: How much do they work? Do they phone it in? Are they available for juniors and clients when needed? Do they make it rain? And when shit hits the fan, how big are their balls, really?
2: What's their fucking GMAT?

 
bankerella:
This is a McKinsey study. I have seen McKinsey's Centered Leadership model up close and was not impressed. Women were encouraged/supported in being part-time at all levels of the organization.

Yeah. Part-time engagement managers. Part-time partners. Of course men were allowed to be part-time as well... but they didn't choose to be. And from what I saw, trying to do a key role part-time typically doesn't work. You can't convince me there's any such thing as a part-time CEO.

I don't care what gender leaders are. Here's what I do care about:

1: How much do they work? Do they phone it in? Are they available for juniors and clients when needed? Do they make it rain? And when shit hits the fan, how big are their balls, really?
2: What's their fucking GMAT?

not really sure why the GMAT matters for leadership purposes

 

Yep I was sort disappointed as well. After I donned a perfectly innocent smile, 'that's ok, I am straight, let's forget about what just happened', she seemed more at ease, and almost gave me a display of her full package...until the third person entered the room. Oops.

The Auto Show
 
huanleshalemei:
Yep I was sort disappointed as well. After I donned a perfectly innocent smile, 'that's ok, I am straight, let's forget about what just happened', she seemed more at ease, and almost gave me a display of her full package...until the third person entered the room. Oops.

LES

 

I actually think its 50/50. All on the individual. I have had female bosses that are tougher than men and vice versa

"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it's the courage to continue that counts" -Winston Churchill
 

"If you report to a woman, your career will go nowhere.

It's true.

Look around your office. Women are almost never politically involved in the organizations they work for. HR, payroll, benefits, life counseling. That's about it. And they're all out the door at 5:30 to catch some horrible train back to New Jersey to be with Jerry, their husband who works flex-time at Merck.

Women are insecure, make decisions based on emotion, manage by consensus, and are incapable of working in teams or with other women. They cherry pick the rewards of feminism - happily accepting increased responsibility, freaking out when the prospect of failure rears its ugly head.

Put a woman in charge of a project and watch what happens.

Tears in the toilet stall.

Know what else?

If your female manager is a mother with small children, or if she suspects that you believe her to be a boner shrinker, then count yourself as double-ly fucked.

"I don't know what I'm doing and he thinks I'm gross. OMG. He has to go. God, why can't they all be like Jerry?"

Take the following advice and your career will go far:

Only report to dull straight white males who are no longer interested in their wives. Dead serious. These are the men who drink beer, go to bat for comp, are dialed in, and know the inner workings of the organization.

Report to anyone else and you embrace the fail."

I hate victims who respect their executioners
 

Have to say that I couldn't agree more, you've captured my experience in a matter of paragraphs, BlackHat. Women are hard workers, and have great attention to detail. But as far as making executive decisions and taking the bull by the b*lls, its always- "lets have a group meeting about it." Speaking as a young female with just a few years in corp america, its always the men that have been the best mentors. Women are not quick to forgive and forget (just forget about it), and harass their female coworkers more than men. The amount of times I have been reported to HR for wardrobe violations alone- and just guess who would do the squealing? You would think- aren't you a woman? Im sure I dont have anything you haven't seen before...

 
BlackHat:

"If you report to a woman, your career will go nowhere.

It's true.

Look around your office. Women are almost never politically involved in the organizations they work for. HR, payroll, benefits, life counseling. That's about it. And they're all out the door at 5:30 to catch some horrible train back to New Jersey to be with Jerry, their husband who works flex-time at Merck.

Women are insecure, make decisions based on emotion, manage by consensus, and are incapable of working in teams or with other women. They cherry pick the rewards of feminism - happily accepting increased responsibility, freaking out when the prospect of failure rears its ugly head.

Put a woman in charge of a project and watch what happens.

Tears in the toilet stall.

Know what else?

If your female manager is a mother with small children, or if she suspects that you believe her to be a boner shrinker, then count yourself as double-ly fucked.

"I don't know what I'm doing and he thinks I'm gross. OMG. He has to go. God, why can't they all be like Jerry?"

Take the following advice and your career will go far:

Only report to dull straight white males who are no longer interested in their wives. Dead serious. These are the men who drink beer, go to bat for comp, are dialed in, and know the inner workings of the organization.

Report to anyone else and you embrace the fail."

:/

 

I read an article on linkedin recently that opined on this issue, and attributed it to biology. To summarize the article, traits we attribute to "good/strong" leaders are generally those that are driven by testosterone , and traits that we attribute to "weak" leaders are generally those that are driven by estrogen...

I don't have a dog in this fight, so easy on the monkey shit. Just sharing what I read

 

It's many factors IMO....

  1. As senior leaders are, well, old people, the currently lack of female leaders is much a product of the culture/diversity issues of their upbringing. We can become "socially tolerant" and diverse by accepting female leadership today, but that doesn't help that because of the culture 50 years ago there's not as many qualified female leaders as there are male.

  2. There's some biology to it. Don't get me wrong, we're not straight up animals, but there's still differences in nature, instinct, and attitude between males and females.

  3. The world still has some diversity issues. Obviously not like before, but it exists in its own small way.

 

Partly all of the above.

I'll also add that I a LOT of females at low and mid management shoot themselves in the foot by trying too hard to be like men, who they perceive as being pushy and bossy. It doesn't work for most male leaders and thanks to socialization and biology it works even less well for women.

I have run into a number of extremely successful women in finance, and even the ones that fall into the category of "raging bitch" generally don't try to imitate male personal branding and instead brand themselves as smart, savvy, independent women. There's one example in particular I can think of (department head level,front office at a top tier BB) that I have met who was noticeable by the lack of a chip on her shoulder....but I also noticed that she had honed her skills and was extremely perceptive to the point that trying to fake any body language would have been a bad idea.

 

Well I think the issue is just that “the corporate world”. I know a lot of women who have gone the entrepreneurial route and are operating successful albeit small businesses. Women seem more inclined to pursue a career that will actually make them happy compared to men whose testosterone and ego will make then take on a 30 year plus climb of the corporate ladder that leaves them jaded, regretful, and making alimony payments.

 

It's obviously indicative of rape culture brought about by internalized misogyny forced on us by the Patriarchy.

Anyone who suggests otherwise is a Trump supporting rape apologist.

If only everyone embraced feminism we could unshackle ourselves from this toxic masculine heteronormative belief structure and everything would be unicorns and rainbows.

Shalalala

 

In finance specifically, I think it boils down to stats. Fewer girls want this job, so finding great ones is hard. I actually think, as said above, that's because girls aren't stuck a huge dick measuring contest and are more prone to search for happiness than the corporate grind.

In a controlled environment, where man and woman are equally qualified but the guy gets the advantage: I think some is perceived stability (both emotional and long-term with having a family); also think "grit" matters here, and whereas a guy with grit is good, a girl with grit just has "blood coming out of her wherever."

 

Something that I think plays into it is just a simple numbers game in each industry. For example, since more men go into finance than women, women have easier access into more prestigious programs/companies. I know it's still not easy for them by any means, but I work at a large health system and most of our finance/business execs are men. In the younger tier, 20s and early 30s, men simply outnumber the women probably 5 to 1. I truly think if women chose to take a route at a less desirable company (health systems, mid/lower end fortune 500, non profits) that they would have a greater success rate for hitting exec level because of who their competition would be. Everyone has a rough time making it to the top in IB, PE, HF, etc. so when men outnumber women at the entry level, men will outnumber women at the exec level too. However, since less women go into finance, they all get pulled to the more prestigious jobs because companies need gender diversity. Since I'm in an industry that pays mediocre and doesn't have the prestige of iBanking, it makes my skills appear stronger compared to my peers. Women would experience that same effect and could therefore make it to the top easier in less desirable industries just as easily as men could.

This is all based on an extrapolated anecdote.

 
  1. biology. women bear children, and yes while men help raise children we don't literally carry it around with us. it can be done, but (like it or not) bearing children and taking leave can hurt advancement opportunity. perhaps you're away on maternity leave during a big deal, a marketing campaign, or some other such thing. not your fault and you shouldn't be penalized, but it'd be ignorant to think otherwise.

  2. history. women just got the right to vote around 100 years ago, to think that our society would already have them on a level playing field by now is asinine. these changes move glacially.

  3. open mindedness. I mention the other things to make this point. psychologically, we all have biases, and tend to like people who look, act, and think like us. if you're a white male as CEO, you're probably going to connect most with other white males. it's not necessarily because you're a racist, a sexist, or nepotist, it's your biology. the more women and minorities get into executive positions, the less this will be an issue, but again, it takes time.

I know women are no less capable than men, and if I had to guess, by the time I have grandchildren who are grown and in the workforce, we won't be asking these questions. what I will say is that it's great that we're talking about inequality issues, because the first step in solving a problem is recognizing its existence.

 

I'll try and give a simple answer to what is a very complex question. I think it's a combination of two factors, listed in no particular order:

-Different interests and ambitions between men and women, i.e. men are more likely to be willing to make the personal sacrifices needed to rise to C-suite level (constant relocation, long hours, etc) -Gender bias (this absolutely still exists)

 

This is a ridiculous question. Of course not, women should be in the kitchen. They know nothing about Leverage Build Outs.

"After you work on Wall Street it’s a choice, would you rather work at McDonalds or on the sell-side? I would choose McDonalds over the sell-side.” - David Tepper
 

People will respect you at work if you're competent and show confidence. The fact that you are even asking if people will respect you makes me think you lack confidence.

Plus, using the phrase 'Would you submit to her authority over you?' is just an extremely awkward way to think about entry level management positions in finance like you are referring to. If an employee can accomplish his/her goals with you as their boss, they will be ok with you being the boss.

 
DickFuld:

People will respect you at work if you're competent and show confidence. The fact that you are even asking if people will respect you makes me think you lack confidence.

Plus, using the phrase 'Would you submit to her authority over you?' is just an extremely awkward way to think about entry level management positions in finance like you are referring to. If an employee can accomplish his/her goals with you as their boss, they will be ok with you being the boss.

'completely agree..

@LittlemissCEO ... i have had bosses that I loved working for and bosses that I hated.. this feeling was determined purely by what I, as an employee, gained professionally by working for them.

You might notice that I have not mentioned their gender, age, sexual orientation, weight, height, size of the heels on their shoes or the "generosity" of their cup size as a factor in that determination. The fact that you thought providing that information was necessary in your original post means it is you who is excessively biased towards what your looks can do for you in the workplace.

lastly, don't ever user words like "submit to her authority over you" - only a psycho control freak does that. You are their boss whose job is to tell them what to do.. you are not freaking God leading a crusade or something..

 

I would if she was capable and a good boss. I wouldn't care if she's under 100 lbs or over 200.

The problem is that statistically speaking female "bosses", at least at professional services firms, tend to suck. I don't know if it's just my personal experience, but almost all of the female project leaders, as well as the few female directors/partners that I and my friends had worked with were living, breathing stereotypes of why female managers suck.

They were emotionally unstable and had bad leadership skills - all the classic traits: favoritism, excess politicking, did not lead by example, took themselves too seriously (i.e. "power" got to their heads), and the worst part is that sucking up to them seemed to matter more than actual performance. I mean, we're all real people and it's very normal for relationships to factor in the evaluations, but with them it's way too much. On the other hand, it's not too difficult to manipulate them this way (by sucking up, showing deference etc, which I confess to having had abused).

 
Qayin:

They were emotionally unstable and had bad leadership skills - all the classic traits: favoritism, excess politicking, did not lead by example, took themselves too seriously (i.e. "power" got to their heads), and the worst part is that sucking up to them seemed to matter more than actual performance. I mean, we're all real people and it's very normal for relationships to factor in the evaluations, but with them it's way too much. On the other hand, it's not too difficult to manipulate them this way (by sucking up, showing deference etc, which I confess to having had abused).

I was shocked by this post as well...but for different reasons. I've had two female bosses and they were both terrible for different reasons. When I read favoritism and politicking...I was "shocked" by how accurate that was for the more normal one...the other one was just batshit crazy..an absolute mess.

Honestly, this thread just reinforces what I already believe...and I sincerely hope that you are trolling with your replies.

 

OP are you that starved for attention that you lash at when Quayin tells you about his personal experience relevant to your question? As a manager of people, you should have the ability to handle all responses to YOUR question, no matter how 'shocked' they make you.

On an unrelated note, if you are 5'4 and weigh under 100 pounds you have a SERIOUS eating disorder. That's just scary.

 

I've had female bosses for ~40% of my career. They have all been excellent.

My male bosses have generally been excellent too, with a few exceptions.

Those who can, do. Those who can't, post threads about how to do it on WSO.
 

I find no reason not to take someone seriously until given a reason to. As a superior, I'd give anyone the benefit of the doubt that they have earned their position and can perform competently (especially if in IB).

The second someone would tell me to "submit to their authority" (male or female) I would question their leadership ability and/or their behavior in a client facing role. If this 20something is in a leadership position within B (as this is the IB thread), I would assume a VP 1 (at the youngest) who is not yet managing client relationships. Once (and if) the time comes for client management, I do not see this superior going far (male or female).

TLDR, I have no reason not to respect a superior until they have given me reason not to (through lack of ability or professionalism). If this superior were you, OP, I would quit within a month.

 

OP,

In all seriousness, yes, I would end up looking down on you. No, not because I'm a chauvinist asshole. If you're 5'4" in heels, I have a good 6 inches on. If you're not in heels, I'm a good 9 inches taller than you. You do the math because technically, I would be looking down on you.

However, truth be told, I care more about having a good boss than I do a shitty boss. I will listen to my boss no matter what. If you're a good boss, I will respect you as a person. If you're a crappy boss, I will tolerate you and respect you only in as much as I need to in order to get my work done. Good bosses are fantastic regardless of the gender. My first supervisor was a woman and I absolutely adored her. I thought she was fantastic and a wonderful boss. My second female boss... not so much. I respected her a great deal and learned a lot, but but she was a crappy boss. It really comes down to how competent of a boss you are and how well you can manage and motivate in a positive manner. One of my bosses was absolutely horrible. He had every single negative quality in a boss and had 0 ability to motivate. He was a nepotistic bastard (yes, I know, there is a great deal of bitterness here), who routinely put everyone down for trying to take initiative that was not in his family or, if they were in his company, members of his church. Being a good boss that is respected by your underlings is a matter of good of a manager you are and how well you know your shit.

Also, you did a really piss poor job of asking that question. Not gonna lie here, but it comes off far worse than it should.

 

The last female boss I had completely behave, think, and laugh like a man, so my answer is a big yes.

But I normally hate working with women because this is just an exception.

 

I've had female superiors who have ranged from attractive and petite to large and simply not attractive. I've never once started working for them and thought "no way I'm taking them seriously or listening to them" based on their sex or their looks (I'll admit I wanted to screw the hot ones but that has nothing to do with being a work superior). I'm sure if any of them dressed like a stripper I'd have thought differently but they all looked professional. I'm sure some guys may think differently when they see a female superior but in today's world they, or that attitude, won't last long. 2015 isn't exactly Mad Men territory.

I've also had both male and female bosses who have ranged from terrific to terrible. The only female boss that I've had who was terrible because she was female (I've had other female superiors who weren't good but that had nothing to do with their sex, they were just bad managers regardless of internal or external gonads, and one of them was a 5'1" attractive later 20's woman when I was early 20's-she was just generally bad at her job and at managing people) was one who constantly let everyone know she was a tough woman (not person, but woman) who made it in a male dominated industry, promoted and gave better reviews and bonuses to less competent female underlings, was openly hostile to male underlings, spent more time and effort doing those female networking and mentoring groups than actually working, and a litany of other things that were very specific to being female. She wasn't a great manager of people and processes in general but she could have been classified as adequate had she not been the biggest sexist I've ever worked with, and I've worked with some bang up male sexists. I'm sure those male sexists bosses would have been horrible to work under as a female as well, but they weren't the best male bosses either (and one of them probably ranked as the worst person I've ever worked under or have even heard stories about): this isn't a scientific statement, but people in the 21st who are sexist bigots probably aren't going to be the best people or leaders in general. It took me about 10 minutes of being near this female superior before I knew I needed to get the f out of there.

Obviously academics devote their entire careers to what makes a good manager and you can read a library full of books on the topic, but I'd say that thinking anything like "submit to her authority" is a bad way to start. Leadership is far from being a being a Marine Corp boot camp drill instructor. @"Frieds" had it right: you're going to listen to your boss and do what they say regardless, beyond that it's about respect vs. just putting up with someone and trying to leave them as soon as possible. But when you're a good manager and people respect you you're going to get a hell of a lot more and better work out of them. And they will "submit to your authority" and charge into a proverbial no man's land when you say to.

 

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