In: Economics
Why are there less women leaders than men in business? What are the structural reasons that lead to the glass ceiling
When men and women develop and continue their education, they have similar desires to seek a good professional career with nearly equivalent rates of accomplishment — though some research say women do a little bit better. Nevertheless, as they step through their professions, women are usually paid less for comparable jobs, do not rise to the highest levels of leadership, and frequently lose their drive and opt out. For this there is no clear explanation, and no simple solution. The loss of so many competent women from the higher levels of our workforce is taking a toll on organizations , particularly when we are seeking leaders who can manage organizations through high rates of change and uncertainty.
When women enter the workplace and try to progress, grow and use their talents and experience, they follow short-term approaches to fit in their job but eventually erode their sense of self-confidence and motivation. Serifsoy points out how women face more and different pressures than men, and how they face a very different cultural environment. Just the tip of the iceberg are existing high-profile examples of how women face hostile working conditions. There are some systemic institutional initiatives to grow women leaders. For example, France and Norway have required that women sit on boards of public corporations, and it is proposed elsewhere. This helps to a point but the internal and constant position burden can not be dealt with by systems. Serifsoy says how a woman who began her tenure as a member of a prestigious board was asked who looked after her children
The glass ceiling, the invisible obstacle to advancement faced by women at the top workplace levels, remains as intractable as ever, and is a drag on the economy. "In a world where talent is fairly distributed among men and women, an economy that does not completely tap into women's leadership skills is inherently inefficient, Talent is left on the table when women are not put in leadership roles, and the economy suffers.Up to 10 per cent of the gender gap may account for psychological disparities between men and women. Much of current research concludes that women are more at-risk than men. The ability to take chances helps workers compete for better paying jobs, and higher salaries are negotiated. Whether men and women are born with different risk attitudes or the differences are learned, recognizing nature 's role versus caring is crucial to closing the gap.
Although family-friendly work policies such as longer and paid maternity leave, paternity leave, flexible part-time or reduced working hours and the ability to work remotely help resolve the need for more flexibility for women, they do not solve the earnings gap.