Women only leadership development programs

I went to nursery school (now pre-school) and public elementary school with boys. I have two brothers who are younger siblings. I was taller than my brothers and my male classmates until I was 14 or 15.  I was smarter than most of them, too.  I like men.  I like the stimulation of a different mindset and a different kind of energy.  I admire the “get it done and get on with it” approach to business, and most other administration.   I have worked all my adult life and have been married (not to one person) for that period as well.  So, I’ve spent all of my life in close proximity to men.

Nevertheless, I appreciated going to a girl’s private school for my last three years of high school and my first two years of college.  There was something about being able to focus on academic performance without the daily distraction of hormones that served me well.  I was struck by a similar thought as I was reviewing an article about the theory and design of women’s leadership development programs.  While hormones might play less of a factor in women’s success at the highest corporate levels, the assumption that a woman must follow a male model of leadership–assertive/aggressive, competitive, without emotion or demonstrative emotion–in order to succeed in organizational life, undoubtedly contributes to the low percentages of women CEOs, board members and corporate officers of the largest U.S. and global companies.

It was with great interest that I read that a woman’s “self-view  as a leader bolsters self-confidence” and in turn increases her desire to lead.  While I grant you that this is a blinding glimpse of the obvious, many of us find that our self-view is overshadowed by the culture’s and the organization’s view of who we should be.  Our sense of purpose may collide with the organization’s sense of who we are capable of being.  To top these challenges off, at least in my own corporate career, the worst places to look for affirmation were in other women.  I hope this has changed.

In the weeks that follow I want to continue to think about how we as a nation could lead the world in creating supportive environments for bright capable women who want to lead.  Any ideas you’d like to contribute?

Reference:

Ely, R.J., Ibarra, H., & Kolb, D.M.  (2011).  Taking gender into account: Theory and design for women’s leadership development programs.  Academy of Management Learning & Education.  10(3), 474-493