Jack and Suzy’s Advice to Women
Jack Welch raised many a female eyebrow and vocal chords when he and Suzy Welch recently addressed an audience of executive women. According to a WSJ article Jack advised career minded business women to:
- over-deliver
- take on tough assignments
- bypass special networking groups and programs for women
- hold this truth to be self-evident: There is no such thing as work-life balance. If you want to make it to the very top, you have to devote yourself and your time to be the best of the best
- forgo a mentor in favor of having everyone as a mentor
Suzy assigned most of the cultural bias against women to the fact that as men’s careers are taking off and up, women are parenting children with doe-eyes and tear streaked cheeks, begging Mom not to go to work. Suzy suggests women account for only three percent of Fortune 500 CEOS, because leaders do not want to invest in someone who cannot give it her all, all the time, and for all time. Dear Suzy, welcome to the 21st century and please read on.
What’s Missing from Jack’s Advice?
Jack’s advice was practical, albeit dramatically and not so wisely stated, as in calling women’s groups “victims’ units”. That reference aside, there is much truth in what Mr. Welch says, and the similar truths authored by the women CEOs who responded to his comments.
But some important scenery is missing from the picture that Mr. and Mrs. Welch paint on their shared canvas.
High achieving, driven careerists, both men and women, would be wise to focus on work-life integration, not balance. The latter implies some ideal way to carve life, and oneself, into equal portions. That Is a myth. But can the high level executive, leave work in the middle of the day to watch a child’s play, on occasion? Yes. Can they work late at night after spending time with family? Yes. Can the high achieving woman have a spouse who makes his career secondary to hers, while he anchors the family and home? Yes, and according to a 2012 Businessweek article, seven of the 18 women CEOs of Fortune 500 companies had a stay-at-home husband, at some point, to do just that.
Are 24/7 Jobs a Sustainable Model?
Is it possible that working 24/7 is not the only way to go? It seems we see ourselves in the same way we view our natural resources – an infinite supply of energy, even though science tells us differently. Is it possible that extreme jobs are a self-fulfilling fantasy resulting from overblown sense of our own importance? If more women make it to positions where corporate culture is determined, will they set a different pace and expectation? Might we see new ideas, such as CEO partners who share responsibilities? Or will women become fish who swim in the 24/7 waters of self-made importance? Will they see and do business differently, by way of a more collaborative, empowered model, where important decisions are made when, where, and by whom it is most appropriate, versus by the person holding the title? The chances that they will do so, in my view, are better than the chances that those who created this system will do so.
What About Mentors and Sponsors?
Mr. Welch misses the boat when he describes a mentor as someone to emulate, and therefor dismisses the notion of seeking a mentoring relationship. A good mentor helps the mentee live and work comfortably in his/her own shoes, which is exactly what Mr. Welch advises in speeches rendered elsewhere.
Mentoring ranks among the five top career development approaches in talent management surveys. Mentors become sponsors who open doors of opportunity, and introduce you to powerful people who help you pave your career path and more. While over-delivering gets you a ticket to the game, it won’t earn you a sky-box seat at the top. For that, you also need to be visible to the right people, and they need to enjoy spending time with you around the table.
I’ve spoken with a number of women who assumed if they performed exceedingly well, promotions would show up. Sometime later they realize all the years of eating lunch alone, head down, doing excellent work results in more years of eating lunch alone. Opportunities arise by talking to more people, aka networking, finding mentors and sponsors, understanding which business problems are critical to the company, identifying where you can make a difference. and becoming visible while doing so. So, as Jack says, be laser focused on performance and tackle important problems. But do so in such a way that people who can make a difference to your career know who you are, what you do, and what you are capable of doing.
Jack Welch, did you have mentors and sponsors on the road to the top?
And Suzy
Have you been out of the workplace for so long that you fail to realize women at the top use many resources to help them and their families? Have a listen to recent conversations with two women, one from the U.S., the other from Hong Kong.
U.S. “I opted out of Fortune companies after I had my second child and realized opportunities were not being presented to me, because of an unspoken assumption that I would leave the workforce, or at least make my job a second priority.” When she left, U.S. woman did not become a stay-at-home Mom but COO of a start-up.
Hong Kong: “It is normal for women in Hong Kong to have live in help. But I work for a large U.S. based company, and they seem to assume that I can’t handle the travel and responsibilities of a more senior level role. They are very wrong about this.”
And Suzy, what if someone had made the assumption that because you are a woman you would not make work a priority. Would you have had the opportunity to be Editor in Chief, Harvard Business Review?
In summary, Mr. and Mrs. Welch are telling the truth, but there is more to that truth than what they are telling.