This week it was announced the healthcare system in which I work appointed a female Chief Medical Officer. It took 100 years of a health system’s existence to appoint a female to this position. It begged the question, what took so long?
What I found is there are 3 contributing factors why it takes women so much longer than their male counterparts to reach the highest levels of leadership. First, there is what is referred to as the human capital difference, (Eagly & Carly, 2004, 2007). This deficiency focuses on women and the lack of education, training and work experience in comparison to their male counterparts. One contibution to less work experience is that women are still the primary caregiver to their children, which creates a lapse in continual work experience. Eventhough, women are equal or slightly exceeding men in obtaining professional and doctoral degrees (Northouse, p.399), there is still at a deficit in securing top level management positions.
Secondly, there are gender differences that hinder women’s rise to the top level management positions. Women are less likely to promote themselves and negotiate for what they want. Reaching the top takes a village and not something one can achieve alone. They must be able to obtain the right positions, experiences, and resources that are readily available to their male counterparts. (Northouse, p. 403).
Finally, prejudice exists in the form of stereotypical behavior toward women who aspire to be top level leaders. There is conflict for the woman leader to be tough and decisive and at the same time not presenting too manly. The perception is women are less qualified and harsh criticisms of female leaders for not being feminine enough, thus limiting the leadership behavior acceptable for female leaders (Northouse, 2015).
In conclusion, as both men and women study leadership and it’s effectiveness whether the leader is male or female, there will be a paradigm shift and the leader will be seen for the positive contributions one can make to the orgainization.
Reference:
Northouse, P.G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications.