This book explores how women leaders negotiate five challenges critical to their success. It is written for individuals. But as we interviewed women leaders and captured their insights, we realized that organizations, too, could learn something from the women whose stories we have featured. While their observations may not apply to all women or even to all organizations, the consensus was broad on one point. Organizations need to recognize the nature and intensity of the testing that women appointed to leadership positions are likely to face.
The Test | What Drives It? | How Does It Affect a Woman in a Leadership Role? |
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The Token Test | The assumption that gender has something to do with a woman's appointment to a leadership role | She must prove that gender had nothing to do with her appointment. |
The Double-Bind Test | The stereotypes that equate leadership with masculine ("strong") behavior and devalue relational ("women's") work | She is forced to choose between being a leader and being a woman and, regardless of her choice, can be judged harshly. |
The Fitness Test | The notion that women may not have the seasoning or the line experience required of leaders | She must demonstrate her fitness for the role, especially if her credentials are atypical. |
The Right Stuff Test | The question of whether women have the skills, commitment (and backbone) to lead | Skills may not be equally valued or rewarded when practiced by men and women and women can have a difficult time proving that they have what it takes to get the job done. |