Women Make Better Managers than Men

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  1

  hongell

  03/07/08 | Report as spam

  The Better Manager - Women or Men

  Women are not necessarily better managers than men; nor are men necessarily better than women. There are many reasons why women are capable of managing people better than a man can. This doesn't mean that women are better managers, though. Many managers (men) are lazy, complacent, and unaware. If the implication from the article is that women are better managers because more of them are attending college, it is sorely misguided. Certainly, tools for managing more effectively and efficiently are learned there; maybe even honed to some extent. This is true for men and women though. The notion and realization of better managers is based upon many things, including perspective, and there is much truth to this.
  
  Women may be getting more opportunities to lead and manage because many more are educated. (Many were already capable years ago.) That isn't the real reason women are better managers or even good managers though. Women are finally being appreciated for their abilities to manage and lead partly due to being more educated, partly due to the appreciation (beneftis) of, demand for, and legal stipulations of diversification, and partly due to the fact that they have been pretty solid managers in the past; the ones that reared our children, kept our households (and us) organized, and had a vision of our family's success in daily "operations" and future preparedness for most challenges (as teachers and parents). This is by no means the limit to why they are good managers. Any list would have to be more personalized to the individual.
  
  To say women are better managers than men is a blanket statement. I have learned much from women - in many management positions (families to large organizations). I have compared my abilities to theirs to see how effective I am in their regard. Education, experience, self-actuality, and appreciation of others abilities are assets that benefit every manager. Being an effective follower, remaining attentive to individual personality traits, and keeping the organization's vision in mind are also endearing principles that should be used for every person who desires to become a good manager. This list is not inclusive, either.
  
  The bottom line here is that women are and have always been good managers. Are they better managers than men? I am sure some are are and some can be. Are men better managers than women? I am sure some are and some can be. Either way, the paradigm has shifted and society is not threatened by women managing or leading. Diversity education, an appreciation for individual ability, and a decreased feeling of being passed over by women in management and leadership positions within the workplace are important reasons why this is happening. I think they are all good and will provide for a more promising future.

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  2

  Michael Fitzgerald

  03/08/08 | Report as spam

  The better manager

  Thanks for your comment. That more women than men receiver higher education does not necessarily make them better managers than men. but in a workforce that places a premium on degrees, the leadership pool is a cinch to change in favor of women.
  
  I've had excellent managers of both genders, as well.
  
  michael

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  3

  myoriginals

  03/29/08 | Report as spam

  Very valuable info.

  Thank you for an excellent post. I agreed with it and found it more valuable than the article itself. I can only hope that the 20+ years I've struggled as an educated woman in Corporate America will yield more equality for my daughters. I feel the salary gap remains, and there is discrimination over moms v. dads when it comes to what's accepted when they want to partake in their kids lives and be good parents. Sorry for the tangent, but given the salary and discrimination issue came up in the article/posts, I think it's relevant.
  
  To the point of 'better managers', I wholeheartedly agree, it's the individual, NOT the gender. I am just happy women are no longer being passed over due to their gender.

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  Michael Fitzgerald

  03/31/08 | Report as spam

  valuable info

  Thanks for your thoughtful note. There have been some defensive comments on this post. 'better' is both subjective and relative, of course. Also, just because something overall trends true does not make it universal -- there will be awful managers who are women and brilliant ones who are men, and everything in between. Managing well is just plain challenging, regardless of gender. Also, skills that work in some situations fail miserably in others.
  
  What does seem clear is that in a knowledge-driven economy such as that in the U.S., if women continue to achieve higher levels of education, their presence at all levels of management will likely continue to increase, as well. Of course, many women have chosen to simply become the boss -- 41 percent of privately-held firms are majority-owned by women.
  
  This blog post suggests that female entrepreneurs are as likely to received investments as male ones (when they apply for it)
  http://www.usnews.com/blogs/americas-business/2007/8/13/glass-ceiling-female-entrepreneurs-thrive.html
  
  (a factoid repeated in this much less glowing discussion of venture capital investing and gender: http://www.portfolio.com/careers/features/2008/02/22/The-Old-Boy-VC-Network)
  
  
  
  Michael

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  5

  rigginsw3

  03/27/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  http://www.womensmedia.com/new/Rosener-corporate-board-women.shtml#Rosener
  
  Judy Rosener has been writing about this for several years
  
  Detailed Biography of Judy Rosener
  
  Dr. Rosener teaches and does research in the areas of men and women at work, cultural diversity, and business and government. She has published articles in academic journals and the popular press, and is a sought after speaker in both the public and private sector.
  
  She is the author of the path breaking article, "Ways Women Lead," (Harvard Business Review, November/December, l990), co-author of Workforce America! Managing Employee Diversity as a Vital Resource, and author of America's Competitive Secret, Women Managers. This book shows how leveraging the special talents of women can provide organizations with a competitive advantage. She is currently writing a new book about men and women working in the "new" work environment.
  
  Dr. Rosener was a columnist in the Sunday Business Section Los Angeles Times for five years and currently writes a column for the Los Angeles and Orange County Business Journal. For three years she was a commentator on the PBS TV show "Life & Times" on KCET in Southern California.
  
  Dr. Rosener received her BA from UCLA, her MA from California State University, Fullerton, and her Ph.D. from the Center for Politics and Economics, at the Claremont Graduate University.
  
  Dr. Rosener is a native Californian who lives in Newport Beach with her husband of 52 years. She is the mother of three adult children and four grandsons.

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  pooravis

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  Duh--- of course

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  Edsahara

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  Which explains why women have all of the CEO jobs.

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  8

  CA_Dreamer

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  Ah yes, BNET keeps the sex wars alive and well. The premise that women are inherently better managers is naive. Excellent managers can be found in either sex. But it makes for an interesting read.

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  9

  UniqueSteve

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  Dumb subject - meant to solicit reader comments to drive the ad revenue

  The real sad fact of corporate life is that there are rarely any good managers - male or female.

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  Michael Fitzgerald

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  dumb subject

  When I was a newly minted manager, I took some solace in something I heard on the radio around Christmas time. As I remember it, the newscaster noted that 70-odd percent of those surveyed thought their managers were bad (no gender mentioned). And, in a separate but equally telling item, it was reported that, the day after the holiday party, something like 80 percent of workers could not tell whether their manager was hungover.
  
  Michael Fitzgerald

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  11

  IMLaughlin

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  Women better managers? Not in my experience

  I've worked for many great leaders who are women. However, when it comes to management, especially middle management, women carry as much baggage as men -- it's just different baggage.

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  RMMOORE

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  LUDICROUS

  Generalizations made to sell books do not help anyone. There are many personality types; regardless of gender. Stop generalizing. Everyone comes with a unique set of strengths and weaknesses. Everyone must be judged individually.

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  reneewarren

  07/23/08 | Report as spam

  hmmm

  Regardless of gender, certain personality types make for better leaders.

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  14

  K2Colo

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  Light on facts, heavy on unsupported conclusions

  I guess we can chalk this one up to a weak effort to raise readership through controversy. I had hoped for a more thoughtful review of the issue.

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  15

  NSimosko

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  So Michael Fitzgerald states that women make better managers and that there are numerous reasons why the glass ceiling is breaking. I too believe that the glass ceiling is being compromised and that this will result in benefits to companies. Research shows this as I pointed out in my own blog on this topic: http://ninasimosko.com/blog/2008/03/07/want-higher-profits-smash-the-glass-ceiling/.
  
  I welcome discourse on this topic and believe that women today can make forward steps up the corporate ladder and can bring value along for the ride. Great piece Michael and a great and timely topic!!
  
  Nina Simosko
  www.ninasimosko.com

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  16

  asellers4@...

  03/28/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  Easily one of the sillier articles I've ever read. Many women managers (and investors) are terrible, at least as terrible as men.
  What happens when there's something heavy to lift, or a really hard math problem? Will those cute little marketing types roll up their designer sleeves and pitch in? No, because "The Bachelor" is on TV tonight.
  It is true that colleges are increasing, heavily, female enrollment. While I'm sure legal appreciates the constant influx of part-time attorneys, the fact remains that there's numbers to crunch, demanding customers to call, engineering models to calculate and high-level sales meetings in South America, Asia, Africa, and Detroit.
  And quite frankly, Dance majors and BA's in Psych or Education tend not to be so great at some of those things. Not every female is a math whiz or can handle travel and grouchy clients. I suppose this is why all those brilliant female asset managers and high-level women executives allow us our jobs.
  Nice try. But I think not.

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  17

  Michael Fitzgerald

  03/31/08 | Report as spam

  silliness

  where to start with this. Let's just say that nowhere in my post do I suggest that men will no longer have jobs or manage to run companies effectively. The idea that being a male helps one deal with grouchy clients more effectively is absurd on its face. And to suggest that all women are Dance majors, psych majors or incapable of examining a balance sheet and making an investment decision makes me wonder just what kind of women you hang around with.
  Perhaps you should start by checking out Michelle Leder's excellent site Footnoted.org.
  
  btw, I don't mean to denigrate dance majors, or suggest that they pick dance because they can't do more challenging things. Nor would I assume that a football player who majors in physical education is doing so because he can't handle math. Also, have you read any academic literature from the world of psychology recently? it might not be at the highest levels of math, but there's plenty of statistical analysis involved.
  
  oh, why am I bothering? You probably work at Bear Stearns. Or maybe LTCM. Thanks for nearly wrecking the world economy and then begging taxpayers for help.

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  18

  mrdt

  04/03/08 | Report as spam

  What?

  It's been my experience that women can be just as good/bad as men when it comes to management. It has more to do with personality than gender.

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  Shyam_verma

  04/05/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  Well...It is a touchy issue (particularly for women!) Frankly I have seen from my own experience (Have worked under some women bosses) that Women tend to be more defensive and insecure to let sub ordinates grow.
  
  Men on the other hand tend to be more open on such issues.

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  Michael Fitzgerald

  04/08/08 | Report as spam

  succcession

  Thanks for your post. My post was slightly tongue-in-cheek; as I have posted elsewhere on this thread, I recognize that management is challenging, and that being a woman does not automatically make you a better manager than being a man.
  
  One of the posts I linked to noted several tendencies women have that undermine their skills as managers. But I wouldn't say women are the only ones who feel threatened by subordinates. Plenty of male CEOs, for instance, don't have succession plans in place, or routinely force out their supposed successors.
  
  Michael

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  21

  brigitalajkovic

  04/08/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  I do not believe it is right to label who's better, since both genders are equally important ??? such comparison and judgment can lead to conflicts.
  I would be interesting to find out based on what studies has this conclusion been made - what statistics - which industry, age, characteristics, size of company, work experience, what teams???
  By my opinion it is a rather superstitious article, leading the readers to empower the opinion about competition between two genders.
  I haven't got anything against the capability of men or women, since the best performance is always achieved when there's harmony and a very good communication, no matter what and where we work.
  Tiara

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  patnamsurya

  05/19/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  yes you are cent percent correct to my knowledge

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  Federation 2005

  06/01/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  This has been known for a long time, since the 1990's and has been widely published on, including in psychological journals. It's a prevalent finding of management consultants throughout the world and has been discussed in business journals over the past 2 decades.
  
  In the US, as of 2004, the majority of the management field has tipped from male to female.
  
  Even something as seemingly innocuous as a search on the phrase "better managers than" -- without reference to who or what -- makes it clear that not only has gender emerged as a highly significant (and predominant) faultline, but that the conclusions align in the same direction.
  
  The full extent and worldwide breadth of this relative recent development is laid out (and explained) here
  
  http://federation.g3z.com/FedSeries/FallOfMankind/BornToRule.htm
  
  where the close link is drawn between this evolution has to emergence of the Post-Industrial world of Toffler's "Third Wave". There the development is set in a much larger perspective.
  
  To put it in simple terms, the Post-Industrial "Third Wave" world is out of balance in ways that favor women, and the restoration of that balance is (even now) driving forth the Fourth Wave.
  
  This is especially seen in places where the Second Wave industrial era left its heaviest imprint -- the former USSR and Eastern Bloc.
  
  There, not only do women predominate in management, but in the professions (as high as 70% in some countries). The gender gap in life expectancies has gone as high as 10 years in some countries, and the ratio of male to female suicides as high as 5:1. The men stayed in the time warp of the Second Wave era of the industrial-era-on-steroids world of the Communist era while women rushed headlong into the Third Wave filling the vacuum left behind.
  
  Only in recent times has there been the first signal of the balance starting to be restored. For instance, in colleges and universties throughout the world, the female/male ratio -- which has been shooting up toward and past 50% as the world transformed into the knowledge-based Third Wave society -- has begun to reverse back toward 50%, with young men now flocking to colleges in droves right behind the women.
  
  One will expect a similar restoration of balance to take place across the board as society transform from the geographic and geocentric civilizaiton of the Third Wave into the cosmographic civilization of the Fourth Wave. In particular, in the management field, the old "alpha" styles of command-and-control will once again become as equally valued (as they were in the Second Wave), as the "beta" style has become in today's Third Wave world.
  
  This is the distinctive feature that underlies the split between the genders in management performance. It's not so much that women are doing better, but that the definition of "better" changed from (male-favored) "alpha" in the Second Wave to (female-favored) "beta" in the Third Wave. It will come back into balance in the Fourth Wave.

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  24

  Michael Fitzgerald

  06/03/08 | Report as spam

  Re: women make better...

  Interesting post.
  
  Thanks,
  
  Michael Fitzgerald

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  25

  keithcruden

  08/06/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  This is a nonsense arguement, the best managers are the best managers regardless of gender. You may as well argue 'men are taller than women'.

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  26

  jenyj89

  08/15/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  I've been working 23+ years in federal civil service and had mostly male managers except for one female manager. She was very knowledgable in her field, a very smart woman but did everything in her power to take credit for everything her subordinates did and acted as though we were "out to get her" if we actually got credit for doing something, she was very defensive.
  
  I would NEVER work for another female manager/supervisor again if I could help it. I've seen too many promoted because they were female and not because they were qualified. I am in a "male dominated field" (environmental management) and work my tail off to prove that I am doing a good job...I don't need some woman coming along and under-cutting that because she is unsecure in her job position or herself; I'm too old, worked too long and just don't want to deal with it. I've also found that most women on the job site are very "catty" and I have a much more "male-type" personality. I've worked around guys all my working life, being the only woman in the office most times and deal with things as a man most times (I hear that from women all the time), so I don't make a good fit with another woman in the office.
  
  The women I get along well with at work are what most other women would call "real butch" or "tough". We say what we want, call a pig a pig and get down to business....just like the men do. I don't like to dress up a pig and call it "friend" just because it apeases someone else, as I feel alot of women do to get ahead. I'd rather stay down in the trenches, where the real work goes on and be true to myself.....and work for a MAN.

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  27

  Ramses the Great

  08/29/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  I must say that this is the topic that seems to have created the larger number of opinions. Not surprised that to be the case.
  
  I have had the opportunity to see men and women in factory management position, both were generally successful but in different management approaches. I personnaly believe that the major weakness that men have is generally their poor emocional capability. It should be interesting to compare the QE in the general female and male managers population. Women are better to handle emotional situations and this help a lot to manage people.

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  28

  inferiorXy

  09/23/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  Yes, Women make better managers. They are better at
  communicating, nurturing, planning, seeing the bigger
  picture, motivating and inspiring. Managers need to be
  empathetic - - another reason Women make better
  managers. - inferiorXy, @ mistressdolly

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  29

  inferiorXy

  10/20/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  Regarding the ???process of evolution,??? it is in fact sexual
  adaptation that created the male of the species in all
  modern complex animals. Ancient forms of life either had
  no male, or the male was very small and simple.

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  30

  Michael Fitzgerald

  10/30/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  I'm not so sure ancient forms of life had females, per se. This is a little out of my realm, but that doesn't sound right

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  31

  g661

  11/10/08 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  I think women are better managers than men. First, women are more responsibility than men. Women can take care in every point of work and when it has mistake, women can management in enterprise-wide.
  
  Secondly, women are more real than men. Women can get inside everyone in company. It makes employees have morale to work hard and listen to.
  
  Next, women are good listener. Women can listen to employees who have ploblems and help them.
  
  Only leadership can't make great manager. Great manager mustn't understant to only work, but has to understant both people and work.

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  32

  romielittrell@...

  08/07/09 | Report as spam

  No, women do not as a rule make better managers, leaders, or subordinates

  I worked more than 30 years in the IT industry (the longest stint, 14 years, with IBM). I worked multinationally but always headquartered in the USA, then 4 years as an HR manager in China, and then 11 years as a university professor in Switzerland, Germany and New Zealand, teaching and researching International Management. In industry my best managerial leader was an IBMer, a black male; the 2nd best was a tie between a white male in the USA and a white male German. My worst manager was a tie between a white male in the USA and a white woman IBMer in the USA. I find no relationships amongst nationality, race, competence and gender.
  
  I teach in the area of managment and leadership across cultures, gender being a sub-culture in all societies. I read several articles each semester concerning gender, management, and leadership. Those that approach the issues with an open mind find that both men and women are poor to excellent managerial leaders, and that excellent leaders, both men and women, tend to have similar managerial leadership styles.
  
  Studies by researchers who obviously believe from the outset of their research project that women are better managerial leaders tend to have outcomes that prove that.

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  33

  flashking

  08/26/09 | Report as spam

  RE: Women Make Better Managers than Men

  I recently came across this article
  http://www.ceveni.com/2009/08/which-boss-you-prefer-male-or-female.html
  
  it has totally different story to say but from my own experience i think men are better managers than women