Women and Leadership

I have never really worked in the corporate world.

At least I have never worked for a big international company with multiple layers of management.

In fact I left employment in 2001, pretty much for good (with one very short and frustrating return to employment, but that’s another story!).  I left my well paid job; first to study an MBA full time and then to co-found my first business.  So almost 25 years of self employment.  

My early career was in the hotel and travel industry; where there are a lot of women (and gay men) in management roles; so I count myself lucky.  I had very good male and female managers; and was given responsibility for other people very quickly.

When I listen to other women talking about their corporate careers, the pressure, the burnout and the impossible choices that they have had to make between being successful at work and caring for a family, I am so happy to have gone down the route I have, despite the many many setbacks I have experienced.

Women in the Corporate World

I was fascinated to understand more about what it’s like for women working in the corporate world and what changes there have been over the last 25 years.  So I read two books about women who worked in the US tech industry with very different viewpoints:

Lean In by Sheryl Sanberg

AND

Lean Out by Marissa Orr.  

Both women worked at Facebook. Sheryl Sandberg was COO from 2008 to 2022 following 7 years at Google and Marissa Orr was there from 2016 for 18 months following 13 years at Google.

After reading these books I felt even more strongly that as an ambitious woman who wants to balance business success with family commitments; running your own business, your way is the right choice.

Women in Leadership Roles

Sheryl Sandberg and Marissa Orr had very differing views about women in leadership roles.

Lean In

Sheryl Sandberg was one of the most visible female executives in tech and encouraged women to be more assertive, ambitious and confident.  She believes that:

🙋‍♀️ Women hold themselves back and it is down to us to change

🙋‍♀️ Women lack ambition and confidence

🙋‍♀️ Women should “lean in” to opportunities

Lean Out

Marissa Orr challenged the assumptions behind what women actually want. She believes that:

🙋‍♀️Women don’t always want to work in a traditional corporate structure

🙋‍♀️Women are not aligned to the male dominate definitions of success

🙋‍♀️Women don’t need to change, but the system does

So they offer two visions for ambitious women in the corporate world.  

Women Entrepreneurs

So given the challenges that women face in big companies; it is not surprising that so many women are turning to entrepreneurship.  By building your own business you can define the rules, the values, the goals.  Not only that but you have the flexibility, autonomy and purpose that a corporate career lacks.

While leaning in still applies to entrepreneurs (being bold, taking risks, credibility issues); we can define our own rules, our own values and our vision for our business.  Not only that, entrepreneurship offers flexibility, autonomy, and purpose that traditional paths often lack.

We may still face many of the same external challenges (funding gaps, gender bias, credibility issues), but the concept of “climbing the ladder” is irrelevant. Instead it is possible to create a business built around empathy, collaboration, or sustainability; and these are areas where we as women excel.

Challenges for Women Entrepreneurs

Despite the freedom entrepreneurship offers, there are still barriers to be overcome

😞 Access to funding: women-led startups receive a fraction of VC funding.

😞 Social expectations: women still take on a high proportion of unpaid care. In hetrosexual couples women are more than twice as likely as men to be the primary caregiver,

😞 And a term I have only just heard of myself is the Sandwich Carer of which there are 1.25 million in the UK (68% are women) who care for both an older relative and a child under 16.

So while "leaning out" of corporate may be freeing, it doesn't mean the broader cultural issues disappear.

Busy Business Owner

Is this you?  

Running a business is not easy; especially when it starts to grow.  Often we find ourselves stretched thin, working all hours with less time to ourselves than we had in the corporate world.

These early days are tough; but as you grow and build a team around you life gets easier.  Recruiting the best people you can afford and ensuring they are aligned to your vision and values will result in a sustainable business that can run without you; giving you the option to step back from the day to day operation or sell the business.

This is exactly what I have done and what I now help other women to do through my B.U.I.L.D Framework; taking them on a road that I have travelled.

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