It’s a SHE Thang: Women in Business are Kind Of a Big Deal

I AM WOMAN- Watch me lead. Just in time for the recognition and celebration of Women’s History Month, The White House officially released “The State of American Women” and I must say, Sisters are doing it for themselves and, specifically, in the boardroom, business has never been better. But, what makes women such a vital component to the success and viability of today’s businesses? Is the post recession-era business model better suited for the fairer sex? And, what is it about the management style and work environment of women-owned businesses that trumps that of their male counterparts? Let’s dissect this “new-age working woman” phenomenon, shall we. Job Creation and Financial Domination- Used to be a “HE Thing” but now it’s a “SHE Thang” A recent article on Forbes.com claims that “Women are becoming the nation's job-creation engine,” starting and sustaining small businesses and establishing new jobs at a rate that far exceeds males. Female-owned small businesses, now just 16% of total U.S. employment, will be responsible for creating one-third of the 15.3 million new jobs anticipated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics by 2018. This job growth projection is based on factors that include faster growth rates of female-owned vs. male-owned businesses; higher college graduation rates by women than men; predicted growth of industry sectors and occupations traditionally dominated by women; and the fact that female-owned businesses, are more often self-funded than male-owned ones, therefore ending a reliance on bank financing at a time when lending practices are more restricted. When it comes to CEO pay at the top companies in the world, a handful of elite female executives are earning more, just ask Yahoo's Carol Bartz, who pulled in $47.2 million last year; Kraft's Irene Rosenfeld's, who brought home $26.3 million; and Indra Nooyi, the CEO of Pepsi Co., who earned $15.8 million. Bloomberg News recently reported that “Sixteen women heading companies in the S&P 500 Index averaged earnings of $14.2 million in their latest fiscal years, 43 percent more than the male average. The women who were also CEOs in 2008 got a 19 percent raise in 2009 -- while the men took a 5 percent pay cut.” Resourcefulness, Empathy and Inclusion as a Diligent Approach to Business Management- It’s a She Thang… Not Really a HE Thing Let’s face it, men and women are different. We have unique personality, physical, mental and psychological traits that set us apart, so why keep acting like we’re the same? Studies have found that female small-business owners and employees execute a deeply engaged, inclusive and horizontal approach to business, counteracting the top-down, command-and-control style long practiced by male-dominant businesses. When it comes to operating, running or working in most industries, women are shown to be concerned about:

• Creating a positive working environment and opportunities for all


• Employee satisfaction and happiness; giving employees reasons to feel part of a team


• Valuing the range of business information and input available to them from sources such as the Internet, professional associations, hired consultants and employees


• Having a succession plan in place and preparing for retirement


• Keeping the customers they have


• Cultivating customers who appreciate what they do


• Meaningfully differentiating their businesses from their competitors'


• Taking advantage of economic conditions, and


• Knowing what other businesses in their like are doing to improve, succeed or fail

Male dominated business is typically authoritative in nature, brash and competitive and tends to stifle creativity and collaboration- undesirable for the post-recession business model.

WINNING Because Failure is Not an Option- The Most Important SHE Thang

Women have been undervalued, underpaid and underutilized in business since its very beginning. As a result, women have had to adapt, show strength and ability, and in many cases work twice as hard as their male counterparts to be recognized as an asset.

A 2007 MSNBC.com survey suggests that one of the most damning obstacles blocking women from the boardroom is negative attitudes about women leaders — attitudes women themselves still harbor.

“One cannot live in a sexist society without absorbing some of those messages, which make women feel worse about themselves and suspicious of other women," said Janet Lever, a professor of sociology at California State University in Los Angeles, who helped conceive the survey. "The enemy is omnipresent cultural messages, not women themselves."

“It’s all about preconceived notions of the leader image,” says Claire Babrowski, the former CEO of RadioShack. “When people close their eyes and visualize the top dogs sitting around the corporate table,” she explains, “We picture men in leadership roles. As a woman you already have this hurdle to overcome.”

But we DO overcome. With more than 10 million female-owned businesses, more than 66 million women employed in the United States and by recently surpassing men and becoming the majority of the workforce for the first time in our country’s history, we continue to show and prove.

Like I said, it’s a SHE Thang!