NEWS RELEASE: FOR IMMEDIATE DISTRIBUTION
Conference provides insights in what it takes for women to become great leaders
Shards of crystal, symbolizing the breaking of the glass barrier that keeps women from top level corporate jobs, -- this is the emblem for the recent Inamed Academy Women's Leadership Conference, which was held in Sherman Oaks, March 23 to 24, 2006.
The logo symbolizes the difficult challenges women often face when trying to break into the top echelons of corporate America.
The conference’s keynote speakers were the among the nation’s best and brightest entrepreneurs, mostly women and a few male executives, who’s accomplishments and experience provide noteworthy testament to what can be achieved in business.
The speakers graciously shared their insights on business management providing golden nuggets of wisdom, strategies and stories about how they were able to rise to top of their chosen profession, without having compromised their core values.
Lois Phillips, a management consultant, and co-author of "Women Seen and Heard: Lessons Learned from Successful Speakers," and Fran Lotery, a consultant and co-author of "Live Inside Out-Not Upside Down," co-chaired the conference event.
Marcy Carsey, a producer best known for hit television shows such as "The Cosby Show," "Roseanne," "Grace Under Fire" and "That '70s Show," and founding partner with Oprah Winfrey of the Oxygen network, was among the 11 keynote speakers.
Carsey said that while leadership demands risk-taking, character plays a vital role in effective management. "It's a lot about character," Carsey said, "not so much about skills, but courage (and) responsibility for other people." She explained that the ability to take responsibility derives from personal security.
"You are who you are at home, at work and at play," Carsey said.
Patty DeDominic, CEO of PDQ Careers and Executive Search, shared research results about differences between women and men. “Women business owners,” she said, “are less likely to take risks, but are considered slightly more credit-worthy than men. Their businesses are also two times as likely as men's to still be operating after five years.”
The courage to take risks was also important for DeDominic. "For every person who said I've got what it takes, 20 said I was crazy," she said.
Ms. Carsey used to tell her employees to go home at 6:30 p.m, but now has a more tolerant attitude towards the demands of home life.
"If you are not leading a full, rich life, what are you bringing to the work life," Carsey said. "A good manager is probably a good parent."
Judy Rosener, professor of business at UC Irvine and author of "America's Competitive Secret: Women Managers," presented research results on gender leadership differences.
Rosener told her own story of how she broke through the glass ceiling in academia. For decades, universities were dominated by men. Rosener went to college in her late 30s, earned a master's degree in political science. She even taught a class at the university, but she wasn't paid. Even after she earned her PhD at the age of 50 and became a professor at the school, she continued to work for free. Finally, a colleague chastised her for not demanding a salary.
“Gender differences matter,” she says. “For many years, female professors were not considered as worthy as male counterparts.”
“Women lead differently,” Rosener said. “but are equally valuable."
Conventional businesses place value on attributes seen as typically male-rationality, independence, aggressiveness and competitive spirit, she said.
Rosener’s own research found that traditional "top-down" decision making styles are viewed as a dominantly male trait. Intuition, collaboration and the ability to deal comfortably with ambiguity are generally viewed as female traits. Until recently, they have also been considered to be nontraditional styles of management.”
"We have to acknowledge the differences and value the differences," Rosener said.
Lois Phillips discussed the gender differences in speech, language and style with regard to how women executives lead and how men and women approach public speaking.
"When a woman stands up to face an audience, she has two jobs to do: not only does she have to send a message and be seen and heard, but she has to gain credibility as the voice of authority," Phillips said. But "men start with it."
“Women tend to be more attentive and less direct and they use self-deprecating humor,” Phillips said. “Men tend to be more direct, more opinionated, and less process-oriented."
Ms. Lotery discussed the importance of "emotional intelligence" in leadership and described the results of research that found that “women bring unique strengths to the table and are highly cooperative "good team players."
"What women want is choice and flexibility," Lotery said.
A panel of male executives also offered insights into women function as leaders in companies.
The men's panel was called "Advancing Women into C-Level Roles: What Are They Thinking?" Four corporate leaders were featured-;; and
Michael McGuire, president/CEO of Affinity Bank in Ventura said, "I learned a lot more about managing people from women than men."
He told of a female manager whom he promoted to assistant vice president 25 years ago. She eventually asked to be demoted, saying she was uncomfortable judging employees' work performance.
Blaise Simqu, president/CEO of Sage Publications in Thousand Oaks, said two of the three most creative top level employees at Sage Publishing are women, but he doesn't believe their success has anything to do with gender. He simply believes they are capable and easy to work with. Simqu, however, may be more comfortable working with women than are many men. His grandmother opened the Buckley School, the oldest private school in the San Fernando Valley, his mother was a career woman, and he has three sisters. "I was surrounded," he said.
Myron Jones, president of NMB Technologies Corp., a Chatsworth manufacturer of precision mechanical and electrical components, got a chance to see women operate several divisions of his firm after the 1994 Northridge earthquake destroyed his Chatsworth headquarters. He said 40 percent of the senior management staff at the time were women. Women now represent half of top management.
"Women were much more broad-minded," Jones said. "It was startling to me," he said of the female approach to problem solving. He learned firsthand how women dealt with problems when meetings were conducted at individual homes, he said.
Nicholas Teti, President and CEO of Inamed, doesn't believe there are gender characteristics so much as management characteristics in general. He values employees who take a "no excuse" approach to business and those who command mutual respect. Creativity also tops his list of qualities to look for in upper management.
"The status quo is the enemy," he said. Teti said he prefers the technique of people who focus on three to four top priorities rather than 15 or more "objectives."
Teti and the event's organizers differed in their appraisals of on-the-job gender differences. Lotery, Phillips and other female panelists believe that women are natural team players, but Teti says the same is true for men, who grow up playing competitive sports.
"Men understand innately what it means to be part of a team," Teti said.
Jones added that he likes to hire people based on what he calls the "three bones."
"Backbone," he said, is needed in top jobs because the company has to trust employees to stand up for what's right. A "funny bone" is equally necessary, he said, but a "wishbone" may be the most important of all. Top level managers must have a dream or a vision for the company.
Simqu said he hires staff based on "getting the job done." "We're desperate for people who will absolutely deliver," he said. "Do what you say you're going to do when you say you're going to do it." This simple tenet, he said, will distinguish an employee from 90 percent of their colleagues, he said.
When asked what three qualities he looks for when interviewing senior management candidates, McGuire said credentials do matter. Enthusiasm is also important-"you can't train enthusiasm."
Finally, a positive attitude is highly desirable. "A couple of attitude hand grenades can destroy your whole day," he said.
Lotery said she was "astounded" to hear that some of the men didn't think there were many gender differences. Teti agreed, and said the mentality of the "old boys' club" in boardrooms is alive and well.
The speakers also touched on a few hard and fast rules of business etiquette.
First, never break the chain of command.
Teti said there is nothing worse than an employee who tries to undermine a co-worker.
"The culture of any company is set by the CEO," Jones said.
Jones said that while women still face a glass ceiling in the United States, in his firm's Japanese subsidiary that ceiling is more of a "reinforced concrete barrier."
When a visiting top Japanese executive saw how competent America's women executives were, Jones said the man pledged to remove some of the barriers when he returned to Japan.
The future looks bright.
-end-
This news release may be used freely in whole or part. Additional information and interviews with Lois Phillips and Fran Lotery available on request.
CONTACT INFO: Lois Phillips and Fran Lotery, Conference Co-chairs
805.962.8083 or 805.969 3254
Appreciation and thanks to Ms. Stephanie Bertholdo and Acorn Publishing for her timely contributions and excellent reporting of the conference highlights.
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