Flexibility an Imperative in 2015 as Women Begin to Dominate Business
Female Leadership Style
Times.com recently published their ‘Future of Work’ article with predictions on how jobs will change and evolve by 2025. An interesting observation made was the likelihood that the future of work will see an increase in women dominating business. This is in fact already happening on a global scale- over half the corporate leaders in China are women, and India has more women CEOs than the US.
In the US we have seen women lead companies in historically male-dominated industries such as IBM's CEO Virginia Rometty, and Hewlett-Packard's CEO Meg Whitman to name a few.
According to Catalyst.org, women currently hold 5.2 percent of Fortune 500 CEO positions and 5.4 percent of Fortune 1000 CEO positions. While it is obvious the glass ceiling still exists on an executive level, this is also likely to change as the white-collar economy moves towards a less hierarchical model, as predicted by Times.com. The article in Times.com asked:
“Are the women themselves making the difference? Or are these smart firms that make smart moves, like promoting women? There is growing evidence that in today's marketplace the female management style is not only distinctly different but also essential.”
Female leadership style, or ‘transformational leadership style’ is heavily engaged and motivational, with female leaders described as “consensus builders, conciliators and collaborators.” As the future of work sees the emergence of a global decentralised workforce, female management skills will be highly sought after where executives will be required to skilfully manage remote teams. Diversity across gender, race, and indeed time-zones will help foster a more creative and collaborative workforce that is more adept to meeting the challenges of the future of work.
Companies that provide female-friendly working environments will find flexibility has indeed become ‘a compelling business strategy’ that will help boost productivity and retain talented female leaders. And it should be noted that providing flexible working environments is not only attractive to women, but also Millennials entering the workforce who demand a mobile and flexible work environment, as well as the Boomer’s approaching retirement who are now looking to scale down to part-time work.
Perhaps the historical negative connotations of the ‘work life balance’ phrase in the corporate world should be renamed, as suggested by Times.com’s Claire Shipman to ‘Make More Money’. This is really the point of these disruptive changes in the white-collar economy- the formula for a competitive business model in the globalised era is one that needs to adapt for the growing decentralised and virtual marketplace, where 'the demand for female management skills will be stronger than ever', and where the focus will be on results as opposed to time spent within office walls.
Read the full article at: socialmediatoday.com
Patty Block, President and Founder of The Block Group, established her company to advocate for women-owned businesses, helping them position their companies for strategic growth. Charting the course for impactful, sustainable, profitable businesses, the beacon is control: of your strategic direction, your money, your time, your staffing, and your ability to bring in business. The Block Group brings together the people, resources and ideas that build results.
Business management consultant.
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