Are outdated gender beliefs keeping women out of leadership?

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There is a very good chance that you personally believe that women make great leaders. But your assumption that others don’t feel the same way may be preventing them from getting to the top. 

That’s the main finding of new research out from LeanIn.org that shows that while 53% of American voters are “very ready” or “extremely ready” for a woman president, only 16% believe most Americans share that same enthusiasm. A majority of Americans — 58% — also think that it will be harder for a woman to win. 

The disconnect between personal beliefs and presumptions made about how others feel could have implications outside of politics for women looking to scale the corporate ladder as well, LeanIn.Org Co-Founder and CEO Rachel Thomas told me in an interview last week. 

“It's the same types of bias that is holding women back in the workplace,” said Thomas. “It's just a preconceived notion about what we expect when we think of women and men and leadership.” 

While getting a woman into the White House requires voter confidence that she is electable, getting a woman into the C-Suite requires confidence in her performance as an executive. LeanIn’s research showed that almost half of voters think that male candidates are more electable, largely because all of our U.S. presidents have been men. 

Similarly, women in the workplace are held to unfair standards compared to their male peers.

“We tend to underestimate women's performance slightly and overestimate men's performance slightly,’ said Thomas. “We also tend to hire men based on potential and women you hold them to what they've already accomplished.”

And whether a woman is running for public office or competing for a promotion, there is a “likeability” factor that they both face. Voters believe that men in the presidential race are more likeable than women and similar research proves that it is more challenging for women in positions of power to be seen as likeable. 

In terms of solutions, Thomas suggests asking probing questions if someone does have a negative response to a woman who is up for promotion. If they say things like she seems “unqualified” for the job, follow up and ask why. Thomas also recommends workers ask themselves a simple question when they find they are responding negatively to a woman in the office: Would I have the same response if a man did the same thing?

“Anything that gets people to stop and pause and challenge their own knee-jerk responses will help illuminate bias,” she said. 

What’s Working

JOIN US LIVE. Warby Parker Co-Founder and Co-CEO Neil Blumenthal joined us in the studio to discuss how the direct-to-consumer eyewear maker avoided a lot of the culture pitfalls of some of it's startup peers. We also talked about how he prioritizes his time with two young kids at home as well as a wife who is the co-founder of a growing business herself.

Minorities are the new majority. For the first time in U.S. history, people of color make up the majority of new hires. Minority women are largely responsible for the uptick in workers, which is encouraging given that 45% of women of color are often the only or one of the only people of their race or ethnicity in the room at work. [Washington Post] 

One in five. The share of women on publicly-traded boards has risen to 20%. A mandate in California requiring female representation on all public boards is partly responsible, along with countless studies that show more diverse boards leads to better business outcomes. [WSJ]

Power couples. Some 89% of women and 70% of men are a part of dual-career couples. New research out from McKinsey proves that even if your partner works, it doesn’t impact your aspirations to make it to senior management: More workers in dual-career couples have C-suite goals than do workers who are the sole breadwinners for their family. I asked members on LinkedIn to weigh in on why that is:

What Needs Work

Ditch the personality test. At many companies, taking a personal assessment of sorts is a common way for teams to “bond” and get to know each other. Yet as diversity and inclusion becomes increasingly important in the workplace, these tests can unintentionally isolate workers who don’t fit the mold of the rest of their team. [NYTimes] 

Who’s Pushing Us Forward

‘Nothing can be changed until it is faced.’ In her new book The Memo, Minda Harts outlines the barriers women of color face in corporate America. Solving the problem will require open conversations about race at work as well as companies investing in their minority talent. [LinkedIn] 

What topics do you want to discuss next week? Let me know in the comments below using #WorkingTogether