Leadership
Increasing Women's Leadership in Academic Medicine: Report of the AAMC Project Implementation Committee. Academic Medicine, v77 n10 p1043-61 Oct 2002. Discusses results of information-gathering by the Association of American Medical Colleges' (AAMC's) Increasing Women's Leadership Project Implementation Committee and offers several recommendations, such as: (1) emphasize faculty diversity in departmental reviews, evaluating department chairs on their development of women faculty; and (2) target women's professional development needs within the context of helping all faculty maximize their appointments, including helping men become more effective mentors of women.
Hardball for Women: Winning at the Game of Business. Pat Heim. Penguin/Plume Books, 2005. Whether the arena is a medical group practice, a law firm, a corporation, or any other work environment, this management classic decodes the male business culture and gives readers strategies on how to use its rules to get ahead-and stay ahead. Readers will learn to:
- Be assertive without being obnoxious
- Display confidence
- Engage in smart self-promotion
- Lead both men and women to recognize the differences between them
- Use “power talk” to your advantage.
Paths to Leadership: Women’s Experiences with and Aspirations for Board Service. Center for Gender and Organizations. CGO Insight no. 27. March 2008. Report of a study of the experiences and aspirations of professional women in exercising leadership on formal boards and informal bodies such as committees and advisory groups. The authors discuss these findings and recommend three steps for executives seeking gender diversity among qualified board candidates, as well as share suggestions for women currently serving on boards and for those aspiring to serve.
Play Like a Man, Win Like a Woman: What Men Know About Success That Women Need to Learn. Gail Evans. Random House/Broadway Books, 2001. Work is a game, and like any game, there are rules to playing well. Men know these rules because they wrote them, but women often feel shut out of the process because they don't know when to speak up, when to ask for responsibility, what to say at an interview, and a lot of other key moves that can make or break a career, including:
- How to keep score at work
- When to take a risk
- How to deal with the Imposter Syndrome
- Ten vocabulary words that mean different things to men and women
- Why men can be ugly, and you can't
- When to quit your job.
Evans is not saying that every woman has to play exactly by men's rules. Women bring many inherent traits to the workplace that can provide them with a potential advantage, such as the ability to form relationships, or her intuition. But women do need to know the basic rules so that they can understand the full consequences of their actions and how it makes an impact on their career. An honest and practical handbook for any woman who wants to leverage her power in the workplace.
Reach for the Top: Women and the Changing Facts of Work Life. Nancy Nichols, ed. Harvard Business Review. A collection of 12 case studies, essays and first-person accounts by leading women thinkers and managers that examine the challenges, frustrations, and opportunities facing today's professional women: gender stereotypes and the conflicts they create, the glass ceiling, sexual harassment, discrimination, and work/family pressures. A valuable resource for managers trying to understand the dynamics of gender in the organization and an invaluable tool for women making their way up the corporate ladder.
Ways Women Lead. Judy B. Rosener. Harvard Business Review Reprint 90608. Also in Harvard Business Review on Women in Business (a compendium of articles from HBR). Harvard Business School Press, 2005. Describes the success women have by drawing on their unique experience as women to lead, not by the traditional (and male-oriented) command-and-control style but by building relationships. Where men tend to view leadership as a series of transactions with subordinates, and use their position and control of resources to motivate their followers, women tend to transform subordinates’ self-interest into concern for the whole organization and to use personal traits like charisma, work record and interpersonal skills to motivate others.
Management
The Essential Manager’s Manual. Robert Weller and Tim Hindle. DK Esseential managers Series. DK Publishing, 1999. An easily accessible source for professionals to improve and master their management effectiveness. This book is an instruction and advice manual on managing people, negotiating and 10 other crucial skills. Included in each section are 101 management tips for success. Checklists help with planning prioritizing, and self-assessment in an easy-to-read format. Illustrations, diagrams and flow charts explore different options for action. Individual pocket guides are also available in this series and can be purchased separately, including:
- Achieving excellence
- Communicate Clearly
- Dealing with People
- How to Delegate
- Interviewing Skills [for managers, not job hunters]
- Learning to Lead
- Making Decisions
- Making Presentations
- Manage Your Time
- Managing Change
- Managing Meetings
- Managing Teams
- Motivating People
- Negotiating Skills
- Reducing Stress
The Successful Medical School Department Chair: A Guide to Good Institutional Practice. A Manual for Medical School Deans, Teaching Hospital CEOs, Department Chairs, Search Committees, and Chair-Candidates. J.F. Biebuyck and W.T. Mallon. Association of American Medical Colleges, 2002. Provides helpful advice, describes good practice, and offers a wealth of sample documents and policies that can be adapted for local use. Each of the three modules is devoted to a different time period in the total career life of the medical school department chair. Useful for women in these jobs or aspiring to them.
Negotiation
Everyday Negotiation: Navigating the Hidden Agendas in Bargaining. Deborah M. Kolb and Judith Williams. Jossey-Bass, 2003. Provides insights into the hidden agendas involved in the negotiation process. Sample topics include making strategic moves, getting collaboration to work, and crafting agreements. This is an updated and expanded version of an earlier book The Shadow Negotiation: How Women Can Master the Hidden Agendas That Determine Bargaining Success.
Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. Roger Fisher and William Ury. Penguin Books, 1991. A classic based on the Harvard Negotiation Project, the authors provide a concise, step-by-step, proven strategy for coming to mutually acceptable agreements. Not targeted specifically at women, or male-female differences in negotiating and communicating, this book is still a commonsense approach to negotiating in everyday life.
Getting Together: Building Relationships As We Negotiate. Roger Fisher and Scott Brown. Penguins Books, 1988. The authors define a “good working relationship” as one that deals well with differences. This book expands on insights from the Harvard Negotiation Project’s Getting to Yes, and explains the steps to building good working relationships, including
- Balance emotion and reason – you need both
- Learn how others see things
- Always consult before deciding – and listen
- Be wholly trustworthy, but not wholly trusting
- Persuade, don’t coerce – negotiate side-by-side
- Deal seriously with those with whom you differ
Her Place at the Table: A Woman's Guide to Negotiating Five Key Challenges to Leadership Success. Deborah M. Kolb, Judith Williams, and Carol Frohlinger. Jossey-Bass, 2004. A practical guide for any woman dealing with a demanding role. Drawing on extensive interviews with women leaders, the authors isolate five key challenges:
- Intelligence: To make informed decisions you need good information, but getting it can be a tricky proposition for women.
- Backing: No one wants to take on a tough job without the support of major players, but you can’t take those allies for granted.
- Resources: Allocations don’t always square with the results expected.
- Buy-In: You can’t lead if no one wants to follow, but bringing a team on board can be problematic.
- Making a Difference: The value you create must be visible before it makes a difference.
For each challenge, the authors offer tips on avoiding common traps and then lay out the strategic moves that position you for success. Guides conclude each chapter to make it easy to put the principles to work.
It Pays to Ask: Negotiating Conditions for Leadership Success. Deborah M. Kolb, Jill Kickul. Center for Gender and Organizations, 2006. Negotiation should be part of your thinking when considering a new leadership role at any level. The authors recommend that you:
- Recognize that any job will never be a perfect fit—some aspects may build on a candidate’s strengths, while others may present a steep learning curve. Too often, people assume that they only have two choices: to accept a new role or to turn it down.
- Ask “What would make me say yes to this offer?” This forces you to assess your strengths and weaknesses and the match of your skill sets to the role. It also helps you identify what you will need in the way of title, resources, safety net, and support for potential actions to be successful. In other words, it helps you figure out what you want. Clarity about what matters is a crucial first step in a negotiation.
- Investigate what kind of support you will have from a boss, the team, and other relevant stakeholders? Experienced leaders consult their networks and mentors to learn about the people, the organization, and its challenges. But they also use these networks to generate ideas for proposals that make sense. Knowing that others have negotiated for specific strategic functions and resources, for example, makes it easier for you to do the same. By benchmarking these issues, it is easier to provide a rationale for your requests — they become defensible, enabling you to stand up for them.
- Diagnose the situation, particularly where resistance to your agenda and leadership might lie. Dig deep to gather good intelligence to identify pockets of support and resistance, and to understand the problems and challenges others are facing. Ninety-six percent of the successful women leaders in this study reported that they identified pressing problems in their groups and tried to find ways to have early successes. A strategy of small wins served them very well.
Women Don’t Ask: The High Cost of Avoiding Negotiation and Positive Strategies for Change. Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever. Bantam Books, 2007. By neglecting to negotiate her starting salary for her first job, a woman may sacrifice over half a million dollars in earnings over the course of her career. This is the first book to identify the dramatic difference between men and women in their propensity to negotiate for what they want. It tells women how to ask, and why they should. The authors show women how to reframe their interactions and more accurately evaluate their opportunities. They teach women how to ask for what they want in ways that feel comfortable and possible, taking into account the impact of asking on their relationships. The authors draw on research in psychology, sociology, economics, and organizational behavior, as well as dozens of interviews with men and women from all walks of life.
Presentations and Public Speaking
Be Heard the First Time! The Woman's Guide to Powerful Speaking. Susan Miller, PhD. Capitol Publishers, 2006. This is an operator's manual for oral communication. Beginners will learn to focus on posture, presence, comfort level, and the message itself. More skilled speakers learn effective strategies for combating dry mouth, retrieving words, and answering aggressive questioning when faced with a high-level public meeting or press conference. The book is designed to help even reticient women express opinions, desires, and experiences clearly; vary the loudness, pitch, and duration of the voice when speaking; finish statements without interruption; interview, clarify, object, debate, and negotiate powerfully; and respond assertively to criticism. Making Presentations. Tim Hindle. DK Publishing, 1998. A concise guide with practical tips on how to structure material, create visual aids, speak with confidence and handle an audience. Useful for both large- and small-scale presentations. Includes checklists, charts and flowcharts.
The Women Physicist’s Guide to Speaking. Heidi Newberg. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 2004. An informative essay on issues women encounter when speaking. Especially helpful for younger women and beginning speakers.
The Woman's Public Speaking Handbook. Elizabeth Natalle and Fritzie Bodenheimer. Wadsworth Publishing, 2003. This handbook is designed to show women how to effectively develop the technical skills of public speaking, overcome fears about public speaking, and form a public image, or persona, that will be recognized and accepted by a constituency. Coverage includes message preparation and delivery, audience, technology as a speaker's tool, gender issues in relation to public speaking situations, and "woman as public persona." Written for women who are active in college and other professional settings.
Professional Presence
Brag! The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn Without Blowing It. Peggy Klaus. Business Plus Publishing, 2004. Remaining quiet about yourself or, worse, downplaying your successes leads to being underappreciated, or even allowing others to take credit for your achievements. When done with grace and style, bragging promotes your best asset -- you! The author, a business coach, teaches you to artfully communicate your talents and accomplishments in a way that is sincere, feels comfortable, and doesn't turn off those you are trying to impress. Filled with self-promotion dilemmas and solutions for both your professional and personal life.
5 Steps to Professional Presence: How to Project Confidence, Competence, and Credibility at Work. Susan Bixler andLisa Dugan. Adams Media Corp, 1997. Professional presence is not just about appearance but also behaviors. The authors explain how to create a successful professional presence by paying attention to key areas such as:
- Virtual presence: using high-tech communication tools like e-mail, video conferencing, and voice mail to project a winning image
- Nonverbal communication: building rapport with colleagues and patients by developing strong nonverbal skills
- Social situations: projecting a comfortable, professional image at business meals, conferences, and meetings.
Includes multiple examples from specific work situations to help you ensure that your image does not detract from your message. This book is a resource for those who feel the need to make a better impression at work.
The Brand Called You. Peter Montoya and Tim Vandehey. 2003. This guide book on personal branding, or what used to be called name recognition, may be focused toward financial advisors and other types of consultants, but it contains useful guidance for any professional who needs to be remembered by professional colleagues, potential mentors and those who serve as gatekeepers to professional opportunities. Personal branding is being who you are, authentically and without anything held back, crafted and communicated in a way that maximizes your influence with the people who can make you successful. The book provides a step-by-step program to help anyone succeed in building a strong personal brand for career growth. After all, people who affect your career are going to form opinions of you anyway — you might as well control those opinions as much as you can.
Work/Life Balance
Disappearing Acts: Gender, Power and Relational Practice at Work. Joyce K. Fletcher. MIT Press, 1999. A study of female design engineers that shows that while organizations say they need emotional intelligence and relational behavior, they devalue it in practice because they collide with powerful, gender-linked images. The author delineates the emotionally supportive, sometimes selfless behaviors that create the social glue that gets tasks done and holds teams, even whole organizations, together, but then shows, with devastating clarity, how organizations ignore and devalue these same behaviors in those crucial moments when rewards and promotions are handed out. This book will open the eyes of those who did not understand these disappearing acts, and it will make those whose contributions have been “disappeared” feel recognized and appreciated.
Optioning In versus “Opting Out”: Women Using Flexible Work Arrangements for Career Success.Mary Shapiro, Cynthia Ingols and Stacy Blake-Beard. Center for Gender in Organizations. Report of results of a 2006 research survey of 400 professional women and their use of flexible work arrangements (FWA). The authors found that 1) the use of FWAs is more widespread than anticipated and varies across women and industries; 2) women are using FWAs to stay in the workplace rather than to opt out; 3) many women don’t have the option to “opt out” — in this sample, 86% reported providing more than half of their household incomes, with over a third totally responsible for paying the bills; and 4) the use of FWAs benefits both employees and employers. Indeed, FWAs may be the strategic advantage to attracting and retaining essential talent, both male and female, in the coming decades of predicted talent shortages.
Tempered Radicals: How People Use Difference to Inspire Change at Work. Debra Meyerson. Harvard Business School Publishing, 2001. Based on 15 years of research and observation, this book reveals that adaptive, diverse, family-friendly, and socially responsible workplaces are built not by revolutionaries but by those the author calls "tempered radicals"- people who successfully walk the tightrope between conformity and rebellion. Whereas "untempered" radicals use drama and heroics to effect change, these individuals work toward transformational ends with incremental means. Through stories of doctors to teachers to CEOs to entrepreneurs, the author illustrates how these everyday leaders stick to their values, assert their agendas, and provoke learning and change without jeopardizing hard-won careers. The book presents a spectrum of effective responses to the pressure to conform that range from resisting quietly to leveraging "small wins" to mobilizing others in legitimate but powerful ways, and shows how to turn threats to our identities into opportunities to make a positive difference in our companies and in the world.
