Most of us, women, will know it the hard way, which means, out of our own experience: it is tough to make it to the top. We all have our own experiences, successes and disappointments. Recent studies and surveys all present a picture of challenge in the corporate world.
That is one of the reasons that the number of mumpreneurs (the word says it all) is growing rapidly: for women with young children, who are ambitious and adventurous, love to be independent and need to be flexible, setting up your own business seems to be the solution. Interviews with mumpreneurs showed that even though they earned less and worked more than in their corporate career, the flexibility of the ‘being your own boss’ makes up for it.
Corporate challenges
Professor Robin Ely recently published a report on the lives and careers of female graduates from Harvard Business School. Her research involved 6,458 grads, of which 60 % women.
The three main conclusions were:
- Women are less satisfied with their career than men: 50% of females experience their work as meaningful versus 62% of man.
- The decision to prioritise family over work is a barrier to career advancement says 82%
- And being excluded from informal networks presents women with another setback in career advancement, according to 72%.
Robin Ely suggests that these outcomes are an exponent of our cultural approach to work: overwork is perceived as normal within many organisations, as is long travel time. This is one of the reasons that push women out.
The four main obstacles that women have to overcome are (LinkedIn survey):
- The lack of a clear career path
- Inequality in pay
- Juggling a range of commitments (family….)
- Not enough role models and mentors
And to top this all up:
Career women who are mothers, are divided in half-half, where one group knows they would not be happy if they had to stay at home, where the other half would prefer to stay at home if they had the choice.
To discuss if coaching can help you with your balancing act, email Dr Mariette Jansen mariette.jansen.coaching@gmail.com
