Does your body language say “confidence”?

Gender equality and diversity at the leadership level

A recent blog addressed gender equality in the workplace.  I found the Economist’s Executive Education Navigator and / Economist’s Executive Education Blog fascinating. The article made some great points which I felt compelled to write about based on past experience on this particular topic. 

For the record, I am male and a minority, and as much as I would like to see more women in executive positions, I would also like to see more minorities in these leadership positions. I liked this article a lot because it addresses several beliefs I share about increasing not just women in leadership but also diversity at the senior leadership level. It addresses several action items that EVERYONE should be aware of if they want to make it to the C Suite.

Requirements when interviewing

Not long ago, I heard the Head of Diversity for a Fortune 500 speak about gender equality and diversity within her company. The company she works for makes a strong effort to promote diversity in the workplace. EG: It is a requirement that a minority is interviewed for all leadership positions. This helps minorities get through the door, which, in turn, should increase their chances of being promoted to leadership positions. The bigger the percentage of minorities/women in the pool, the greater the chance of promoting these groups. Statistically, this logic makes sense, but most minorities can see the flaw in the logic very quickly.

Need to know how to dance if you want to be on the dance floor 

Diversity at the leadership level is still a problem for her company. She used what I think is a great analogy for most well-intentioned companies:

“Minorities are invited to the dance, but they are not on the dance floor.”

Her point is that the company invites diverse candidates to work there, but they are not in leadership positions. My question for both leadership and employees from diverse backgrounds:

Do the diverse employees who are hired know how to dance?

If you don’t know how to dance, you are probably not going to be on the dance floor. Just attending the event doesn’t mean you’ll be participating.  

My career is ultimately my responsibility

I think it is easy to blame unfair treatment on “the system”. To be frank, at the end of the day, it is our individual career, and we need to take responsibility for it. “Blaming the system” won’t do us any good. Learning to dance will put us in a much better position on the dance floor. Learning how to succeed in leadership roles will put us in a much better position to be selected for them.  

Working in HR and in leadership roles for the past 20 years, I have seen minorities, women, and the majority promoted to leadership roles. I have seen employees with disabilities, gays, and individuals over 60 promoted to leadership positions.

Learn how to dance

In each case, these folks knew “how to dance.” They fell into a couple of categories:

• Taught themselves how to dance (communicate and work at the executive level).
• Were raised in homes or had exposure to executives growing up. They came to the workplace already comfortable with executives.
• Were mentored and coached to play ball at the next level.

The common denominator among all of these folks was that they did not bring up their differences in public. They did not call attention to their color, lifestyle, gender, etc. These HR peeps acted as if they were comfortable in their skin and accepted who they were. They did not bring excuses to the table.

The takeaways 

The article on the Economist’s Executive Education Navigator/Economist’s Executive Education Blog discusses leadership programs and how they help women get promoted. A few excerpts from that post.

“We call out and identify the things that women do that put them at a disadvantage, like not taking risks and not showing confidence.”

 “Coach on how to communicate and compellingly pitch ideas”

Regardless of your gender or ethnicity, the above statements say a lot. The leadership programs do not step on eggshells when it comes to sensitive subjects. I believe in this approach. (Self-admittedly, I am a hard-ass and not for everyone. Hence, no name and no picture of me on this blog.)

Personal experience as a “mentor.”

I coach several women in HR, and I use the term “coach” loosely. In all cases, these women are smart, qualified, and educated. Two, in particular, hold MBAs and SPHR (Senior Professional in Human Resources) certifications. This certification requires seven years of HR management experience. One is a minority. When I first met these individuals, they both had the title of HR Manager. Unfortunately, they also had low salaries. It wasn’t because they were women that they earned lower salaries. They were not making much money and held lesser titles because they were not acting and presenting themselves as the executives they could be. These HR women were qualified on paper, but they did not communicate with the same level of confidence as other execs (regardless of gender). They didn’t show confidence and weren’t taking risks.

Amount of work doesn’t equal pay, and the communication of results

If you looked at their resumes on paper, it would appear they were underpaid, but given their skill set and productivity, they were receiving a fair wage. Let the chauvinist say that one more time.

They were not communicating with the same level of confidence as other execs (regardless of gender). These HR practitioners lacked confidence and weren’t taking risks. If you looked at their resumes, it would appear they were underpaid, but given their skill set and productivity, they were receiving a fair wage.

I am proud to say that a number of these women now hold VP titles. I am also proud to say that I just received a thank-you card from someone who explained that their annual bonus was more than their entire salary when we first met. In both cases, these women changed the way they presented themselves. We examined the genetic makeup of their executive teams and asked them to examine themselves.

Communication style matters

Typically, exec teams were made up of Ivy League-educated, type-A, white males. These execs don’t apologize or sound meek when presenting or backing up ideas. There is very little emotion in these business pitches. When these female HR professionals looked at themselves, they realized they were communicating in a manner completely opposite to that of the rest of the team. A few of the more noticeable changes over time were made, including but not limited to the following:

• Not apologizing for their decisions. When they made a recommendation or had an idea, they did not apologize. They stated it with conviction and confidence.   
• Together, we practiced their pitches before making them so they sounded confident and sure (even if they were not).
•  We worked on their body language when presenting to a room.
• The business pitches focused more on the numbers and the bottom line than on employees’ emotions.
• Recognized that their executive colleagues can blow up, raise their voices, swear, or even yell. Despite these hysterics, the world is not going to end. There’s no reason to take what happens at an exec meeting personally.
• They realized they could quit any job and find another. They didn’t owe any company or CEO anything.
• Negotiate for themselves rather than relying on their manager. If you don’t ask, you don’t git’.

Here is the question I posed in the first few paragraphs is:

Do the diverse employees who are hired know how to dance?

Find your own mentor

The article states that “informal mentoring is most effective because the pairing methodology of formal mentoring programs often fails to create good partnerships. I completely agree and blogged about my personal philosophy on mentoring programs here. The partnerships with the above-mentioned HR VPs were informal rather than through a structured program that tries to perfectly pair 10 mentors and 10 mentees.

Regardless of how it happens, all employees must learn “how to dance.” I don’t believe that corporate America or the Universities are teaching this.    

Gender equality in the workplace is an important topic. As much as I appreciate the intent of diversity programs, I don’t want to land a job because I am a minority. (I am a minority.)  I don’t want my co-workers and colleagues looking at me in my cushy office, thinking I got the position because of my (good) looks.

Am I the best candidate?

I want to earn the spot because I am:

• Secure in myself and my physical appearance.
• Articulate and a recognized thought leader in my discipline.
• Possess the ability to negotiate a fair salary in the same way I would negotiate a better rate with any vendor I work with.

I am confident there are work environments where women are NOT treated fairly. Please don’t think I am that naive. I am not discrediting that fact.  Am I proud of the women I have worked with and coached? I couldn’t be prouder. They put in a ton of hard work and had the professional courage to take risks and try different behaviors so their colleagues would listen. In some cases, they realized the work environment wasn’t conducive to their HR style and moved on. I am confident that if you were to ask them now, they would say they want to earn the position and the salary on equal terms, rather than receive special treatment.

Check out the Economist’s Executive Education Navigator / Economist’s Executive Education Blog. There is a lot of great, thought-provoking material here, and even if you are not a woman, this article offers good food for thought if you want to make it to the C-suite.

See you at the after party,

HRNasty

nasty: an unreal maneuver of incredible technique, something that is ridiculously good, tricky and manipulative but with a result that can’t help but be admired, a phrase used to describe someone who is good at something. “He has a nasty forkball”.

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