She's the Boss.

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 427.

Management Styles

The same or different?

Do men and women bring different qualities to business or is it nonsense to talk about male and female management styles?

Mark the following management qualities: M, W or M/W according to whether you think they are more typical of men, more typical of women or shared by both.

1. Being able to take the initiative.

2. Being a good listener.

3. Staying calm under pressure.

4. Being prepared to take risks.

5. Being conscientious and thorough.

6. Having good communication skills.

7. Being energetic and assertive.

8. Getting the best out of people.

9. Being independent and authoritative.

10. Being supportive towards colleagues.

11. Being able to delegate.

12. Motivating by example.

13. Having a co-operative approach.

14. Being single-minded and determined.

15. Being a good time-manager.

Now select what you consider to be the five most important qualities in any manager and prioritize them in order of importance.

Discuss

Does your choice indicate a male- or female-oriented view of management ability? Is it a fairly balanced view or rather heavily biased? Which of these qualities do you think you possess yourself? Now select what you consider to be the five most important qualities in any manager and prioritize them in order of importance.

Business was invented by men and to a certain extent It is still "a boy's game". Less than 20% of the managers. In most European companies are women, with fewer still in senior positions.

Yet in Britain one in three new businesses are started up by women and according to John Naisbitt and Patricia Auburdene, authors of 'Megatrends 2000', since 1980 the number of self-employed women has increased twice as fast as the number of self-employed men.

The Glass Ceiling Syndrome.

Is it just a case of women whose career progress has been blocked by their male colleagues - the so-called 'glass ceiling syndrome' - being forced to set up their own businesses? Or do women share specific management qualities which somehow serve them better in self-employment? As many as 40% of start-ups fold within their first two years, but the failure rate of those run by women is substantially lower than that. It's hardly surprising, therefore, that though male bosses tend to be reluctant to promote women, male bank managers seem only too happy to finance their businesses.

The Roddick Phenomenon

Anita Roddick, founder of the Body Shop empire, is the perfect example of the female entrepreneur with her company growing from zero to £470 million in its first fifteen years. Perhaps the secret of her success was caution. Rather than push ahead with the purchasing of new shops, Roddick got herself into franchising - the cheapest way to expand a business whilst keeping overheads down. Caution forward planning and tight budgeting seem to be more female characteristics then male. They are also the blueprint for success when launching a new company.

More Sensitive.

When women join an existing company, it's a different story. Less ruthlessly individualistic in their approach to business, women are more sensitive to the feelings of the group or team in which they work. They are generally more cooperative than competitive, less assertive, less prepared to lead from the front. Though they usually manage their time better than men and may even work harder, they are much less likely than their male counterparts to take risks. And, above all, it is risk-taking that makes corporate high fliers. As one male director put it: "I'm not paid to make the right decisions. I'm just paid to make decisions".

Better Communicators.

It's an overgeneralization, of course, but it remains true that men will more readily take the initiative than women. The female style of management leans towards consensus and conciliation. Women seem to be better communicators than men - both more articulate and better listeners. And perhaps it is women's capacity to listen which makes them particularly effective in people-oriented areas of business. In any mixed group of business people the ones doing most of the talking will almost certainly be the men. But perhaps only the women will really be listening.

The New Achievers.

And, as companies change from large hierarchical structures to smaller more flexible organizations, the communication skills and supportive approach of women are likely to become more valued. It was predominantly men who profited from the materialistic 80s', the age of the achiever. But it will be women who achieve the most in the caring 90s' and beyond.

Which of the following points support the opinions expressed in the article?

1. Women are at least as entrepreneurial as men.

2. Most female managers prefer task based jobs to people centred ones.

3. Women tend to be more conscientious than men.

4. Women who do succeed in business have to become even more ruthless than men.

5. Men aren't as financially aware as women.

6. Women are more likely to be the managers of the future than men are.

Look back at the article. Find the expressions which mean:

1. It's to be expected.

2. It's not the same thing at all.

3. It's not always the case.