I have been quite glued to the recent mommy wars- both the critique of Yahoo's CEO and of Facebook's COO's new book. Both have been wildly successful in their careers and have made it to very high up leadership positions. I would be lying if I didn't envy their success, but I also feel a twinge of angst when I hear both try to speak for career women- especially working moms. I have yet to read Sandberg's book, but have it on my reading list for this year so I unfortunately can't speak to the contents of her book. I promise to revisit her book after I've read it to provide a critique of the actual book.
I have been reading the "recommendations" being made by both women and find myself torn by their ideas. I see both sides and don't know that they are wrong or right. Perhaps the challenge is that I'm frequently reminded that not only are they women with very high up positions for their organizations, they are women with very large pay checks and the ability to access resources that I simply find out of reach. Let's face it- neither Sandberg nor Meyer is trying to find time to clean her house at night or over the weekend. I'm guessing that both had a nanny or multiple nannies and were not bound to the work day of their daycare provider. And probably most interestingly, it is rumored that Marissa Meyer created a space in her office suite for her baby so he could be with her more. This is coming from the same woman who is pulling the plug on work from home arrangements for her employees. When work from home arrangements have mostly benefited working mothers. I get the business case for why they are not the best arrangement, however, I feel like a huge backwards step was taken when she announced that change at Yahoo. Maybe at the end of the day it won't be a huge deal, but I know of at least one huge employer that has followed suit in the weeks following Yahoo's announcement. Although that particular employer took a much softer stance- we're pulling our work anywhere program, but are leaving specific situations up to the manager and employee. I get the productivity issues and benefits of having workers be able to interact face to face. There are many benefits to an organization that wants their people in the office most of the time. I cringed when I heard this because these changes often aren't met with policy changes that lead to additional flexibility, which is something that working parents (usually the mother) need.
I think it is wonderful that we are once again having the discussion about working moms and their career advancement. I think there are many women- regardless of her status as a mother- who short change themselves professionally because they don't play the game enough like a man and unfortunately the norms and culture at most employers are driven by male communication and social patterns. I like that Sandberg is bringing some of this up because it is important for women to be better at being more like a man. I also loved that she brought up that men need to take on more responsibility at home. Again- I couldn't agree more as I would love more help with the day to day at home. I do feel a bit of why do women have to be the ones to keep changing and are being expected to be "more like men". What happened to the organizational culture and norms being challenged to allow women to be women? I mean- I don't communicate like a man because I'm not one! I like having a good relationship with the men and women that I work with and will bend over backwards to make that part go smoothly. I don't see that as something that should continue to hold me back, yet it does.
I will end out reading Sandberg's book and continuing to follow the media hype around both women- mostly because I'm curious and very interested in HR issues. I'll also be watching because of the many implications of their 'ideas' on working mothers. I love a good mommy wars story and this is shaping up to be the story of 2013!
No comments:
Post a Comment