WorldCity Business Magazine

(3) Women Rule

by Doreen Hemlock

Ask women leaders in business the key to their success, and they invariably say: We listen. Men should listen more too, according to a new study that highlights the qualities that distinguish women leaders and make them particularly suited to meet the challenges of global business today.

Women leaders are more persuasive, because they honestly care about what others think and feel, said management consultant Patrick Sweeney, who co-authored the international study by Princeton, N.J.-based Caliper Corp., a management consulting and employee assessment firm. And it starts with listening.

Womens attributes in business will be center stage in South Florida this month as the Organization of Women in International Trade (OWIT) holds its annual world conference
in Miami Beach, with a roster of high-profile speakers, including U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab. It is the groups second global convention in South Florida. The first was in 1995 when OWIT held its fourth global gathering.

Since the previous event 12 years ago, women have made impressive strides in business, with Indias Indra Nooyi now the chief executive and chairman of PepsiCo and New Yorks Linda Rottenberg at the helm of business incubator group Endeavor, to name just two top leaders. But much more needs to be done to mobilize womens talent worldwide, studies and interviews show.

Lisa Landy, the 44-year-old corporate lawyer and mother of two who led OWITs 1995 convention and co-chairs the Oct. 10-12 event, can attest to both gains and limitations. The Miami native recalls helping start an OWIT chapter in Peru, the first organization aimed at women in business in that South American nation. So many people turned out to make sure that what we did wasnt a sewing circle, she said. Today, the Peru chapter ranks among the largest in the world, with more than 500 members.

In the United States, Landy finds theres little problem nowadays for younger women to find jobs. Women today are the majority of graduates at U.S. colleges, and most corporate doors are open to them. But the problem comes when women have kids, she said. Too few companies offer the flexibility that many modern moms seek to pursue both their work and family responsibilities. And even fewer employers reward women with pay and promotions comparable to the benefits offered men with children.

That gender gap persists despite research that show women bring strengths to business from better listening to greater agility at multi-tasking and a longer-term vision that are key for todays global business that spans borders, cultures and time zones. Nehama Bikovsky, vice president for the Caribbean at Israels Zim shipping line and one of only a few top women executives in global shipping, boils down much of the difference in leadership styles between men and women to three letters: ego.

Women are less driven by ego than men. Theyre more oriented to results, said the 51-year-old mother of two. That makes it easier to reach solutions, easier to solve problems and easier to focus. But receptivity to female traits still lags. Bikovsky said that in Israel, even though women must serve in the military, theres an unwritten rule: Women dont serve in combat. That unstated inequality between the sexes spills over into the business world.

Bikovsky is also is astounded to see so many mothers in the United States now choosing to stay at home with young children or starting their own businesses to better juggle work and family. If corporate America is becoming so workaholic, why should it naturally be the woman who takes the back seat? she asked. That looks to me like its going backward.

Madhu Mehta, founder of the India-USA Chamber of Commerce in South Florida, turned to entrepreneurship to gain the flexibility she sought with her two children. She set up a branch of her familys business in Germany and now, operates the business, India Silk, both in Europe and the United States.

Starting a business was a leap for a woman raised in India a half century ago when daughters were discouraged from work. Mehta recalls the adages of her youth: A woman walks two steps behind the man. And a woman who works is cheap: Oh, her family is so poor that they have to make their daughter work, she often heard back then.

Mehtas progressive family sent her to international schools in India and abroad. But on business trips back to India, weavers in rural villages would not speak with her, addressing only her father. Even today, some weavers wont shake her hand, but instead make a prayer sign in front of their chests.

In Germany, she struggled at first too. Because I was so open and friendly, some people tried to take advantage and bully me. But then, I showed my other side. I can take only so much, Mehta said with a smile. I enjoy fighting back now, and I get my way.

Younger women today have more role models and choices, but still face obstacles in business some a product of their upbringing. Miami native and marketing consultant Helen Picard, co-chair of the OWIT world conference, mentors students at the University of Miami. She finds some young women shy to promote themselves, perhaps afraid to seem pushy.

With younger women, they may meet you at an event and then, expect youll call them. I think that goes back to etiquette and being taught not to make the first move, said Picard, who has worked extensively in Latin America, sometimes as the sole woman on a team. And that applies especially for Latin women.

Over time, womens strengths in business prevail, said Picard, a 45-year-old mother of three, especially their skills in learning from mistakes, seeking help and in listening. Women are very competitive, but we dont hesitate to ask for directions and reach out to fill in, where were really not as strong, she said. Had I been a man, I might not be as comfortable admitting I had a weakness. As a woman, it gives me more freedom.