 |
| Brooke Boyarsky, A Harvard graduate, demonstrates how to raise her hand with confidence. |
Despite all of our victories securing high-paying professional positions, women are still largely absent from senior management roles. However, closing this gender gap in senior positions would not only result in a more equitable society, but would ultimately be economically beneficial for business. According to the Conference Board of Canada "organizations with a higher proportion of women in executive positions exhibit stronger financial performance" (Huffington Post, 2013).
Given that fostering gender equality makes solid business sense, Harvard University's Business School embarked on a large-scale project to transform the deeply-rooted phallocentric culture which permeates the school. Harvard's social surroundings disempowered women: though female students and male students entered the school with the same GPA, females consistently fell behind while males succeeded. From a faculty point of view, Harvard was having difficulty attracting and retaining female professors. However, misogynist attitudes were not limited to the campus grounds; rather, they were indicative of the culture of the larger business world.
Harvard decided they would become leaders in promoting gender equality, both in the academe and in the business world. In the 2012-2013 year they carried out a gender makeover. Their focus: communication. Female students lagged behind male students due to the fact that class participation counted towards 50% of each course's final mark. Male students, often fortified with the confidence that comes with inherited privilege, were eager to voice their opinions. Female students, however, despite their competence, hesitated to take part. Apart from a complete transformation of the curriculum, customs, and rules; Harvard coached women on how to speak out and to boldly and unapologetically raise their hands. A video illustrating this initiative can be seen at the following page:
Perhaps the first step towards empowerment is to communicate this empowerment--with a loud voice and a strong hand.
For Harvard, the gender makeover of their Business School presented a bold step in terms of leadership which raises multiple questions:
- Was this move towards gender equality "forced"? Are social transformations more sustainable if they come from the student body itself and not imposed as a top-down strategy?
- Could this lead to backlash which reinforces misogynist attitudes?
- What good is this gender makeover if the greater business world is still largely misogynist in culture?
- Does Harvard's initiative have the power to influence transformation in the greater business world?
Bibliography
Huffington Post Canada. May 15, 2015. Glass Ceiling Report Weighs In On Gender Inequality In Canada. Retrieved from: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/05/15/glass-ceiling-canada_n_3274301.html
Kantor, J. Sept. 17, 2013. Harvard Business School Case Study: Gender Equity. New York Times. Retrieved from: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/08/education/harvard-case-study-gender-equity.html?pagewanted=allhttp://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/08/education/harvard-case-study-gender-equity.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
No comments:
Post a Comment