OPINION
Sehar Raothar
The catch 22 of working in a male-dominated profession Men are promoted on potential, women on performance
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espite increasing labor market participation from women, their experience of the workplace can be one of precarity and insecurity. Many millennial women have responded with a ‘positive front’ – saying yes to all work tasks while highlighting their likability and acceptance of the status quo. This is not seen as a permanent strategy, but rather one that gets you into the workplace and ‘liked’ until your work speaks for itself. Many women also use tactics to confront intersections of ageism & sexism in the workplace. While some employ conscious strategies to be ‘taken seriously’ through dress, small talk, even taking on stereotypical traits of masculinity to be recognized as competent, others explicitly confront inequality through ‘girlie feminism’ with a pro-femininity work identity that challenges the masculine-coded
Sehar Raothar leads strategy for the BL Group Of Companies and can be reached on sehar. raothar@gmail.com
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The female-to-female dynamic is different. The conversation demands that the female boss reacts compassionately to her female subordinate. Some women in organizations are fortunate enough to experience this and some are overshadowed by executive-level complexes
norms of how a successful workplace operates and what it looks like. In jobs of all types, who we are at work are a constantly shifting negotiation between how we are treated and seen by others, the workplace as a social space, our past experiences, and our own expectations. Considering women’s work identities reveal how power and privilege operate in the workplace and the possibilities of our agential challenges to inequitable workplace norms and a precarious labor market. The careers for most women follow an expected trajectory: We begin in our 20s, surrounded by young colleagues of both sexes; move into our 30s, when some of us leave entirely or shift to reduced hours to raise families; then throttle on through our 40s, the decade of major career advancement. As the ranks of women professionals thin, those of us who remain and move upward may face unexpected challenges related to the loss of our female coworkers. Just as we move into responsible roles as corporate and institutional leaders, ready to lead and guide both men and women embarking on their own ascent, we suddenly see that there are very few women professionals to manage. Because many have left along the way, we have pushed ahead with our heads down and have little experience managing female colleagues. For women who have persevered through the corporate competition and finally attained a level of authority over a group of employees, we need to remember a few essentials. Not only is it critical to be genuine and play to our strengths, but we also must understand how societal expectations can sometimes play a role in the way our messages, as managers are received. Men and women who rise to managerial positions face many similar challenges, but there
