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Women Executives and Mentoring – Boomer Observations


Men and women work side by side, tackling the same business problems, sitting through the same meetings and walking the same hallways. But studies suggest the common ground ends there. 

Men and women experience very different workplaces, ones in which the odds for advancement vary widely and corporate careers too often come in two flavors: his and hers.  According to a recent LeanIn.Org and McKinsey & Co. study, the disparity begins at entry level, where men are 30% more likely than women to be promoted to management roles. It continues throughout careers, as men move up the ladder in larger numbers and make up the lion’s share of outside hires. Though their numbers are growing slowly, women hold less than a quarter of senior leadership positions and less than one-fifth of C-suite roles. And so, when it comes to men and women finding mentors or sponsors to help grow their career, it’s most likely going to be a man that will be in the executive level and useful in that regard.

I am a typical white middle class male from the boomer generation and I know the privilege that comes with that. And interestingly of the four mentor/sponsors I remember as most instrumental in my career development, three were women in executive or entrepreneurial positions. Raised by a single mom who ran a multi-location small business, I witnessed her struggles as she competed in a largely male dominated world where most women were still home makers. After college I helped run and eventually sell off part of that business with her. Perhaps as a man I have not experienced much of the angst that some in my boomer generation wrestled with when it came to women in charge and working for a woman. For me, the question of whether women should be in leadership was answered in light of the reality that they already were, at least in my world. And thus, because of this as I advanced my career, I think I was more open to women as managers, mentors and sponsors than some of my peersu.

All three of these women who were my key mentors and sponsors were very accomplished in male dominated fields and companies. I saw the challenges they faced as women in executive positions in ways much worse than my mother had endured. It took a certain grace on their part coupled with steel willed determination and intelligence and success to win over the day. That will to fight and succeed is why I owe them so much and I’ve made sure they knew how important they were to me. 

The first of my mentors opened my eyes to the talents I had that I was not aware of and was a continual coach to me moving on to new opportunities by pushing me to believe in myself. The second matured me as a manager, encouraged my marketing talents and by moving me to the west coast opened up my personal world as well. The third taught me to embrace change and rapidly build high-performance teams that quickly impact the business in a positive way. And just in case you are wondering, my fourth key mentor, the lone man, continued challenging me to excel and succeed or fail on my own but was always there in support. I was fortunate to have these four in my career and my life. All four through their actions taught me that to be a successful leader you need empathy and an ability to know your team. 

Leadership is all about developing people and helping others reach their full potential. It’s about equipping others with the right tools and strategies to not only maximize the success of an organization but also people’s lives. It’s about breaking down barriers and leading others with you through the uncertainty of the future. I came to all this from a man’s perspective. They gave me a woman’s approach to it as well and that made me all the better.

I like to think I’ve paid my gifts forward for my teams for both men and women and hope I was as good a mentor and sponsor for them as mine were for me. For us in business a key strategy moving forward must be to prioritize the mentoring and sponsorship of women in the business world. Both mentors and sponsors are critical to helping aspiring women leaders gain the perspective and connections they need to take on larger roles and advance their career and become mentors and sponsors for both men and women. One day we must be able to say that careers no longer come in two flavors – just in one.

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