Women at Work

Latest Episodes:

Ground Your DEI Efforts in Data Aug 12, 2024

Show notes

Do you know how your company’s DEI efforts are going? What data does your company collect to track and shape these efforts?

In this episode, DEI strategist and consultant Lily Zheng explains why data-driven efforts are everything. The way people make lasting progress on diversity, equity, and inclusion is to measure outcomes.

During this year’s Women at Work Live event, DEI strategist Lily explained the opportunities that data can create for DEI. They give examples from different companies, including one that was able to discern where exactly their recruiting efforts became inequitable and how the company fixed it. Lily also has advice for making a difference with data even when your company is tiny or you’re starting from scratch or there’s no budget.

Guest experts:

Lily Zheng is a diversity, equity, and inclusion strategist, consultant, and speaker who works with organizations to achieve the DEI impact and outcomes they need. They are the author of DEI Deconstructed: Your No-Nonsense Guide to Doing the Work and Doing it Right.

Resources:

“What Needs to Change About DEI — and What Doesn’t,” by Lily Zheng
“To Make Lasting Progress on DEI, Measure Outcomes,” by Lily Zheng
“The Failure of the DEI-Industrial Complex,” by Lily Zheng
“To Avoid DEI Backlash, Focus on Changing Systems — Not People,” by Lily Zheng
“To Build a DEI Program That Works, You Need Metrics,” by Joan C. Williams et al.
“How to Push for Policy Changes at Your Company,” from Women at Work

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

How to Manage: Rising from Middle to Senior Management Jun 24, 2024

Show notes

No matter how ambitious and talented you are, rising up and out of mid-level management can be slow going for reasons beyond your control. Maybe it’s because your company doesn’t have a business need—or budget—to upgrade your job title and salary from senior to executive. Or maybe it’s because the person in the position you want has been there forever—and has no plans to leave any time soon.

Still, there are plenty of factors that you can control, and Amy B and her three guests cover them in this episode. Leadership development coach Cynthia Pong first validates the challenges of scoring a position that’s scarce. Then, Lauren Reyes and Megan Bock, both COOs whose careers stagnated in mid-level management before accelerating again, recount the conversations, decisions, and networking that jump-started them.

Guest experts:

Cynthia Pong is the CEO of Embrace Change, a leadership development and executive coaching consultancy.

Megan Bock is the COO of Federato, a company that uses machine learning to assess risk.

Lauren Reyes is the COO of the YMCA of Greater Boston.

Resources:

“How to Beat Mid-Career Malaise,” by Rebecca Knight
“Overcoming Self-Doubt in the Face of a Big Promotion,” by Evelyn Hsu and Sabina Nawaz
You, the Leader, from the Women at Work Series
“Research: How Women Can Build High-Status Networks,” by Carla Rua-Gomez et al.
“Women and the Labyrinth of Leadership,” by Alice Eagly and Linda L. Carli

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

How to Manage: Selling Your Ideas to Leadership Jun 17, 2024

Show notes

Think back to the last time you pitched an idea to upper management on how to change the way your company does business. Perhaps you proposed an improvement to an existing process, a new technology that would help things run smoother, or a different market you all could break into. How’d that go over?

As a mid-level manager, your involvement in day-to-day operations positions you to propose change that’s innovative and achievable. Amy B and her two guests, Sue Ashford and Ellen Bailey, give suggestions for framing those ideas so that executives buy into them. They’ll talk about the research findings they keep in mind, questions they ask themselves and others when vetting something, and what they learned from the times they missed the mark.

Guest experts:

Sue Ashford is a professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business.

Ellen Bailey is the vice president of business and culture transformation at Harvard Business Publishing.

Resources:

“Middle Managers Should Drive Your Business Transformation,” by Michael Mankins and Patrick Litre
“Do You Understand the Problem You’re Trying to Solve?” from HBR on Leadership
“Get the Boss to Buy In,” by Susan (Sue) Ashford and James R. Detert
HBR Guide to Building Your Business Case, by Ray Sheen and Amy Gallo
“How to Push for Policy Changes at Your Company,” from Women at Work
“The Essentials: Persuading People,” from Women at Work

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

How to Manage: Executing Strategy Jun 10, 2024

Show notes

Your company’s executive team has just announced their new master plan for growing the business. Now it’s your job, as a mid-level manager, to put it into practice. Deep breath. Apart from the inevitable interpersonal and operational drama that change management causes, this is an opportunity to show that you know your stuff.

Strategist Andrea Belk Olson spells out how to make the most of a plan that you may or may not agree with and that you may or may not have had any input into. She suggests important questions to ask yourself before taking action, ways to handle resistance from people you manage, what to do when the plan isn’t working well, and points to include in progress updates.

Then, Amy B and two of her colleagues, Jennifer Long and Gabriella Spatolisano, chat about how they’ve handled skepticism and spoken up about their reservations when leading change initiatives in the past.

Guest expert:

Andrea Belk Olson is a differentiation strategist, speaker, author, and customer-centricity expert.

Resources:

“Why Isn’t Your Strategy Sticking?” by Andrea Belk Olson
“3 Reasons Why Every Department Needs Its Own Strategy,” by Andrea Belk Olson
“Getting Employee Buy-In for Organizational Change,” by Andrea Belk Olson
“4 Common Reasons Strategies Fail,” by Andrea Belk Olson
HBR Guides to Building Your Strategic Skills Collection, by Harvard Business Review

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

How to Manage: Getting Out of the Weeds Jun 03, 2024

Show notes

Before you became a mid-level manager, you were probably doing some individual contributor work: designing, producing, or selling something. Now your workday is likely focused on people and project management, including ensuring that everyone and everything is fulfilling a vision. Filling this more strategic role can feel uncomfortably abstract, making you want familiar and tangible tasks—to meddle in what used to be your business.

Amy B and her three guests have been there, and they’re here to offer advice on how to let go of your previous tasks and mindset so you don’t fall into micromanaging. Instead, they say, why not set clearer expectations, increase your team’s skills, and create a culture of accountability? They’ll share what they’ve said and done to get those results—and how loosening their grip ended up serving them well and offering relief.

Guest expert:

Lia Garvin runs a consulting business that advises companies on team operations, which was her specialty when she previously worked at Google. She’s the author of The Unstoppable Team and Unstuck.

Resources:

“How to Stop Micromanaging and Start Empowering,” by Lia Garvin
“How to Get Involved Without Micromanaging People,” by Linda Hill and Kent Lineback
“A Guide for New Middle Managers,” by Gloria St. Martin-Lowry
HBR’s 10 Must Reads for Mid-Level Managers, by Harvard Business Review

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

Attend Women at Work Live May 16 Apr 16, 2024

Show notes

We’ve planned a half-day of learning, guidance, and inspiration—all virtual. Here’s the agenda:

Executive coach Dorie Clark on working with the ambition you’ve got right now, whether you’re making every effort to get promoted or are taking a break from striving. She’ll help you recognize when it’s best to slow down or ramp up.
Organizational psychologist Ruchi Sinha’s latest research findings on trust: how to measure the amount felt between team members, and what to do if it’s imbalanced. Plus, she’ll explain the upsides of switching between different kinds of leadership styles, and she’ll illustrate how to do that.
DEI strategist Lily Zheng on the power of data to correct discrimination, design fair processes, and demonstrate a company’s progress toward diversity, equity, and inclusion. They’ll also describe the positive and negative moves companies are making and how to have influence within yours.
The Amys on…whatever guidance you and other attendees need related to leading a team, dealing with conflict, negotiating, or something else. Email your question ahead of time to womenatwork@hbr.org, or drop it into the chat during the session.

Tickets are $60 for Harvard Business Review subscribers and $75 for everyone else. A ticket will also give you access to a replay of the event recording. Register here.

Interested in buying a bunch of tickets for your team, department, or entire company? Email WAWLive@hbr.org to learn about group discounts.

See you there!

The Essentials: Handling Fierce Criticism Mar 25, 2024

Show notes

If you’re in a leadership role, or any role where you’re putting yourself and your ideas out there in an outspoken and visible way, chances are that at some point people are going to criticize you, sometimes fiercely, sometimes publicly. Are you ready for that?

Two women who’ve felt the heat because of decisions they’ve made or arguments they’ve put forward—or simply because of who they are—reflect on the ways they’ve steeled themselves for harsh critiques and dealt with the fallout. Patti Neuhold-Ravikumar describes the preparation and the presence of mind she summoned as a university president communicating contentious budget cuts. Ruchika Tulshyan brings her expertise in DEI and women’s leadership to contextualize those experiences, and she describes her own experiences with online harassment and how she’s dealt with skeptics.

Listening to them recount how they responded to fierce criticism will hopefully help you think about how you might respond, both when you see it coming and when you don’t.

Guest experts:

Ruchika Tulshyan is the author of the book Inclusion on Purpose: An Intersectional Approach to Creating a Culture of Belonging at Work. She is the founder of Candour, an inclusion strategy firm.

Patti Neuhold-Ravikumar is an executive coach who was previously the president and CEO of the University of Central Oklahoma.

Resources:

“How Leaders Should Handle Public Criticism,” by Ron Carucci
“How to Be Resilient in the Face of Harsh Criticism,” by Joseph Grenny
“How to Take Criticism Well,” by Sabina Nawaz
“In a Crisis, Great Leaders Prioritize Listening,” by Erika James and Lynn Perry Wooten

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

The Essentials: Setting and Maintaining Boundaries Mar 18, 2024

Show notes

We all need to set boundaries, even in the most structured jobs, because work has its way of encroaching on the rest of our life. Ashley, a senior analyst for the federal government, recently shifted to a schedule that helps her do her most important work and have some alone time before her family gets home. Now she’s trying to figure out how to further minimize interruptions, deal with slow and busy stretches, and get out of unproductive meetings.

Amy G and executive coach Melody Wilding talk through adjustments Ashley can make and things she can say to achieve those goals. They also offer strategies for how to communicate your new limits with colleagues and how to hold the line when your boundaries inevitably get tested.

Guest expert:

Melody Wilding is an executive coach and the author of Trust Yourself: Stop Overthinking and Channel Your Emotions for Success at Work.

Resources:

“How to Set Healthy Boundaries When Starting a New Job,” by Melody Wilding
“What to Do When Work Is Slow,” by Elizabeth Grace Saunders
“How to Protect Your Boundaries When Your Company Is Struggling,” by Susan Peppercorn
“Set Better Boundaries,” by Priscilla Claman
“Set These 5 Boundaries Before You Go on Vacation,” by Marlo Lyons

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

The Essentials: Building and Repairing Trust Mar 11, 2024

Show notes

Trust smooths the way for collaboration, conflict resolution, and influence. But how do you build this asset? And how do you repair it when you’ve missed a series of important deadlines or otherwise messed up?

Organizational psychologist Ruchi Sinha talks with a listener who’s struggling to restore skeptics’ confidence in her and her team. Ruchi shares the three elements of trust and how to convey each one. She also offers advice on what to do if you’ve failed to acknowledge a broken promise and how to communicate practically when confidentiality prevents you from being totally transparent.

Guest expert:

Ruchi Sinha is an associate professor of organizational behavior at the University of South Australia Business School. Her research explores how voice, conflict, and power dynamics influence work relationships and performance outcomes.

Resources:

“New to the Team? Here’s How to Build Trust (Remotely),” by Ruchi Sinha
“How High-Performing Teams Build Trust,” by Ron Friedman
“10 Pitfalls That Destroy Organizational Trust,” by Frances X. Frei and Anne Morriss
“What to Do When You Don’t Trust Your Employee,” by Dina Denham Smith
“How to Build Trust at Work,” from the HBR on Leadership podcast

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

The Essentials: Executive Presence Mar 04, 2024

Show notes

Executive presence is a mix of gravitas, communication skills, and appearance. But how do you learn to command a room if you only have a few opportunities to be in front of your colleagues, except for the occasional video call? This is the situation that one of our listeners is in. She joins Amy B and two other women who’ve each cultivated a strong executive presence, Megan Bock and Laura Sicola, to get advice on what hers can look and sound like.

In this episode, you’ll learn how to improve your own influence and impact, keep a virtual audience engaged, and grow while staying true to yourself.

Guest experts:

Megan Bock is the chief operating officer at Federato, a company that uses machine learning to assess risk. Cultivating an executive presence helped her rise up through the insurance industry and into tech.

Laura Sicola is a cognitive linguist who coaches leaders on communicating strategically. She hosts the podcast Speaking to Influence, and she wrote the book Speaking to Influence: Master Your Leadership Voice.

Resources:

“The New Rules of Executive Presence,” by Sylvia Ann Hewlett
“If You Want To Lead, Master This Skill,” by Dina Denham Smith
“Gravitas Is a Quality You Can Develop,” by Rebecca Newton
“To Sound Like a Leader, Think About What You Say, and How and When You Say It,” by Rebecca Shambaugh

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

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