Women at Work

Latest Episodes:

Sexism Is Everywhere Dec 04, 2023

Show notes

Sexism is everywhere in workplaces, from people’s expectations about how women look and act to companies’ inadequate or unfair parental leave policies. Still, it can be shocking when you realize—or suspect—that you’re the target of that bias. Perhaps you sense someone is interrupting you over and over because you’re a woman. Or, you receive an end-of-year rating that just doesn’t align with your actual performance, and no one can (or will) explain the discrepancy.

Is there any way to know for sure whether something that a colleague or client did—or neglected to do—is sexism? When is confronting that person worth it? And if you’ll never know what drove their actions, how do you make peace with the uncertainty? Amy G talks through these questions with two professors who study perceptions and gender stereotypes.

Guest experts:

Katie Coffman is an economist and professor at Harvard Business School, where she studies how stereotypes impact our beliefs about ourselves

Michelle Duguid is a professor and the associate dean of diversity, inclusion, and belonging at Cornell.

Resources:

“Dismantling ‘Benevolent’ Sexism,” by Negin Sattari et al.
“Unconscious Bias Training That Works,” by Francesca Gino and Katherine Coffman
“Why Most Performance Evaluations Are Biased, and How to Fix Them,” by Lori Nishiura Mackenzie et al.
“Research: How Bias Against Women Persists in Female-Dominated Workplaces,” by Amy Diehl

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

Is Entrepreneurship Right for Me? (from New Here) Nov 30, 2023

Show notes

It’s a question that so many of us are grappling with. Should I quit the corporate life that may not feel quite right for me, and pursue my passion project?

You may have worries about the financial risks, stability, and what your future looks like with less of a roadmap. Today we’ll help you think through the possibilities and trade-offs, as we learn from one woman’s experiences leaving corporate life to build her own business.

This episode is from New Here, a new podcast for young professionals from Harvard Business Review. Each week, host Elainy Mata shares stories, tips, and advice from trusted experts and the people who help her figure out career challenges—like her therapist and mentors. Season One focuses on those “big firsts” that happen in any new job—like your first big mistake or how to ask for a raise.

In this episode, we follow Jemma Sbeg as she leaves her successful consulting career to pursue her passion project—her now-hit podcast, The Psychology of your 20s. First we hear from Jemma on her first day of working for herself—to learn how she made the decision to leave her full-time job and what her hopes and fears are for her new work life. Then Jemma returns for a second conversation, after she’s been working on her own for five months.

You’ll learn which of Jemma’s fears were warranted, how she battled loneliness, managed her money, and whether or not she is actually happier working for herself.

You can listen to all of season one of New Here at https://hbr.org/podcasts/new-here or wherever you get your podcasts.

Ever Consider Joining a Board? Nov 27, 2023

Show notes

Being on a board is a chance to grow—your mind, your skills, your network, your impact. It’s also another time commitment to fit in, and, for some women, another environment where they have to fight to be heard. So, is the payoff worth the effort?

Yes, according to the eight women who volunteered to speak about their experience serving on boards of companies, nonprofits, and schools. They share how they landed a seat, gained confidence in the role, and found unexpected personal and professional benefits in the work. We hope that their perspectives and advice will inspire you to consider trying it yourself some day.
Ellen Zane, who runs a Harvard workshop for women interested in board work, provides further insight based on her years of experience as a director for nonprofits and private and public companies.

Guest expert:

Ellen Zane directs the Women on Boards: Getting on and Adding Value annual program through Harvard’s School of Public Health (here’s the application for the next one, April 18–19, 2024). She’s the former CEO of Tufts Medical Center, and she’s on the board of directors for several nonprofits and private and public companies.

Resources:

“Research: Board Experience Is Helping More Women Get CEO Jobs,” by Catherine H. Tinsley and Kate Purmal
“How Women on Boards Navigate the ‘Warmth-Competence’ Line,” by Tiffany Trzebiatowski et al.
“Research: How Women Improve Decision-Making on Boards,” by Margarethe Wiersema and Marie Louise Mors
“Are You Ready to Serve on a Board?” by Anthony Hesketh et al.
“10 Proactive Questions Every Board Member Should Be Asking,” by Andrew White et al.

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

Ask the Amys Nov 20, 2023

Show notes

What if one of your first assignments at a new job was to fire people? What should you do if the person leading a project you’re on isn’t giving clear direction, demands that you work nights and weekends, bristles at your feedback—and leadership tells you to fall in line? These are two of the five situations that Amy B and Amy G talk through in this episode. They offer advice to the women who wrote in with their questions, with the hope that it will help them and anyone who’s been in a similar situation, or might be one unfortunate day.

Resources:

When You Work in a Male-Dominated Industry, from Women at Work
“Begin with Trust,” by Frances X. Frei and Anne Morriss
“When You Have to Carry Out a Decision You Disagree With,” by Art Markman
“A Tool to Help You Reach Your Goals in 4 Steps,” by Heidi Grant
“Getting Along: My Coworker Is Sabotaging Me — and My Boss Won’t Help,” by Amy Gallo
“How to Recover from a Toxic Job,” by Melody Wilding

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

So Many Feelings. Too Many? Nov 13, 2023

Show notes

Holding in anxiety, anger, or despair for the sake of appearing professional can feel impossible. When the emotions are just too much—your boss’s dismissive tone infuriates you, a direct report unloads, you can’t hold back tears in a meeting, a tragedy happens and you’re leading an all-staff tomorrow morning—what do you do?

Liz Fosslien believes “the future of work is emotional.” The Amys revisit our 2020 conversation with her and fellow organizational consultant Mollie West Duffy about the good that can come from being vulnerable with colleagues, then Fosslien returns to help us reassess where the line between vulnerability and oversharing is today.

Resources:

No Hard Feelings: The Secret Power of Embracing Emotions at Work, by Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy
Big Feelings: How to Be Okay When Things Are Not Okay, by Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy
“Handling Negative Emotions in a Way that’s Good for Your Team,” by Emma Seppälä and Christina Bradley
“How to Control Your Emotions During a Difficult Conversation,” by Amy Gallo
“New Managers Shouldn’t Be Afraid to Express Their Emotions,” by Kristi Hedges

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

Should I Change My Last Name? Nov 06, 2023

Show notes

If you’re engaged, this question is probably going to come up. Have you ever thought about what you would do (if you have plans to marry), or reflected on the decision you made (if you’re already married)? To what extent did your professional accomplishments and aspirations factor into your decision to keep or change your last name?

Our associate producer, Hannah Bates, is engaged, and she talks out the rationale behind her decision to keep her name with three recently married women (one who kept her name and two who changed theirs), and they share what the decision-making process was like for them. Hannah and the Amys then join former co-host Nicole Torres, who first raised this question on our show and encouraged us to do this episode in the first place.

Resources:

“How to Change Your Name and Keep Your Professional Identity,” by Dorie Clark
“8 in 10 Women Married to Men Still Take Husband’s Last Name, Survey Finds,” from Pew Research Center
“The Japanese Public Broadly Supports Legalizing Dual-Surname Option for Married Couples,” from the Stanford’s Asia-Pacific Research Center

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

ADHD Is Different for Women Oct 30, 2023

Show notes

ADHD can mess with a person’s ability to remember responsibilities and deadlines, start and stop projects, and show up as the on-top-of-everything employee that a boss expects. For women, these symptoms are also in direct contrast to what society expects us to be: attentive, organized, self-controlled. If you have ADHD, getting practical support from colleagues and emotional support from others in the same boat is essential to reaching your potential at work.

Two women who have ADHD—one’s a psychologist and the other a life coach—explain the many different ways that this chronic, brain-based disorder manifests, and how hormonal fluctuations factor in. They point out coping mechanisms that might actually be making your life harder, and give advice for creating the structure and accountability you need in your job.

Guests:

Kathleen Nadeau is a psychologist, the clinical director of The Chesapeake Center, and author of many books about ADHD, including her latest, Still Distracted After All These Years.

Kristen Carder hosts the podcast I Have ADHD and runs a group coaching program called Focused.

Resources:

“ADHD, Neurodiversity, and Bias,” from The Anxious Achiever
“5 Ways to Focus at Work, from an Executive Who’s Struggled with ADHD,” by Jack Kosakowski
“Feeling Disengaged at Work? Find Someone to Hold You Accountable,” by Deborah Grayson Riegel
“Is Your Company Inclusive of Neurodivergent Employees?” by Michael Bernick
“How Women with ADHD Can Transform the Challenges of a Late Diagnosis,” from ADDitude

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

Navigating Your Career When You Have a Disability Oct 23, 2023

Show notes

About one in 10 working women have a disability, whether it’s apparent or not. And how those women navigate the workplace is different from how the average neurotypical, fully able-bodied woman does, largely because of pervasive ableism. To learn more about that experience, we’re talking with Meredith Koch and Nicole Bettè. They’re engineers who both use wheelchairs and advocate for employees with disabilities.

In this episode, they reflect on their careers and times when they’ve felt supported—and when they haven’t, all with the hope that you’ll be able to better advocate for yourself and your colleagues. In their stories are also lessons for managers about how best to respond to team members’ requests for accommodations, and how to help accommodate employees who might not know what’s available or even what they need.

Resources:

“People with Disabilities Are an Untapped Talent Pool,” from HBR IdeaCast
“Make It Safe for Employees to Disclose Their Disabilities,” by Laurie Henneborn
“Do Your D&I Efforts Include People with Disabilities?” by Caroline Casey
“The Case for Improving Work for People with Disabilities Goes Way Beyond Compliance,” by Laura Sherbin and Julia Taylor Kennedy
“Disability as a Source of Competitive Advantage,” by Luisa Alemany and Freek Vermeulen

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

Let’s Talk About Our Failures Oct 16, 2023

Show notes

Have you had something go wrong at work? Like really wrong? How much of it do you feel was your fault? And are you still trying to move past it?

The Amys and their former co-host Sarah Green Carmichael revisit times they majorly messed up, in hopes that you’ll feel better about your experiences with failure. We’re not talking about honest mistakes with simple solutions; we’re talking about larger problems that were difficult and costly to correct. They share what happened, how they recovered, and what they learned.

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

October 16, the Amys Are Back Oct 09, 2023

Show notes

How do you recover from a failure? What’s it really like—and what does it take—to serve on a board? Do our career aspirations influence our decision, if and when we marry somebody, to keep or change our last name? How does going through a divorce affect us at work, and for how long? If we have a disability, how can we get the understanding and assistive technology we need to do our job?

These questions are at the heart of some of the conversations the Amys are having this season with women who’ve been there. As always, we’ll be bringing you expertise, stories, and advice.

Email us: womenatwork@hbr.org

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