Sheryl Sandberg
Facebook CEO, Sheryl Sandberg addresses her perspective on the challenges women and mothers face in the corporate sector in contemporary times. The number of women who hold 'C' level positions has not changed since 2002. According to Sandberg, one reason is that women have harder choices between personal success and professional fulfillment. She offers advice for women: (1). sit at the table (2). make your partner a real partner, (3). don't leave before you leave. She uses the metaphor of siting at the table in both literally and as a metaphor that depicts women systematically underestimate their own abilities. Women need to learn how to negotiate for themselves in the workforce (ex. salary) and attribute their successes to themselves rather than external factors. "No one gets to the corner office by sitting at the side and not at the table." She goes on to reference Columbia University's study that asserts that success and likability are positively correlated for men but negatively correlated for women. Regarding message number two on making your partner a real partner, Sandberg offers her advice: "we have to make it as important a job to work inside the home for people of both genders to even things out in the workforce." Leaving before leaving refers to the phenomenon where women mentally leave the workforce, refrain from taking career advancements and/or figuratively stop 'raising their hands' beginning when they start to plan to start a family." Keep your foot on the gas pedal until the very day you need to leave to take break for a child and then make your decisions." She closes her statement by sharing that she has both a son and a daughter. She wants her son to grow up to have a choice to contribute fully to the workforce or at home and she wants her daughter to have the choice, not just to success, but to be liked for her accomplishments.
Rosalinde Torres
Rosalind Torres shared that there are outdated leadership development programs that are based on a world that was and not a world that is or is becoming. The 21st century is more global, digitally enabled and transparent and leaders of this time must not rely on traditional development practices. She has spent 25 years of her professional life observing leaders and she has found that, "traditional assessments like narrow 360 surveys will give you false positives, [leading] you to believe that you are more prepared than what you are" [5:21]. Instead she states that leadership in the 21st century should be defined by these three questions:
Where are you looking to anticipate change? - To answer this question, she says to look at your calendar and determine who you are spending the most of your time with and what topics are being covered. What are trends? Anticipate a new move? Great leaders see around corners and shape their futures and not just react to it.
What is the diversity measure of your network? - Our capacity to develop relationship with people who are very different from you. Despite vast differences, they connect with you and cooperate with you to achieve a shared goal. This also offers a other benefits such as identification at greater levels and a larger source of solutions.
Are you courageous enough to abandon the past? - Great leaders dare to be different. "The most impactful development comes when you are able to build the emotional stamina to withstand people telling you your new idea is naive or reckless or just plain stupid “ [8:25].