My friend, P, is looking for a job. She wants to work for the government.
P is bright, capable, funny and smart. She has been in the industry for 15 years, and is good at what she does. So, we ask her the big question: Why?
She rambled along for a bit: All her colleagues are different. They are 20-something, or they are men. They don't share her interests, passions, or concerns outside work. She craves a friend at work, or maybe a mentor. She craves to see 40+ women at work. Where do they go, she asks?
Her last comment hit a nerve. Work place is a community. We need friends, support groups, mentors, and people who care for us. We need people who are different, and who bring richness to our perspective, but we also need those like minded people, with the same interests, issues, and challenges.
I do wonder, where do the 40+ successful, smart women go, because they are a pretty rare sight at the typical silicon valley company.
Post Script:
So, there is contradictory data on this everywhere. However, the closest that I could get to the 40+ question is here. If you do not have subscription, you can also read it here.
It looks like the 40+ woman is on a sabbatical with her children, though rarely does she make it back without losing out on pay or position, leading to only 2% or top company positions in US being held by women, while total woman-force is on trend to exceed man-force.
Maybe, there is now a new generation of women who are finding ways to stay in the workforce after kids. Is it this generation that will produce those mentors that P craves?
P is bright, capable, funny and smart. She has been in the industry for 15 years, and is good at what she does. So, we ask her the big question: Why?
She rambled along for a bit: All her colleagues are different. They are 20-something, or they are men. They don't share her interests, passions, or concerns outside work. She craves a friend at work, or maybe a mentor. She craves to see 40+ women at work. Where do they go, she asks?
Her last comment hit a nerve. Work place is a community. We need friends, support groups, mentors, and people who care for us. We need people who are different, and who bring richness to our perspective, but we also need those like minded people, with the same interests, issues, and challenges.
I do wonder, where do the 40+ successful, smart women go, because they are a pretty rare sight at the typical silicon valley company.
Post Script:
So, there is contradictory data on this everywhere. However, the closest that I could get to the 40+ question is here. If you do not have subscription, you can also read it here.
It looks like the 40+ woman is on a sabbatical with her children, though rarely does she make it back without losing out on pay or position, leading to only 2% or top company positions in US being held by women, while total woman-force is on trend to exceed man-force.
Maybe, there is now a new generation of women who are finding ways to stay in the workforce after kids. Is it this generation that will produce those mentors that P craves?
2 comments:
Thought provoking. In my case, I have been in groups that have less than a handful of women (many times I was *the* only woman in the group right from grad school). So when you say community, mentoring, like minded, similar interests, I'm like really? Especially mentoring - I have never had that luxury, ever (and I'm in my mid 30's so God knows where I'm going in a few years:)
Chaos in my mind - I have had a lot of mentors. They have all been men. My PhD thesis was dedicated to three men (much to my mom's disappointment). However, you are right, sometimes, when you encounter something that is more a woman issue than a man issue, you look for others of your kind.
If it is any solace to us, Patidev says his kind is even rarer. The male trying to balance work and home and a career woman. He is yet to meet another man who has to come home early to release the nanny and cook dinner!
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