An Aug 2 confab at Dia: Beacon drew 200 people, mostly women, for a presentation on the business life frenetic: how to manage it, survive it and even how to earn a hug from the kids in the process.
Take, for example, the evening commute. You”™re rushing home on Metro-North or sitting in traffic on the Tappan Zee Bridge, hoping to arrive in time for at least part of dinner ”“ or at the bare minimum, to tell a goodnight story to the kids.
Don”™t worry, says Ellen Galinsky, co-founder of the Families and Work Institute (FWI), the event speaker. After a study conducted within 10 large corporate settings, the survey says kids are more positively affected by their parents”™ mood than their physical presence.
“If you come home stressed out and feeling guilty, chances are good that the ”˜quality time”™ you think you are missing out on and striving to give your child is exactly what the child doesn”™t need ”“ they like to see their parents come home relaxed and smiling, even if it means they don”™t get to sit down and have dinner together,” Galinsky says.
Happier parents, says Galinsky, who says becoming a parent herself put her even more in tune with family needs, make for happier, more well-adjusted children. “Parents who worry about ”˜quality time”™ with children should be more concerned about coming through the door in a good frame of mind. It”™s more important than you realize. Yes, they might miss you, but don”™t let parental guilt find you doing things you resent.”
Shifting work-force demographics over the last 25 years show women in the work force rising from 42 percent to 49 percent, and today”™s woman has achieved a higher education level than her male counterpart for those age 50 and younger; 32 percent of women and 23 per cent of men in the U.S. now have four years of college or more. Those statistics will continue to climb for women, as more re-enter the work force or put their focus on career first, marriage and children later, than their mothers and grandmothers did.
Within the last quarter-century, says Galinsky, work has changed ”“ but perhaps not for the better: It is more demanding and hectic, and technology is blurring the lines between work and nonwork times. More and more, there is an expectation of instant response and constant interruption, via your Blackberry, e-mail or cell phone. More than half of the participants, says the FWI co-founder, responded they “often or very often” are faced with not knowing when to stop working.
There are more dual-income families today, too: Nearly 80 percent of respondents, report Galinsky, have both parents working. More men are involved for caring for their children because of it, but when it came to male executives, more than 70 percent of them had spouses who stayed home.
The FWI study also concluded:
Ӣ 39 percent of employees are not fully engaged in their jobs;
Ӣ 54 per cent are less than fully satisfied with their jobs;
Ӣ 39 per cent are somewhat or very likely to make a concerted effort to find a new job within the coming year;
Ӣ 33 per cent are exhibiting one or more symptoms of clinical depression;
Ӣ 48 per cent of men and 31 per cent of women are experiencing some of a lot of conflict in their work and family life.
The study also acknowledged the demand on women to climb the corporate ladder. They are more likely to delay marriage and have children than their corporate male counterparts by a 2-1 ratio. Galinsky”™s study found 61 percent of executives, whether male or female, are “work-centric,” where career comes before family and personal life; 32 per cent are considered “dual-centric,” those who place the same priority on work as they do on their personal-family lives.
Women do have a tougher time in the corporate world, despite cracks in the glass ceiling. Those involved in the study reported facing exclusion from important networks; a limited number of role models; limited opportunities for experiences in general management; gender stereotypes; and dealing with dual career-family challenges as their most significant roadblocks.
While finding a career mentor is of benefit to either men or women climbing the corporate ladder, women who have women mentors are more likely to achieve their goals. “That”™s a hint to women who have achieved a prominent position in corporate America to help their peers achieve success,” said Galinsky.
Galinsky offers some strategies for employers to retain their key people: “They need to attend not only to matters of promotion or compensation but also to ”˜softer issues”™ like respect and acceptance of individual differences; support in the workplace; job quality; and flexibility.”
To create an effective workplace ”“ Galinsky says equal numbers of male and female employees will leave their current job within the next five years ”“ she recommends:
Ӣ providing job autonomy;
Ӣ creating learning opportunities and challenges on the job;
Ӣ developing environments where supervisors support employees in being successful;
Ӣ developing environments where co-workers support each other for job success;
Ӣ involving employees in management decision-making.
When it comes to older workers, Galinsky cites statistics showing those above 50 are more likely to be more satisfied with their jobs; plan to remain with their employers; and have equally or more positive relationships with their supervisors than their younger counterparts, even when the supervisor is much younger.
Ten companies participated in the FWI”™s survey: Baxter International, Inc.; Citigroup; Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu; Dow; Eli Lilly & Company; Goldman, Sachs & Co.; IBM; JPMorgan Chase; Marriott International, Inc. and Proctor and Gamble. The study, Leaders in a Global Economy, was an international effort, with 62 percent of the executives based in the U.S. and Canada; 16 percent in Europe; 11 percent in the Asia-Pacific Rim area; 7 percent in Latin America; and 4 percent in other areas. Among the 38 per cent of these executives who do not work in the U. S. and Canada, more than half were born in the country or region where they now work. Fifty-two percent of the participants were women and the sampling was made of more than half “very senior” CEOs or CEO direct reports.
“It was a great presentation,” said Anne Meagher, president of Greater Southern Dutchess Chamber of Commerce, which sponsored the event. “It made us think more about what is important to our kids ”“ whether we are there to spend ”˜quality time”™ or come through the door with a smile on our faces ”¦ it certainly sounds like the latter works better for kids. It also takes pressure off the parents.”
The full report is available at www.familiesandwork.org, www.catalystwomen.org and www.bc.edu/cwf.
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