Glass cliff

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The term Glass cliff ( Glass Cliff ) describes the phenomenon that it is more likely that women in downturns or periods of crisis, when the chance of failure is greatest, be a leader.

Origins

The term was coined in 2005 by British professors Michelle K. Ryan and Alexander Haslam from the University of Exeter , Great Britain . In one study, they looked at the performance of FTSE 100 companies before and after new board members were appointed and found that companies that appointed women to their boards were more likely than others to have consistently underperformed over the past five months. Ryan and Haslam took their work further until they identified a phenomenon known as glass cliff - similar to the concept of a glass ceiling , but incorporating the fact that the dangers of the transparent edge of the cliff are imperceptible, while with the glass ceiling it is higher Positions within the organization can be seen but not reached. If female executives break through the glass ceiling, they are more often promoted to leadership positions that are considered particularly unsafe, for example in times of crisis for the company. Ryan and Haslam describe the “Glass Cliff” phenomenon as a form of discrimination. Since then, the term has expanded beyond the corporate world to include politics and other areas.

overview

Ryan and Haslam's research has shown that once women break through the glass ceiling and assume leadership positions, they often experience experiences that are different from those of their male counterparts. More specifically, women are more likely to occupy positions that are precarious and at greater risk of failure - either because they are entrusted with running organizations (or organizational units) in crisis or because they are not over Have the resources and support needed to be successful.

Ryan and Haslam expanded the metaphor of the glass ceiling and created the term "glass cliff" to indicate a risk of falling that is not readily apparent. The chairmanship is typically shorter for companies in difficulty than for stable companies.

The concept of glass cliff has also been used to describe the discrimination against executives in the workplace who are members of minority groups or people with disabilities.

The phenomenon of the glass cliff has been proven in the field of law . A 2006 study found that law students were much more likely to attribute a high-risk case to a female chief counsel than a male. A 2010 study found that UK political science students were more likely to pick a male politician if he was running for a safe spot in a by-election and were more likely to pick a female candidate if the spot was described as difficult to come by.

Other research has not confirmed the existence of the glass cliff phenomenon. A 2007 study of corporate performance prior to the appointment of chairmen showed that women leaders are not more likely than men to be selected for insecure leadership positions.

Explanation

Many theories have been developed to explain the existence of the glass cliffs.

University of Houston psychology professor Kristin J. Anderson says companies can offer women glass cliff positions because they see women as "more expendable and better scapegoats". She says the organizations that offer women hard jobs believe that either way they will win: if the woman is successful, the company is better off. If it fails, the company is no worse off, it can be blamed, the company is recognized for being egalitarian and progressive, and it can revert to its previous practice of appointing men.

Haslam and Ryan say their studies show that people believe women are better suited to running stressed, unhappy businesses because they are perceived as more nurturing, creative, and intuitive. The researchers argue that female executives are not necessarily expected to improve situations, but are seen as good human resource managers who can be to blame for a company failure.

Haslam says female executives are more likely than men to accept glass-cliff positions because they lack access to the quality information and support that executives usually warned against. The professors of Utah State University Ali Cook and Christy Glass say, women and other minorities saw risky job offers as the only chance to, they would probably get.

A 2007 study found that female news consumers in the UK were more likely than men to accept that the glass cliffs exist and are dangerous and unjust for female leaders. Female study participants attributed the existence of the glass cliffs to a lack of other opportunities for female leaders, sexism, and intra-group favoritism of men. Male study participants stated that women were less suitable than men for difficult management tasks or strategic decisions, or that the glass cliffs had nothing to do with gender.

Implications for female leaders

Glass-cliff positions risk damaging reputations and career prospects for women because when a company goes bad, people tend to blame its leadership without considering situational or contextual variables. Researchers have found that if they fail, women leaders find it more difficult than men to get second chances because they have fewer mentors and sponsors and less access to a protective "old boys' network".

However, some researchers argue that companies in bad situations offer more opportunity for power and influence than stable companies.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Why women are often put in charge of failing companies. September 22, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2019 (American English).
  2. ^ Susanne Bruckmüller, Nyla R. Branscombe: How Women End Up on the “Glass Cliff” . In: Harvard Business Review . January – February 2011, January 1, 2011, ISSN  0017-8012 ( hbr.org [accessed June 3, 2019]).
  3. ↑ Michelle K. Ryan, S. Alexander Haslam: The Glass Cliff: Evidence that Women are Over-Represented in Precarious Leadership Positions. In: British Journal of Management, Vol. 16, No. 2, June 2005, pp. 81-90
  4. ↑ Michelle K. Ryan, S. Alexander Haslam: The Glass Cliff: Exploring the Dynamics Surrounding the Appointment of Women to Precarious Leadership Positions. In: The Academy of Management Review, Vol. 32, No. 2 (Apr., 2007), pp. 549-572, DOI: 10.2307 / 20159315
  5. ^ The Glass Cliff. July 27, 2011, accessed June 3, 2019 .
  6. ↑ Introducing ... the glass cliff . May 28, 2004 ( bbc.co.uk [accessed June 3, 2019]).
  7. ^ DG McCullough: Women CEOs: Why companies in crisis hire minorities - and then fire them . In: The Guardian . August 8, 2014, ISSN  0261-3077 ( theguardian.com [accessed June 3, 2019]).
  8. ↑ Julie Ashby, Michelle Ryan, S. Haslam: Legal Work and the Glass Cliff: Evidence that Women are Preferentially Selected to Lead Problematic Cases . In: William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice . tape 13 , no. 3 , April 1, 2007, ISSN  1081-549X , p. 775 ( wm.edu [accessed June 3, 2019]).
  9. ↑ Michelle K. Ryan, S. Alexander Haslam, Clara Kulich: Politics and the Glass Cliff: Evidence that Women are Preferentially Selected to Contest Hard-to-Win Seats . In: Psychology of Women Quarterly . tape 34 , no. 1 , March 1, 2010, p. 56-64 , doi : 10.1111 / j.1471-6402.2009.01541.x .
  10. Jump up ↑ Susan M. Adams, Atul Gupta, John D. Leeth: Are Female Executives Over-represented in Precarious Leadership Positions? In: British Journal of Management . tape 20 , no. 1 , 2009, p. 1–12 , doi : 10.1111 / j.1467-8551.2007.00549.x .
  11. ^ Thomson Reuters Foundation: When Wall Street Needs Scapegoats, Women Beware. Retrieved June 3, 2019 .
  12. ↑ Wayback Machine. (PDF) December 25, 2013, accessed June 3, 2019 .
  13. ↑ Michelle K. Ryan, S. Alexander Haslam, Mette D. Hersby, Renata Bongiorno: Think crisis - think female: The glass cliff and contextual variation in the think manager - think male stereotype. In: Journal of Applied Psychology . tape 96 , no. 3 , 2011, p. 470-484 , doi : 10.1037 / a0022133 .
  14. ^ A b Jaclyn Trop: Is Mary Barra Standing on a “Glass Cliff”? April 29, 2014, ISSN  0028-792X ( newyorker.com [accessed June 3, 2019]).
  15. ↑ Tom Postmes, S. Alexander Haslam, Michelle K. Ryan: Reactions to the glass cliff: Gender differences in the Explanations for the precariousness of women's leadership positions . In: Journal of Organizational Change Management . tape 20 , no. 2 , April 10, 2007, ISSN  0953-4814 , p. 182-197 , doi : 10.1108 / 09534810710724748 .
  16. ↑ Sylvia Ann Hewlett: The Glass Cliff: Are Women Leaders Often Set Up to Fail? In: Harvard Business Review . August 5, 2008, ISSN  0017-8012 ( hbr.org [accessed June 3, 2019]).