Usted es me todos: What Gets In the Way of Career Advancement

April 18, 2018

What Gets In the Way of Career Advancement

From Amy Bernstein
Editor, Harvard Business Review

If you've ever struggled with your career advancement, our May–June issue will speak to you. I want to recommend three articles in particular.

Are you afraid to ask for help? Maybe you're worried about looking dumb. Or maybe you're afraid of being turned down. But let's be honest: No one can get ahead without support from others. In my first article for you, "How to Get the Help You Need," Heidi Grant, a senior scientist at the Neuroleadership Institute, unpacks the perceived social threats that stop us from asking for help. She also points out that most people are happy to lend a hand, provided you ask in the right way.

The second article on my list deals with the litany of theories about why women haven't achieved workplace parity with men. We've all heard them: Women put their families first; they lack confidence; they don't negotiate well; they avoid risk. Nonsense, say Catherine Tinsley of Georgetown and Robin Ely of Harvard Business School. In "What Most People Get Wrong About Men and Women," Tinsley and Ely argue that, in fact, men and women have similar inclinations, attitudes, and skills. They say the real reason women lag men on the job is that they're treated differently. Among the obstacles: Women have less access to important information and get less feedback from supervisors. The authors lay out practical ways to address these imbalances.

My last pick is for anyone who's half of a high-powered professional couple. Whose career takes precedence in your relationship? Who makes the sacrifice, for example, when one spouse is offered a coveted overseas assignment? These dilemmas are a problem for the couple as well as their employers: More and more high potentials are turning down opportunities so that their spouses can stay on a leadership track. Obviously, this situation has to change. In "Talent Management and the Dual-Career Couple," Jennifer Petriglieri of INSEAD says companies should start by dismantling their rigid view of leadership development. Instead of fixed paths to leadership roles, with tours of duty and set ideas about what ambition looks like, firms should allow people to develop skills and networks in more-creative ways. Neither spouse, she argues, should have to pull back so that the other can advance.

Thanks for reading,
Amy Bernstein

In the Issue:

How to Get the Help You Need

by Heidi Grant

We all need assistance from others, but sometimes it can be hard to reach out and ask. Why? Because of the social threats involved—uncertainty, risk of rejection, potential for diminished status, relinquishment of authority. To make these requests easier, and to make it more likely someone will lend a hand, try using three key communication cues.

What Most People Get Wrong About Men and Women

by Catherine H. Tinsley and Robin J. Ely

Why have women failed to achieve parity with men in the workplace? It's not because women prioritize their families over their careers, negotiate poorly, lack confidence, or are too risk-averse. Rather, it's because of the way women are treated on the job: Women have less access to vital information, get less feedback from supervisors, and face other obstacles to advancement.

Talent Management and the Dual-Career Couple

by Jennifer Petriglieri

Most companies haven't figured out how to manage employees who care deeply about their partners' or spouses' careers at the same time that they want to advance their own. As a result, many high potentials are heading for the nearest exit when presented with set tours of duty or fixed paths to leadership roles. To solve this problem, companies need to embrace career flexibility for future leaders instead of stigmatizing it.