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LEAN IN: LESSONS FOR WOMEN (AND MEN)

IN WORK AND THE POWER OF LEADERSHIP

LORI NISHIURA MACKENZIE

MARCH 31, 2014

Is Lean In a Movement?

How do we create change?

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And how do we sustain it?

Progress has stalled

Education

Culture vs. Process

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Microdynamics =

Small Acts in everyday

interactions

Foundations of the Workshop

250 Women 250 Men

10

50% womenNo bias condition

Martell, Lane & Emrich 1996

Foundations of the Workshop

250 Women 250 Men

10

No bias condition

Martell, Lane & Emrich 1996

35% women1% bias condition

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KEY TOPICS

• Redesigning, Redefining Work

� Three cultural culprits

• Cultural Mechanisms

� Language of Leadership

• Scale

r e D E S I G N I N G &

r e D E F I N I N G W O R K

In 100 years, Americans will work just 15 hours per week.

(1930)

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In 100 years, Americans will work just 15 hours per week.

( John Maynard Keynes, 1930)

Between 1979 and 2007, the average yearly hours worked by

those employed increased 181 hours per year

(+10%, more weeks)

“Overwork,” = working more

than 50 hours per week Professionals:

38% men

14% women

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What’s the problem?

Innovation, Talent, Health, Stability

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WORK BELIEFS

Contingent on history and culture

Must be continually reinforced

Three Cultural Culprits

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Cultural Norm vs.

Aging Workers MillenialsParents

Etc.

The Ideal Worker

Ideal Worker = Puts work first.

Always available.

Family/Outside interests =

distractions from work.

Rewards = Exponential

Punishment = Steep

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Low-wage workers

Surge in involuntary part-time

work

Flexibility Stigma

“The CEO felt very strongly that if you’re really on the team for the

company, it had to be like the most important thing in your life, that you

were really expected to eat and

sleep and dream and work and do everything for it,” and he said, “No

part-time people.”

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Flexibility Stigma

Fear of consequences = limits

use of flexible options

Flexibility Stigma

Dads now spend nearly three times as many hours

on childcare as in 1965, reports the PEW Research Center

Culture of Overwork

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“Guys try to out-macho each other, but

in engineering out-machoing someone

means being even more of a nerd, not

being a brave firefighter and going up

one more flight than your friend.

There’s a lot of see-how-many-hours-I-

can-work, whether or not you have a

kid. He’s a real man. He works 90-

hour weeks.”

Cultural Culprits

Ideal Worker

Flexibility Stigma

Overwork

Millennials Parents

Elder Care

Encore Careers

Ongoing Training &

Development

Creative Work

Difference

Cultural Mechanisms

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Broadscale Education

Cultural and Leadership

rEvolution

Language

Language of Leadership

Activity

Describe a top performer.

Use words to describe behaviors and

attributes.

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Language of Leadership

CANDIDATE A CANDIDATE B

Team player

Friendly

Good relationship manager

Committed

Big thinker

Influences others

Takes risks

Independent

Language of Leadership

CANDIDATE A

(NURTURING)

CANDIDATE B

(LEADERSHIP)

Team player

Friendly

Good relationship manager

Committed

Big thinker

Influences others

Takes risks

Independent

Language of Leadership

Nurturing

Language

Language

of

Leadership

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Language of Leadership

Top Performer

vs.

Top Contributor to team’s success

Language of Leadership

Activity

On your top performer description:

Mark “N” for nurturing language

Mark “L” for Leadership language

Language of Leadership

NURTURING LEADERSHIP

Helpful

Supportive

Team Player

Warm

Compassionate

Agreeable

Friendly

Follows Instructions

Collaborative

Confident

Ambitious

Outspoken

Independent

Daring

Intellectual

Assertive

Influential

Go-getter

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Language of Leadership

And finally, a special thank you to

Lori. You won't be surprised to know

that she threw herself into this project

with tireless dedication, good spirits

and the gentle touch that is needed to

coordinate so many big personalities.

Language of Leadership

And finally, a special thank you to

Lori. You won't be surprised to know

that she threw herself into this project

with tireless dedication, good spirits

and the gentle touch that is needed to

coordinate so many big personalities.

Language of Leadership

Uncovering Authentic Leadership

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Language of Leadership

Covering: background or hide a known

disfavored identity

Uncovering: creating safe spaces to

tell one’s own story as part of

authentic leadership

Language of Leadership

Comprehensive paradigm

Integrate into the vernacular of

leadership

Language of Leadership

video

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What’s at Stake?

A dystopia is a community or

society that is in some way undesirable or frightening.

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Community Networks

(inside and outside the firewall)

500,000 rooms = Hilton

500 employees

Air BnB

Community Networks

Employees as Customers

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Community Networks

Circles

Education

Culture Change

gender.stanford.edu