Each individual ask these questions attempting to navigate the ship within a competitive business world in which a few people ever ascend to their preferred or targeted career position. The important question for this discussion then is; how many men or women are in leadership positions?
People in top leadership positions go through many challenges to get their way into those top positions. Needless to say, the people who succeed to the top leadership positions are mainly men, and it is more challenging if one is a woman (Evans 2011).
What gives an individual an edge? Particularly, at times of a tough economy having uncertain events or occurrences? Many firms seek leaders who may captain their staff. They are in need of direction from top leadership. Speaking of top management entails discussing the position of Chief Executive Officer. Quickly naming three Chief Executive Officers can never go without the names of Bill Gates, Michael Dell, or Steve Jobs. There is undisputed statistic that many people in the top management or leadership positions are men.
Research reveal that most women have experienced discrimination regarding their gender, capability to be assertive, as well as perception by many that women lack the capacity to take their staff to the next category (Women in Business 2009).
With remarkable changes in educational qualifications of women, it is more and more evident that discrimination on the basis on one’s sex is an important contributor to the gap in pay. Studies reveal that women would be receiving more than men would or just as much, were it, not for gender discrimination (Yeager 2010). Women undergo through challenges like sexual discrimination, which affect their capacity for financial compensation, and the opportunity for advancement.
Whenever a man is more assertive than a woman it is viewed differently. The society dictates and demands that whenever a man is assertive they are viewed as good leaders. Being assertive is a great characteristic for men, but whenever a lady is assertive, none views it positively. Assertiveness within women is at times perceived as being overly pushy, aggressive, and bossy. Women within leadership positions may have to second-guess when becoming assertive never to come off rude (Allen & Truman 2013).
