Customer Reviews

Damned If She Does, Damned If She Doesn't: Rethinking the Rules of the Game That Keep Women from Succeeding in Business

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The authors present the stories of women who, like me, struggled to find their place in corporate America, often discovering that hard work and total immersion do not necessarily go hand-in-hand with advancement. This book provides remarkable insights and guidance that could significantly benefit the next generation of women managers and executives. I highly recommend it.

Frankly, I didn't think I'd ever see anything original on this topic. Most books on women and business are either whiny or over-the-top cheery.

Cronin and Fine will help a lot of women with their message: "It's probably not your fault if you're hitting a wall. If you follow the corporate culture, the rules won't work for you. If you don't...well, organizations punish rule-breakers."

I was particularly taken with the example of the woman who joined a colleague in bringing a sensitive issue to the attention of their mutual boss's boss. He was praised for being a courageous leader; she was criticized for challenging a male boss. Any woman who's been in the corporate world more than ten minutes will have her own examples. A male professor friend was horrified when his female department head asked him to call the maintenance people about a problem; when she called, her requests landed at the bottom of the pile.

The book is well written and extremely easy to follow. It's actually hard to put down.

My only complaint is that the authors claim, "Change has to come at the organizational level." In fact, some women do rise to senior corporate positions. They do become senators and college presidents. It would be useful to ask, "How did they do it? Did they modify the rules?"

Additionally we can learn lessons from the military, where women are expected to dress and behave in ways that aren't typically feminine. I recently read and reviewed a book about a female African American woman who became a Captain in US Navy; she used humor to defuse tense situations. Women are flying planes off carrier decks and getting named to command West Point cadet brigades. They don't just get jobs: they get promoted. What's their secret? My hunch is that women succeed when their activities can be quantified so their achievement is undeniable; they've made more sales, scored higher on a proficiency or won more basketball games.

It's also possible that successful women have learned to modify their styles. Pat Summitt, the legendary basketball coach, wrote that she softened her style when dealing with campus administration; she drew on her sorority persona so she wouldn't be threatening.

My own belief is that women have to forge their own path and make their own rules. It's much harder than just responding to corporate culture but in the end it may be even more rewarding.

Fabulous insight! The "male proving ground" concept frames this problem perfectly. Having been in two female dominated businesses, retail and teaching, I can attest that it can be even more intense for men in those professions. They really need to prove themselves. It is up to us to innoculate the next generation of male co-workers. I'm buying this book for both of my sons!

'The system works' is the basic conclusion of Lynn Cronin and Howard Fine. But it works differently for men than for women, and how women fit in to a male-dominated corporate hierarchy, succeed and thrive is the subject of this book. Not by defying the corporate culture, but by recognizing how its assumptions are different from theirs in subtle ways and making the subtle changes in attitude to succeed. Lynn and Howard believe in the 'coed company' and persuade the reader to believe in it too - by resisting the easy confrontational solutions and opting for long-term success.

Damned if She Does, Damned if She Doesn't provides a strikingly original insight into gender disparities within the corporate world. What makes this book useful are the parallels one can draw between themes of gender disparities within the working world and overall contextual themes of gender disparities in everyday life. This is a highly recommended read for those entering the working world or those who seek to gain additional insight into the nuances of gender roles. However, this is a wonderful read for anyone!

Cronin and Fine offer not only original insights into the unspoken realities of the corporate workplace, but real solutions to the problems they enumerate. As a female ivy-league graduate in corporate America, I have found more practically useful advice in this book than in any other of its kind. Having incorporated some of Cronin and Fine's intelligent reasoning to my own world-view, I now better understand my male peers and superiors and have developed better work relationships with them. I strongly recommend this book to everyone, especially to young women trying to advance their careers. This book will be useful to women working in any hierarchical workplace, be it a corporation or a hospital. As individuals we might not be able to change the entire system, but the things this book will teach you will help you better navigate your way. I am forever indebted to the person who introduced me to this work-- if you have female friends or relatives who are looking to enter the workplace and you want to help them along, send them a copy of this book.