Seducing the Boys Club: Uncensored Tactics from a Woman at the Top [Hardcover]

Nina DiSesa (Author)

Book Description

Release date: January 29, 2008

Fact #1: Forty years after the feminist revolution, fewer than 2 percent of Fortune 1000 CEOs are women.
Fact #2: The playing field is not level.
Fact #3: You need to get over this.

From the woman who became chairman of the flagship office of the largest advertising agency network in the world comes a wry reality check on how to get ahead and thrive in the testosterone-driven business arena.

Nina DiSesa is a master communicator, a ceiling crasher, and one of the most successful women in the corporate world. She is also a big-time realist who has figured out that S&M–seduction and manipulation–is the secret to winning over (and surpassing) the big guys. In Seducing the Boys Club, DiSesa shows that you can, in fact, leave your male colleagues in the dust–but not by following the rules you learned in business school.

By playing the roles of den mother, fraternity brother, little sister, and hard-nosed boss, DiSesa navigated the choppy, macho-minded waters of the workplace. All the “bad boys” in her life–and there are many–have provided a wealth of devilishly amusing stories and cautionary tales that DiSesa is only too happy to pass on. Ah, revenge can be sweet, but the truth is that she came to love those boys as much as they love her–which is the whole point.

DiSesa asserts that women need to meld their feminine characteristics (nurturing, compassion, listening) with the traits of their male counterparts (competitiveness, decisiveness, combativeness) to expand their professional horizons. In Seducing the Boys Club, DiSesa shares her practical, outrageous, and even controversial maxims for making it, including:

• Learn to appreciate men. Men like women who like them.
• Remember that women are biologically wired to succeed.
• If you want to make a name for yourself, find a mess and fix it. A secure and comfortable job only holds you back.
• Don’t assume that men never listen. They listen like a dog does.
• Don’t be a quiet achiever.
• Act brave and you will look brave.
• Screw the rules. Make up your own.

Whether dead-on funny or deadly serious, DiSesa is always on her game, always on message, and absolutely on target as she arms women with the can-do confidence and no-compromises attitude they need to climb as high as their ambition can carry them–while keeping their standards impeccable and their integrity intact. Not for women only, this book should be read by men, too . . . though it won’t give them any defense against a woman who can truly seduce a boys club!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Chairman of McCann Erickson New York, part of one of the largest advertising networks in the world, DiSesa delivers a one-on-one mentoring session on working with, competing against and managing both men and women. Confirming that her nature is to nurture, she is thoughtful and confessional as DiSesa looks back at how she learned to defy her own bad habits—including in-office meltdowns—and to substitute charm in their stead. DiSesa also readily shares insights gained from such nongender-based blunders as letting clients take a break in the middle of a presentation (the clients failed to return to the conference room). Though she refers to manipulating and seducing and learning to exhibit male behavior throughout, DiSesa's hard work, talent and insight into human nature appear to be the real drivers behind her success. That DiSesa has managed to package her experiences into accessible form creates a welcome opportunity for both women and men hoping to duplicate her success. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

Nina DiSesa has worked in the quintessential boys clubs of advertising for almost thirty years. In 1994, she became the first woman EVP, Executive Creative Director for McCann Erickson New York, the flagship office of the largest advertising agency in the world. Under her creative leadership, the New York office enjoyed an unprecedented 5-year growth period adding almost $2.5 billion in billings. In 1998, she was made Chairman as well as Chief Creative Officer of McCann New York. She was the first woman and first creative director to be named chairman in the McCann global network.

In 1999, Nina was chosen by Fortune magazine as one of the "50 Most Powerful Women in American Business." In 2005, she received the Matrix Award, given each year to a select group of women in communication. In 2007, she was inducted into the Hall of Fame for CEBA (Creative Excellence in Business Advertising).

Nina and her husband live in an apartment in NYC and escape to their 45-acre horse farm in Dutchess County, New York. --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1ST edition (January 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345496981
• ISBN-13: 978-0345496980
• Product Dimensions: 0.9 x 5.9 x 8.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,080,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 53 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Men listen like dogs? February 6, 2008

By L. Power TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

I was hooked by the title, naturally, and curious, had to determine what was in the book.

The most interesting book I have read about a woman succeeding in business. Ok, the only book, yet it would be difficult to imagine one more entertaining, and informing, and controversial.

As you might expect from an advertising professional, she knows how to hook you emotionally, and, if you care to look beyond the entertaining story, you will discover the information and the many strategies she employs successfully, and how to match and outperform as a female in an alpha male environment.

Men listen like dogs, and hear only what they want. I found this controversial, but when she says we only hear what we want to hear, I know exactly what she means. Women, though look beyond the content and look at body language and tonality, and pick up on nuance. She has actually trained some of these alpha males to develop some of these superior qualities.

Some of her strategies on how to butter up men I found really entertaininng. I can just imagine myself puffing myself up and responding to the handshake workout opener, and had to laugh at its brilliance, or the tie comment. Simple but so effective.

She talks of the different communicating styles of men and women, and how to adapt. Definitely more interesting than most business books you will read. Fascinating.

Hope this is helpful.

25 of 30 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Darn it...I lost my receipt! March 27, 2008

By Chovaleoni

Format:Hardcover

I'm a female copywriter/sweatshop worker at an agency that's a veritable glue factory of old-school, three-legged creatives, still riding the wave of their last great commercial (produced in '82). Admittedly, I was filled with glee when I spotted this title at the bookstore (great title BTW)...and absolutely elated when I saw that it was written by the chair(wo)man of McCann Erickson. I bragged to my family and friends, who are well aware of (and sick of hearing about) my personal struggles with the Boy's Club, "Get this--I found this book yesterday that was literally written for me!"

I really, really, really wanted to like this book. But the reality is I couldn't finish it.

First of all, the majority of the author's struggle takes place when she's already "made it." Not when she's an underling, working under men who incessantly steal her ideas. I wanted to hear how she handled that, not how she honed her management skills. And with all the, "When I was at JWT...hee, hee, hee...oh I used to work with him at Y&R...yuck, yuck, yuck...I hear on a daily basis at work, I could have done without Nina's "shout outs" to Boy's Club cronies every other page. Boys she hated at first, but now loves (well, it was nice of them to write five-star book reviews on Amazon for her.)

Maybe I'm just bitter. I'll spare you the retort. I'm a bitter unsuccessful copywriter who writes long, boring reviews on Amazon. There you have it.

(But I still didn't like this book.)

Indeed, there are two kinds of copywriters. People who learned to write ads. And writers who work/ed in advertising. Nina Disea is the former. Augusten Burroughs is the latter. (Sorry to compare you to a man, but I know you can handle it).

I'm still going to try to get through this book. What can I say? I'm a glutton for punishment.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars And we wonder why.... July 4, 2009

By Laureal Christian

Format:Paperback

As an aspiring copywriter I too have to agree with Chovaleoni who wrote, "I really, really wanted to like this book..." Granted, DiSesa is a skilled writer, but instead of this being a savvy insider's view on how to handle the boys it seemed more like an opportunity for DiSesa to vent and brag about the trials and tribulations of her life.

Given her outlook and response to opposition I found it hard to sympathize with her and I was quickly turned off by her character. The bitterness she holds against her ex husband gets old really fast and the deceptive practices she occasionally employs when it works to her advantage sincerely disappointed me. I could not even finish the book.

Being a woman myself, I'm happy for and proud of the women who've managed to reach the top in their respective fields, but as this book is a perfect example of, it's no wonder women in power can get labeled as [expletives]. I would not recommend this book as a guide to any woman who aspires to climb the ladder of success unless she planned to compromise her integrity, morals, and self-respect and if that's the case, why the entertainment industry has plenty better examples.