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Observation: Numerous Working Women Selling Themselves Short Through
Workplace Mimicry
A woman is elevated within a business hierarchy and then becomes a managerial monster. Her ego begins to inflate, she becomes distant with former peers and she appears condescending as well as abrupt with subordinates. This scenario might sound farfetched, but it actually is a scene I observed more than once in my 20-year career in Corporate America. When I started scrutinizing such situations in more detail, it occurred to me that many of the professional women I watched transform into these management monstrosities essentially were bright, ambitious and hardworking. However, somewhere along the way, they all had tended to pattern their behaviors after the businessmen with whom they interacted. Instead of drawing upon their unique abilities, they seemed to fall into a routine of what I label "workplace mimicry." Emulating the managerial styles of male colleagues appears to be a prevailing technique used by many aspiring businesswomen to blend into traditional organizational hierarchies. Assimilation, though, comes at a hefty price. Workplace mimicry tends to overshadow a woman's inherent qualities, predisposes her to display exaggerated versions of male supervisory behaviors and can fail in fulfilling its oft-intended purpose -- career advancement. I have noticed within the business world far too many talented, capable women who sold themselves short by choosing to mimic the managerial idiosyncrasies of the men around them. All signs indicated that these women could have been more productive in their jobs and effective in their professional development if they had simply been themselves, while applying their individual skills and natural demeanors to their responsibilities. Specific styles of conduct seem to fuel workplace mimicry. For instance, these are the kinds of managerial behaviors I repeatedly observed being imitated by female colleagues during my years in Corporate America. Mimicry Behavior -- Operating on a need-to-know basis . . . Information is power in the business sector, and some managers take that notion to an extreme. They are the ones who share information with employees only when necessary, and even then, they filter select data to protect their perceived insider's edge. Working in a need-to-know environment can be frustrating and demoralizing to employees; such workers are handicapped in seeing the larger picture. Bosses who operate this way actually reveal their insecurities rather than any particular managerial strength. Mimicry Behavior -- Having a know-it-all demeanor . . . Taking charge is one aspect of workplace supervision; but know-it-all managers who regularly dominate conversations and settings often appear to employees as condescending rather than authoritative. What is the source of know-it-all behavior? Some know-it-alls seem to be caught up in their own sense of importance and do not perceive others as worthy enough to have anything of merit to say. Maybe a few lack the ability to concentrate and listen. Still others appear to perceive talk as a way to control every situation. Whatever the source of this behavior, its negative consequences in the workplace are fairly apparent. Know-it-alls have an uncanny ability to turn off other people. Employees, for instance, eventually give up trying to conduct two-way conversations with them, and by not listening, these individuals not only lose valuable input from subordinates but from peers as well. Mimicry Behavior -- Losing sight of the truth . . . Individuals constantly vying for the attention and approval of those in power seem to fall into the habit of saying whatever the boss wants to hear and doing whatever it takes to get ahead. It appears to become a way of life for them. In time, they begin to deal with everyone in the same manner. And eventually, subordinates and peers learn they really cannot count on these colleagues for a straight answer -- like the truth. Mimicry Behavior -- Short-term thinking . . . The advent of executive compensation packages being tied to company performance seems to have encouraged a population of myopic thinkers in the executive suites of Corporate America. Within contemporary business environments, managers have tended to increasingly focus on quick ways to generate immediate profits (e.g., reducing headcount; scaling back benefits plans; hiring less expensive but less skilled talent; eliminating less profitable operations and product lines despite long-term potential). Executives do not appear to dwell on the notions of employee retention, worker morale, professional development, long-term business growth, etc. They apparently figure the next management team can worry about such details. Their focus seems steadfastly fixed on meeting short-term financial objectives, largely so they can realize the lucrative rewards and attractive perks provided through their employment contracts. Mimicry Behavior -- Being egocentric . . . In textbooks, the manager's role is often defined as a facilitator (i.e., the manager provides the tools and resources for the employee to get the job done). However, the boss who takes credit for the work of others and keeps employees far, far in the background appears to be much more common in the real world. Such egocentric managers tend to be somewhat cavalier about the well being of subordinates and often hold back stellar employees whose achievements they want to continue to usurp. How so? For example: * By unfairly tainting subordinates' work performances to deter other managers from offering the employees better positions * By not releasing talented employees to accept transfers to or developmental assignments in other departments * By misrepresenting to other managers competent employees' desires for new jobs One question related to an egocentric boss remains unanswered -- how can you manage those around you when you are looking inward all of the time? Mimicry Behavior -- Forgetting your roots . . . Have you ever come across a former colleague who has been promoted into a higher-level management position and now appears to be a stranger to you? It seems he forgot you shared a common professional bond a few years earlier. Why do executives forget where they started? Some may have become pretentious along the way and want to disassociate themselves from their more humble beginnings. Others may be insecure and prefer to distance themselves from those who knew their weaknesses in earlier days. Unfortunately, when executives forget from where they came, an inflated sense of self-importance tends to dominate their personalities and overshadow their interactions with others. Mimicry Behavior -- Being all style, little substance . . . Given the dynamics of many contemporary business organizations, one cannot help but speculate that early on some insightful executive discovered a projection of success, despite contradicting realities, could take one as far, if not farther, than hard work. Here is a timeless example. When a senior-level executive schedules a visit to a business operation within his corporation, local management tends to spend thousands of dollars and countless employee hours enhancing the site for the V.I.P.'s brief stay. They have the facility painted, work areas are remodeled, new signage is posted and the factory is cleaned from top to bottom. The senior executive inherently knows these preparations were performed expressly for his arrival. Yet, it does not phase him. He probably went through the same antics for some other visiting V.I.P. a few years earlier when he was climbing the corporate ladder. Throughout time, as the concept of style overshadowing substance has taken hold in the business world, it seems the art of individual self-promotion in work settings has proliferated as well. Despite the working world's perceived appreciation of people who get the job done (i.e., "doers"), people who talk up ideas, rather than "doers," appear to get more recognition. Typically, "doers" seem oblivious to the notion of self-promotion. They assume their completion of tasks sends a clear message to everyone in the organization. On the other hand, idea people tend to take time to make themselves visible in the workplace. Although style over substance appears to reign supreme in Corporate America, both idea people and their promotional flare as well as "doers" and their get-the-job-done focus are needed to round out a business entity. |
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