Is There Really a Glass Ceiling for Women - Free Essay with Article Review

(Obtained from http://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2011/11/14/is-there-really-a-glass-ceiling-for-women/#61dbe8a06304)

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RELEVANT VOCABULARY/PHRASES IN THE ARTICLE

Invisible barrier/Glass ceiling

Corporate ladder

Obstacles

C-suite

Top Job

Prejudice

Biasedness

Commonplace

Persistence

EXAMPLE SENTENCES

In the corporate world, there exist invisible barriers that prevent women from reaching their goals.

The contemporary world is set up in a way that women have to work twice as hard to climb the corporate ladder.

The road to success is not a ride in the park; it is full of obstacles and frustrations.

To make it into the C-suite, one must be willing to sacrifice their time and energy.

In any company, persistence and diligence are the key virtues required for the top job.

The court ruled the case in favor of the defendant without fear or prejudice.

The political candidate that won the parliamentary seat did so because of the biasedness of the election officials.

Corruption has become almost a commonplace of the corporate world.

Although I started out as a weak student in Mathematics, my consistency and persistence saw me through the calculus unit.

KEY IDEAS

The main argument brought forth in the article is that women are hindered from achieving their dream jobs because of the invisible barriers that exist in the corporate world. Such invisible barriers which the writer refers to as glass ceilings are the reason why women find it hard to climb the corporate ladder. Gender inequality is the primary cause for these glass ceilings, and most women end up despairing instead of breaking through the same. Many are the times that we have witnessed men being favored in the corporate world while their counterparts, the women, are rarely promoted. The article expounds on the frustrations that women go through in their careers while trying to stay competitive. Women and their skill remain underestimated in the eyes of management and to be recognized; they have to work twice as hard as the men. Most organizations offer the top job to the males even when it is crystal clear that there are women who are equally or better qualified for that spot. To deal with the issue of glass ceilings, women ought to understand the barriers and how to go about them.

The first barrier is prejudice where you find that the society accepts men as leaders and this is based on the traditional female setting. Women, on the other hand, are to be seen and not heard. Secondly, there is the issue of resistance to women leaders. The superiority complex in men does not allow them to submit to women or take orders from the same. Thirdly, the leadership style of women is considered to be weak and inefficient. Women are gentle, tender, and compassionate beings that prefer reconciliation to control, an agreement to the assertion. Such qualities are considered weak by many, and for that reason, women are not allocated managerial positions. Finally, women are assumed to have family demands that they must meet, and for that reason, they cannot find the balance between work and family life. Therefore, companies prefer not to overload them with corporate responsibilities.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

The article suggests that women are discriminated in the workplace, how true is this?

Would the corporate world be more successful have we had more female leaders?

Is the nature of women to be compassionate and gentle an advantage or disadvantage in the corporate world? Discuss

What are some of the amends that can be made in the corporate world to accommodate more women into leadership?

References

MacKenzie, I. (2013). English for Business Studies. Cambridge: CUP.

Quast, L. (2011, 11 14). Is there really a glass ceiling for women? Retrieved from Forbes Business: http://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2011/11/14/is-there-really-a-glass-ceiling-for-women/#61dbe8a06304