Leadership - Generational Differences

Men and Women in Leadership – More Generational Driven

After much research into leadership styles, gender traits and generational issues, we determined that while there are leadership differences between male and female leaders, they are more similar than different from the Baby Boomers to the younger generations.  However, one thing that did become much clearer is that the most noticeable differences in leadership are not gender but generational driven.

The Traditionalists is the oldest generation in the work place today. The most prevalent characteristic of this generation is that the men typically were the leaders and the traditional role of women was to stay home and be the nurturer or if they worked, they were nurses, teachers, majored in the Liberal Arts in college, worked in retail or were in administrative jobs.

Differences do exist between the men and women who are leaders today, primarily due to their life experiences and expectations.  This article will focus on the Baby Boomer, Generation X and Generation Y leaders.  The underlying value systems of the  Baby Boomer generation are the same and as a result they both lead from nearly identical perspectives. 

While these differences originally distinguished male and female leaders, we have seen a merging of these styles into a blend of the best. Many of the traits that were once considered reflective of male leaders are starting to be expressed in a uniquely female approach. Likewise, traits that were once considered strictly female are often seen now in their male counterparts.  A good example of this was Edmund Muskie’s presidential primary campaign which was derailed when vicious articles about his family brought him to tears and ended his opportunity to be elected.  Yet recently the new House Majority Leader openly wept on national TV when discussing some of his most passionate issues with only a few minor repercussions. Today it is not unusual to find male leadership described as “humble” and focused on strengthening their listening and communication skills as well as visibly supporting staff members.  Women are also learning how to rely on their own strengths and, while continuing to listen to all discussions, asking “what’s your point” or “what’s the bottom line”.  As more women move into the “C” level positions and men grasp the value of many female leadership traits, they are collectively coming closer together in what it means to lead from a Baby Boomer perspective.

The generation of managers that are just beginning to emerge as leaders have a very different view of what it means to lead a company.The Gen X members have a very different understanding and expectation of even the most fundamental issues of leadership.

Gen X leaders come from the global perspective of wanting to make lives better, find solutions and opportunities that make society better while also benefitting the organization. They have no bias as to gender and accept leaders whether male or female; leadership is based on the expressed “passion to lead” rather than on expectations or the justification of having earned it.  The legitimacy of their leadership approach is based more on actions that have been taken and the results that have been achieved.  They tend to see the hierarchy of the Baby Boomer command and control as a hindrance and will minimize corporate formalities including offices and titles.  Internally they tend to focus on their career path yet their leadership is focused on finding solutions that have a broader benefit to society while being beneficial to the company. 

Since this is the first generation that “grew-up” with technology, they embrace it as one of the primary solutions to problems and opportunities, as well as the primary means of communication.  The emotions associated with leadership are often expressed through the numerous acronyms and abbreviations used in their technology communications.

While members of the Gen Y generation are already displaying traits that will set them even further apart from the Baby Boomers and separate them from Gen X leaders this population is still too young to provide a comprehensive understanding of their leadership traits.  Their overall focus appears to be on what they can expect to get out of a corporate position and will demand “meaningful” work no matter what position they hold.  Leadership in their view is not given; it must be purposeful and earned and those that have emerged as leaders are passionate about ensuring a tolerance for diversity in any organization they are part of. 

These individuals have been labeled stimulus “junkies” because of the multiple technological programs that have always been part of their lives.  They also tend to be blunt and expressive in their emotions and communication styles, whether the communication is done verbally or through technical means.

Research, while providing concepts and ideas, can be misleading if not validated in the environment in which it was originated.  In order to determine if these findings truly reflected what is going on in the workplace, we questioned some leaders to see if what we had found was reflected in the workplace. 

Almost unanimously those we spoke to emphasize those differentiators between men and women that were once commonly found are disappearing.  Whether due to mentoring, experience or other factors, male and female leaders are addressing issues in a similar fashion.  There was also a consensus that gaining experience and understanding the organization and an industry were critical to leadership; a trait that is consistent with the Baby Boomer generation.  Baby Boomers bring experience and tenure.  When faced with a problem Baby Boomers want to know the root cause before they try to fix it.  It’s important to know what was wrong with how it was done before.  Baby Boomers want to dig in; to understand the problems. Both male and female leaders listen to staff and coworkers ideas, and frequently bring them into discussions about identifying problems and solutions.

 

The Gen X and Ys have passion for the environment and one of their focuses is to be socially responsible.  Gen X and Gen Y also have parents who instilled work ethics in them; the ideal of doing it right.  Their use of technology as a communication tool is as important to them as working in a team environment. 

We looked at web sites from companies that were led by Baby Boomers and Gen X members.  These sites reflected the leadership values seen in their respective generations.  The mission, as stated by the Baby Boomer lead company was focused on making the company better so that it could help make society better.  This, they stated, would be accomplished through a strong work ethic, daily improvement and self-discipline.  On the other site, that of the company lead by Gen X members,mission statements focused on making lives better, maintaining profitability and having fun.  Both of these sites clearly include what is expected of everyone on a daily and on-going basis.  Both are successful companies.  However, the focus from which they make their statement is vastly different

While we began this article with the assumption that a female leader’s style would be very different, what we found instead was that they would have been nearly identical to a male’s leadership style in the Baby Boomer generation.

The male and female Baby Boomers are becoming much more consistent in their leadership approach; how does their leadership style fit with the more open Gen X approach?  Gen X is more open to new ideas, value the use of technology and see their responsibility to advance the greater good. On the down side Gen X are not concerned with “paying their dues” nor do they see the value in maintaining loyalty to any particular company. Because they use technology as the primary means of communication, their ability to form and retain relationships is questionable which most considered a significant problem since building relationships is critical to success. Overall they approach leadership as not a making the right decisions, but more of what’s the best solution. 

In order to take advantage of the best of all leadership styles there must be a conscious effort to tackle the issues that can keep people apart.  One of the most critical things we need to do is open the lines of communication between all generations and listen to what each is saying.  More importantly we need to do so with an understanding that we are coming at the issues from a very different view point, than of the Baby Boomer and Traditionalist generations.  Generation X and Generation Y have to understand the value of older generation experiences. 

And speaking of communication, Baby Boomers need to appreciate and learn how technology can reshape the way we do business, not see it just as a tool to support existing processes.  Gen X and Gen Y need to learn how to develop relationships and understand the value of personal connections.  

Baby Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y need to understand how to manage and motivate people that are not of their generation since for the first time in history four different generations will be working in the same workplace. 

It is not an easy task to change decades-long programs, policies and processes.  If these diverse groups are to work together to lead us into a new business environment in the coming years, they must learn how to overcome these differences.  There is still a long way to go in embracing and building the acceptance of multiple leadership styles that are a critical part of moving companies forward. 

About the Authors (next page)

Barbara Perino, CPCC, ACC  An Executive Coach, I help companies bridge the gap between the generations . bjperino@coachbjp.com

Rebecca Walzak, CQM  A consultant in the area of operational risk management, she is a 30-year veteran in risk management, operations and mortgage servicing environments.  Becky@rjbwalzak.com.

Women and Leadership Part II - Baby Boomer Leadership Style

Last month we began the series by presenting the history of women’s movement into leadership positions. Our focus on leadership now shifts to leadership styles and the difference in the approach of men and women to the task of leading. One thing that became clear as we developed this segment is that the traits we see in leaders and the approaches to leadership challenges are common among both men and women.  The difference is not in the traits of being a leader but in how they are expressed. 

The research into what constitutes good leadership identified a series of attributes that are found in both men and women leaders. Three of the most critical of these attributes are internal and appear to form the basis of the attributes that are expressed in their external manner. These external expressions are the reasons that why men and women are viewed as being so different in the way they lead.  This article will discuss these traits and discuss differences and similarities as well as provide examples of how this plays out in organizations today.

As we discussed in the first article, an individual’s management style comes from the culmination of society norms and life experiences as well as from an individual’s intellectual capacity and drive.  In discussing leadership traits we must understand the generational norms that leaders grew up with and the role they play in making leaders what they are today.

Today’s leaders are part of the Baby Boomer generation; the large population of individuals born between 1946 and 1964.  For these individuals, leadership was clearly defined as a “man’s’ prerogative learned from parents who set optimistic expectations for their sons and lower, more traditional expectations for their daughters.  From cowboy shows where the male hero arrived just in time to save the damsel in distress to the war hero movies, the men were tough take-charge individuals who didn’t worry about others concerns but charged full steam ahead to win the prize.  The women on the other hand were there to provide comfort to not only the leaders but to bring the rest together in support of the leader’s decisions.  While intellectually equal, women often were placed in the position of working to support getting the sons through college since sending daughters to college was a waste of money because they would end up getting married and never have to worry about competing in a man’s world.  Despite these societal norms, many female “baby boomers” did achieve degrees in higher education and entered the work force in large numbers as inflation drove the need for more family income just to survive.  Ultimately these individuals raised in a society where there was distinct male and female roles, began to challenge each other for leadership positions and the “war of sexes” emerged; a battle it seems we are still fighting today. 

The internal leadership attributes common to both men and women are Leadership Expectation; Leadership Legitimacy and their Internal Focus.

• Leadership Expectation

Because today’s leaders were raised in the era of “heroes” and male leadership, they have an internal expectation that they will advance to a leadership role.  As a result they tend to express more confidence in themselves in subordinate roles and are not hesitant to step into smaller leadership opportunities.  This is expected of them just as they expect that opportunities will come their way. 

Women on the other hand do not have this built in expectation.  They are most likely to see themselves as the “right hand man”, providing details, direction and support as the male leads the task force or mission.  When an opportunity for leadership comes along they may at first shrink from taking it on, but once accepted, approach the task in a very different way.  Women do not expect to be chosen as a leader.

• Leadership Legitimacy

Since the leadership function has been “expected” by men when it occurs, they have no doubt that the choice made is a legitimate one. Typical announcements of male leadership choices are made through company-wide emails or memos which contain few, if any supporting comments as to why this particular individual was chosen.  When accepting these new roles men focus on the attainment of the goals they have set out to achieve such as “getting the team winning again”.

The same sense of legitimacy is felt within the individuals who will be lead by this new male leader.  And while there may be some comments here and there about how someone else would have been a better choice, these comments quickly subside as changes take place and work is assigned.  New male leadership rarely is questioned or requires the endorsement of executive management to be perceived as legitimate in an organization. 

The opposite is frequently true for women.  The announcement of their advancement into a leadership role is not an expectation of women or viewed within themselves as their “right’.  Women frequently express how hard they have worked and what they have accomplished in order to justify why they were selected for the position despite the fact that others may see the selection as positive and legitimate.  When accepting these roles women tend to explain and/or justify why they were chosen as a statement of what they plan to achieve. 

In addition to this internal justification, women more frequently require external endorsements in support of their selection as leaders.  While individuals within the organization typically accept new male leaders, women appear to need a higher level or external male figure to reassure the staff that the selection of a female is the right decision.

  

• Internal Focus

Every individual has an internal focus that, in part, drives the decisions they make and the opportunities they pursue.  This internal focus appears to be even greater in individual who strive to become leaders.  For men this internal focus is usually on themselves.  This is not to say that male leaders are selfish or narcissistic, lack empathy or are concerned only about themselves. Instead it is how they process information and make decisions.  They are concerned about ensuring the goals they have set are achieved; that the necessary steps are taken to move forward or reach a level of excellence. This motivation also brings along those that follow them and we only have to look at coaching awards or recipients of awards for achieving excellence to understand how valuable this attribute is. 

Women on the other hand are focused on the “we”.  Life experiences and training has programmed them to believe that collective achievements are better and in the long run more rewarding.  It is the “comfort” of knowing that everyone experienced the “thrill of victory” that drives the way they process information and make decisions.  The best example of this attribute is the way men and women describe how a team works.  Men will most commonly say that a team works best when each individual part of it has a job to do and if they do that job the team wins.  Women on the other had will say that each member of the team is there to support the other and that only by covering the weakness of any individual will the team, as a whole, win. 

Understanding these internal attributes provides some insight into the difference between men and women leaders. It’s what we see, hear and experience on the outside that creates the perception of an individual’s ability to lead.  Our research has shown that there are also three distinct external traits that can be used as a valid comparison between men and women and how they lead. These are Leadership Style, Leadership Communication and Emotion.

• Leadership Style

The easiest way to describe this is to say that men are “tough’ and women are ‘soft’ and while this seems way to simplistic to be meaningful there is truth in this statement.  Men, having been raised in an environment of heroes that conquer evil and triumph over unimaginable obstacles because they were tough both physically and mentally, tend to mimic that role in their approach to many leadership challenges.  In addition their staff appears to see them that way as well.  As an example, it is not uncommon for individuals to hesitate to ask for, or assume a negative response, when time off is needed while a big project is underway. Many believe that it would be seen as a sign of weakness and be reflected in their performance evaluation.

Soft leadership styles are most commonly associated with women.  Women’s internal perception of their societal role is that of providing comfort and guidance for making the best decisions, not directing it.  Challenges are met with a controlled response that is determined by the individuals of the group and problems are to be shared among all.  Staff members who face the problem of time off or other personal issues rarely hesitate to make the request of a female leader because they are confident that it will be granted and that the work will be picked up by members of the team. 

• Leadership Communication and Presentation

Men and women frequently communicate using different styles.  When communicating decisions that have been made or giving presentations to audiences, men generally have a more direct way of getting to the point.  Women however feel the need to explain or to justify the decision they have made.  They often feel compelled to look for an understanding of the problem as part of the solution and seek eye contact from their listeners as a sign that their rationale is understood.  Men typically do not have this need and because of those internal traits are not concerned that the rationale is understood or have the need to confirm this through eye contact.  After all they were put in the position to make these decisions. 

• Emotions in Leadership

While it has often been said that women are too “emotional” to provide good leadership, the truth is that all leaders are emotional.  It is just that the “emotions” displayed have been divided into good and bad emotions due to society’s perception of them.  One thing is certain; that good leaders are passionate about achieving their goals, changing things to reflect the “good” they want and passion is necessary to sustain the drive this requires. 

Women, when displaying this passion, are more likely to do it through the use of tears; expressions of disappointment or a plea for support and more effort.  Men on the other hand tend to express their passion in terms of anger or dismissal of individuals who have failed to achieve what was expected of them.  However all of these expressions are reflections of the passion, concern and hope that are a critical part of leadership. 

All of the attributes discussed in this article have been found in the workplace but are they necessarily common in the mortgage industry?  Canvassing both men and women have shown us that they have indeed played out in the mortgage environment and continue to be so today.  JoEllen Abate-McEntire, a credit risk management leader for many years, stated in one discussion that when she has lead group discussions with a male co-leader “the participants would downplay or ignore her suggestions only to have them been seen as inspirational” when presented by her male colleague.  Other individuals also expressed similar experiences as well as incidents that provide strong supportive evidence that the attributes described above are alive and well in our industry today. Jo Ellen also added “that all too frequently we see women attempting to lead by copying men’s styles.  When this happens it is not uncommon for them to be viewed as moody, emotional or worse.”  And copying styles is not limited to women alone.  Men, whether just copying as a reaction to criticism or just letting their natural tendencies show, are adopting some of the various attributes demonstrated by strong female leaders.  Such activities as team meetings which allow all members of the group to express thoughts and ideas; seminars on understanding how we individually process information; and the growth of individual leadership coaching often reflect what women leaders have been proposing for years, that collaboration and open communication is far more powerful than one person making a decision that may not necessarily benefit the majority.

But what about the future; there is no doubt in anyone’s mind that this industry is presently undergoing significant changes.  These changes include how the industry is run; corporately, individually and from a regulatory and consumer perspective.  How then must leadership change?  Is the answer to chose only men or only women to lead?   The answer to that question is that it’s going to take a combination of both men and women leaders and their identified strengths and qualities.

Today’s men and women leaders do not need to conform to each other’s styles and in fact if they did it would probably result in less effective leadership overall.  We need to collectively think about how we can be the leaders for the next generations. We need to enhance communication skills; bridge the gap in understanding how each group processes information and combine these skills sets and traits into a common leadership style; one that will fill today’s management offices as well as identifies what will be needed in the future. We all need to develop sensitivity to the social settings in which staff was raised and what that means in terms of how we lead and how the leaders of the future are developed.  The reality is that our best leaders combine the most effective of these traits and use them in the situation which best fits the need.  The combination of providing explanations for why things need to be done with the passion of caring that they do get done is by far much more effective.

Fortunately for the industry we are already seeing this happen.  Patricia Thornton, an experienced mortgage professional has seen this in action.  She has told us that “when leading groups she has been able to explain the group’s needs in such a way that both the men and women follow her direction with no question.”  Cindi Dixon, a long time leader in the industry tells us that "management roles in the lending industry have changed drastically over the past two decades.  Opportunities for women leaders have expanded as a result of their hard work and efforts and the doors opened for them by their male counterparts.  A recent conversation with a former Governor for the Mortgage Banker's Association who has spent over 30 years heading national mortgage operations reinforced this insight.  He attributed his success to the women executives he has mentored and recognized that they have provided a new, more holistic approach to managing in the industry.  We see much more collaboration today on reaching goals that are open and inclusive.  When all talents are being fully utilized, regardless of gender, our collective goals are much easier to achieve.”

But is what we see happening today sufficient or is there more work to be done?  One of the most critical things we need to acknowledge is that beginning in 2012 there will be more managers that are not part of the baby boomer generation.  These Gen X and Gen Y individuals grew up in a social environment that was very different than ours because we made it so.  We are the ones who told both our sons and daughters that they could be “anything they wanted to be”, that there were no pre-set standards or expectations or that the command and control way to manage was best.  Now we must find a way to manage them and educate them in a way that will survive and exceed our management abilities.  These generational issues and the “new” management approaches is the topic of the next Women in Leadership article. 

  

About the Authors

Barbara Perino, CPCC, ACC   Now an executive coach, is a 21-year veteran of the residential mortgage industry in national sales management capacity for property valuation and residential mortgage service providers. bjperino@coachbjp.com

Rebecca Walzak, CQM  Now a consultant in the area of operational risk management she is a 30-year veteran of the residential mortgage industry in risk management, operations and servicing environments.  Becky@rjbwalzak.com.