Women Rising in Corporate Ranks

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As girls and boys grow up, of course, they're also molded by differing sets of social rules and expectations. Gender obviously colors behavior, perception and just about everything else.

Gender matters

Typically, when comparing managers, the dialogue is framed as men's command-and-control style versus women's team-building or consensus approach.

"Women managers tend to have more of a desire to build than a desire to win," says Debra Burrell, regional training director of the Mars-Venus Institute in New York. "Women are more willing to explore compromise and to solicit other people's opinions." By contrast, she says, men often think if they ask other people for advice, they'll be perceived as unsure or as a leader who doesn't have answers.

Other female leadership strengths:

Women are better than men at empowering teams and staff.

Women encourage openness and are more accessible.

Women leaders respond more quickly to calls for assistance.

Women are more tolerant of differences, so they're more skilled at managing diversity.

Women identify problems more quickly and more accurately.

Women are better at defining job expectations and providing valuable feedback.

Men tend to be more speedy decision-makers, compared to women. Male managers are also more adept at forming what management psychologist Ken Siegel calls "navigational relationships," or temporary teams set up to achieve short-term goals.

Women are better communicators