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White Paper

A Seat at the Boardroom Table:

An Analysis of Strategies Used by Women and Minorities

To Reach Career Pinnacles In Professional Services Firms

Taree Bollinger, CPSM

The content in this White Paper applies primarily to the following SMPS Domains of Practice:

Domain 2: Strategic/Business/Marketing Planning Domain 6: Marketing and Business Performance

The information in this document is the intellectual property of the Society for Marketing Professional Services Foundation. Reproduction of portions of this document for personal use is permitted,

provided that proper attribution is made to the SMPS Foundation.

Reproduction of any portion of this document for any other purpose, including but not limited to any commercial purpose, is strictly prohibited.

Contact: Society for Marketing Professional Services Foundation (800) 292-7677

E-mail: [email protected] www.smpsfoundation.org

© 2008 Society for Marketing Professional Services Foundation — 1

Executive Summary: The statistics are astonishing:

Women outnumbered men in the United States as of October 2007, 153.6 million to 149.4 million.1

The nation’s minority population topped 100.7 million in 2007, which equates to about one in every three U.S. residents.2

Nearly 10.4 million women-owned businesses generated $1.9 trillion in sales and employed 12.8 million people. Of those firms, 2.4 million are owned 50 percent or more by women of color, employing 1.6 million people and generating nearly $230 billion in sales annually.3

Yet at the current improvement rate, according to one source, it will take 75 years for executive women business leaders to reach gender parity at the boardroom table.4 Seventy-five years may be an overstatement given the current predictions for demographic changes in the United States, but the disparity does exist at present. No one is arguing the fact that there are more men than women in the boardrooms and executive suites of Corporate America and of A/E/C firms, and more Caucasians than minorities. But the ratios are changing every year. So what strategies are women and minorities employing to make it to the top? That answer varies by generation. There are currently four generations in the workplace: 1922-1945 = Veteran /Silent/ Traditionalist; 1946-1964 = Baby Boomers; 1965-1980 = Generation X/GenX; and1981-present = GenY/Millennial/Echo Boomers. (Some sources split the last group into two generations.) Employees from each generation react to women and minorities at the boardroom table through their experiential reality. For example, women, who were raised when the glass ceiling was “more visible,” see things differently than recent MBA graduates who not only expect to start their careers in management, but have never questioned their right to do so. Their mindset is the byproduct of a series of hard-fought legislative battles coupled with changes in corporate values that are contributing to a cultural evolution in the workplace.

From 1850 to 1950, women suffragettes fought to unlock the doors to businesses and educational institutions. They fought for equal rights. (It appeared to be working during World War II, until the men returned to the workforce.)

From 1950 to 1990, just making it through the door was no longer enough. Proponents of the Feminist and Civil Rights Movements fought for equal opportunity as well as acceptance within the “old-boy” business culture entrenched in Corporate America and in the A/E/C industry.

When equal opportunity failed to achieve parity, the battle morphed to ‘outing’ attitudinal and organizational biases identified by the Department of Labor’s Glass Ceiling Commission (1990 – 2000).

1 U.S. Census Bureau, Facts for Features, Women’s History Month: March 2008, January 2, 2008. 2 U.S. Census Bureau News Release, Minority Population Tops 100 Million, May 17, 2007. 3 Center for Women’s Business Research, Key Facts About Women-Owned Businesses, www.nfwbo.org/facts. 4 Newswire Today, 7th Annual Female Board Members Survey Proves Staffing Women Leaders in Business Improves Companies, Haddonfield, NJ, September 28, 2007.

As we “turn another century,” women and minorities are standing at the brink of a new business culture spawned by the exigencies of minorities, women of all races, and a new generation of Caucasian men. Some are choosing to leave to start their own firms; others are staying. But they all are recreating the very nature of the business culture itself into one in which women and minorities have a greater chance of not only succeeding, but thriving.

While no definitive conclusions can be reached, nor can a step-by-step plan be laid out that will apply to all readers, of all genders, of all races, and all ages at all times, one thing is true: Understanding the history behind how we got where we are today can help those aspiring for a seat at the table to understand the frame of mind of those already seated there.

“I’ve found that the potential for rising to the top of an organization is completely dependent on the corporate culture and the people in charge. If you can find a company run by open minded people, your chances for success will depend on your performance and not on your gender.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, BOARD, OWNER, BOOMER The experiences of SMPS marketers who’ve made it to the top bear this out. When their stories were compared to and combined with findings from published research by other agencies regarding women and minorities, 10 strategies emerged:

1. Know your firm’s legal structure and board selection process.

2. Don’t get tripped up by entrenched corporate politics.

3. Find a firm with a culture that matches your lifestyle.

4. Be alert for hidden stigmas associated with well-meaning policies.

5. Get a mentor.

6. Build a network.

7. Learn the right stuff.

8. Rise above gender and racial stereotypes.

9. Adapt your leadership style.

10. Lose the chip and become your own advocate. That said, it is incumbent on each of us to find our own combination of the winning strategies. The generations before us paved the way by winning the right to vote, by ensuring equal access and opportunity for all, and by “outing” attitudinal and organizational biases. They led by example, proving that small firms can successfully compete against larger ones, showing us that we have options, and reminding us that we do not need to buy into anyone else’s template for success. When all is said and done, the trick to obtaining that coveted seat is as simple as: “Knowing when to hold ’em, and knowing when to fold ’em.”


A Seat at the Boardroom Table: An Analysis of Strategies Used by Women and Minorities to Reach Career Pinnacles in Professional Service Firms

Internet pundits are unanimous in their proclamations that women and minorities have a harder time grabbing seats at Corporate America’s boardroom tables than Caucasian males. Google it and it would appear to be the most well researched subject of the 20th century. It continues to reign in the first decade of this century, only recently being usurped by the more topical “greening of America.” But is it true? The Department of Labor, Catalyst, Center for Women’s Business Research, International Association of Women of Color, National Association of Women, Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility, the Institute for Research on Women and Gender, and Diversity Inc. are only a fraction of a growing list of organizations that survey, analyze, and track women and minorities. Depending on which source you choose, you can find statistics to promote just about any agenda. Hearkening back to the Family Feud television series, let’s begin with “and the survey says”:

Women outnumbered men in the United States as of October 2007, 153.6 million to 149.4 million.1

The nation’s minority population topped 100.7 million in 2007, which equates to about one in every three U.S. residents. There are more minorities in this country today than there were people in the United States in 1910.2

Nearly 10.4 million women-owned businesses generated $1.9 trillion in sales and employed 12.8 million people. Of those firms, 2.4 million are owned 50 percent or more by women of color, employing 1.6 million people and generating nearly $230 billion in sales annually.3

Despite overwhelming odds to the contrary:

In 2006, women held only 16 percent of the board positions in the 200 largest public companies in America.4

Women of color held only 3 percent of the board seats of 415 companies most recently surveyed by Catalyst.5

At the current improvement rate, it will take nearly 50 years for executive women leaders in business to reach gender parity, and nearly 75 years to reach parity in board seats according to Elva L. Bankins, president of The Forum of Executive Women, and senior vice president at CEO Resources, Inc. 6 Having reason to believe that women and minorities trail behind their Caucasian male counterparts in the A/E/C industry as well, the SMPS Foundation commissioned a white paper to answer the following questions:

Is there a “closed door” attitude in the professional services industry toward the advancement of women and minorities?

How do SMPS women and minorities fare compared to similar demographic groups outside our industry?


Which strategies worked for female and minority marketers who have already gained seats at boardroom tables?

During the early research phases of this study, it became apparent that answering the questions the Foundation posed was going to be as easy as herding cats. The barriers fought and overcome by the women and minorities who are currently seated in the executive suites and boardrooms of Corporate America are becoming non-issues for the generations that are succeeding them. What is occurring is no longer about revolution, but about evolution. What started as a legal battle (the right to vote/the right to sit anywhere on the bus) migrated to an outcry against attitudinal and organizational biases promulgated by societal views that thwarted the advancement of women and minorities. What was an outrage against the lip service paid to equal opportunity is morphing into something entirely new – a rallying cheer for the right of women of all races to succeed on their own terms, the right to recreate the very nature of the business culture itself. Because each generation changed the game rules by changing the laws, no definitive conclusions can be reached that will apply to all readers, of all genders, of all races, and all ages at all times. Therefore, this paper attempts to answer the Foundation’s questions by focusing first on the specific historic events that influenced both minorities and women, and brought us to where we are today – the brink of a new business culture spawned by the exigencies of minorities, women of all races, and a new generation of Caucasian men. It then examines 10 strategies that marketers currently occupying the boardrooms and executive suites of A/E/C firms employed to attain their seats or strategies that are now in play by the current generation of marketers aspiring to win seats as well. The findings in this paper are based on primary research within SMPS and secondary research without. The primary research consisted of personal interviews and a survey of SMPS members who had been categorized by the Society as holding positions of marketing director and above. The secondary research embodied a review of books and articles, as well as government, association, and private organization statistical findings. Some license was taken in choosing representative examples from the volume of data collected. In so doing, a case might be made for oversimplification or oversight. The U.S. Census Bureau uses six standard ethnic or racial classifications and gender distinctions encompassing multiple subsets based on sexual preference and life style choices. Any perceived slights were unintentional; space limitations simply prevent giving each the full consideration they deserve. With those caveats in mind, let’s explore how historical events have impacted the evolution of the business culture of Corporate America and the A/E/C industry. Part I: You’ve Come a Long Way There are currently four generations in the workplace; some sources say five. Regardless, employees in each generation react to women and minorities at the boardroom table through their experiential reality. Women of all races, who were raised when the glass ceiling was “more visible,” see things differently than recent MBA graduates who not only expect to start their careers in management, they have never questioned their right to do so. Cora Daniels, in her book Black Power Inc., keeps us mindful that generational impacts are not confined to gender issues. She contends that members of the African American “post civil rights generation” (those currently in their mid-30s and younger), are motivated by different goals than their predecessors, whom she labels “groundbreakers.” According to Daniels, the civil rights © 2008 Society for Marketing Professional Services Foundation — 4

movement is something that post civil rights generation African Americans read about in their history books. She proffers that because the post civil rights generation did not experience separate water fountains, freedom marches, school segregation, etc., their reality and their response to that reality differs significantly from that of the African Americans who lived it.7 Whatever your personal perspective, there is no denying that history has left an indelible mark on each generation. In doing so, it has helped to advance the number of women and minorities who have made it to the boardrooms of Corporate America and has attributed to the evolution of the strategies that they used:

From 1850 to 1950, women suffragettes fought to unlock the doors to businesses and educational institutions.

From 1950 to 2000, just making it through the door wasn’t enough. Proponents of the feminist and civil rights movements fought for equal opportunity as well as acceptance within the “old-boy” business culture entrenched in Corporate America at the time.

As we “turn another century,” women and minorities are introducing a new wrinkle: They are succeeding in changing the business culture from within or are choosing to walk out the door and form their own business cultures.

The following historical flashback of the struggles women and minorities faced provides insight into how we got where we are and where we might be headed. In so doing, perhaps “doors” becomes a better metaphor than “ceilings.” UNLOCKING THE DOORS From 1848 to 1950, the battle was waged for equal rights. The first national woman’s convention in 1848 was the kickoff meeting so to speak, at which Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s “Declaration of Sentiments”8 was signed by 68 women and 32 men. In it lie the vestiges of the early fight to secure representation in corporate boardrooms – the legal right to be there. The cause over which these women so willingly subjected themselves to hate and ridicule was a worthy one: “immediate admission to all the rights and privileges which belong to them as citizens of these United States.”9 Their demands were as basic as being allowed to vote, to elect their own representatives, to pursue any profession, and to gain equal access to the halof higher education, among others. Meanwhile, many African Americans were pursuing something even more precious: freedom. (This was 15 years prior to the signing of the Emancipation Proclamat

ls

ion of 1863.) Once those rights were guaranteed, it was presupposed that all others would follow. Frederick Douglas, noted black abolitionist, argued that suffrage, “is the power to choose rulers and make laws, and the right by which all others are secured.” They won the fight. The slaves were freed. African American males were granted the right to vote in 1870 (although many were illegally detained from exercising that right until the 1960s). Women of all races won the same right in 1920. (However, the equal rights amendment to the Constitution still has not passed, having failed ratification in 1982 by three states.) When the United States entered World War II, the number of women in the labor market mushroomed from 12 million (1/4 of the workforce) to 18 million (1/3 of the work force). Slowly (and in part by necessity), companies stopping treating the women in the workforce as secondary to men, and included them in positions of power and decision-making processes. © 2008 Society for Marketing Professional Services Foundation — 5

However, the war ended before women could reap the full benefit of changing attitudes. Women were either forced back into lower-paying “female” jobs, or they were laid off and told to go back to their homes.10 THROUGH THE DOORS Fast forward to the ’60s. Not all women were happy staying at home. Women wanted to pursue all professions, but the equal-opportunity-to-do-so clause was missing from their contracts and marriage vows.

Help Wanted ads in newspapers read “Help wanted-women” and “Help wanted-men.”

Married women were refused credit cards in their own name, and most women could not get a bank loan without a male co-signer.

Female flight attendants could be fired for getting married. If you wanted the doors to swing in your favor, you were told to play the game, to buy into the established business culture. In essence, for a woman to make it to the boardroom, she had to “be a man.” Virginia Slims played directly into this mindset by launching a marketing campaign for a new cigarette designed to appeal to women. The ads juxtaposed a photograph of a woman hanging laundry outside next to text that read: “Back then, every man gave his wife at least one day a week out of the house. You’ve come a long way, baby.” For minorities, African Americans in particular, discrimination was more overt. Reform movements in the United States were initially aimed at abolishing racial discrimination against African Americans and restoring suffrage in Southern states. The emergence of the Black Power Movement expanded the Civil Rights Movement to include racial dignity, economic and political self-sufficiency, and freedom from White domination. “AS BUILTS” FOR GLASS CEILINGS REVEALED Despite wins in the equal rights and equal opportunity columns, as the 20th century drew to a close, the avenues for advancement were still blocked for women and minorities. This time it was by what the Wall Street Journal coined a “glass ceiling.” The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) popularized the term and defined it as: “those artificial barriers based on attitudinal or organizational bias that prevent qualified individuals from advancing upward in their organizations into management-level positions.” 11 It was re-dubbed the “adobe ceiling” for Hispanics and a “concrete wall” for African Americans.12 As a result of the DOL’s Glass Ceiling Commission findings, Congress passed legislation dealing with affirmative action, diversity, family medical leave, and other issues. These new laws were designed to create a workplace environment more conducive to the success of women and minorities and in the case of affirmative action, level the playing field. (See Table 1, page 24.) Special commissions such as the Congressional Commission on the Advancement of Women and Minorities in Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) Development were © 2008 Society for Marketing Professional Services Foundation — 6

established to research and recommend ways to improve the recruitment, retention, and representation of women and minorities in SET education and employment. BEYOND DOORS AND CEILINGS There is no denying that women and minorities have unlocked doors and shattered glass ceilings. Their nameplates are tacked to the doors of executive suite offices, both in hallways of the infamous Fortune 500, and throughout the A/E/C industry. According to her bio, Diane C. Creel, chairman, chief executive officer and president of Ecovation, Inc. (before its recent acquisition by Ecolab), was the first woman in the U.S. to hold the chief executive officer position of a publicly held engineering firm (Earth Tech). Jean Valence, FSMPS, Hon. AIA, current vice president and director of strategic development for Symmes Maini & McKee Associates, Inc., was named to the board of Drummy Rosane Anderson Inc. in 1986 at a time when very few marketing professionals were able to do so without the benefit of family legacy or technical degrees. Other A/E/C notable women include: Diane Fletcher, CEO, Purdy McGuire; Deryl McKissack, P.E., PMP, president and CEO of McKissack and McKissack; Paula Harris, CPSM, vice president, Barge Waggoner Summer & Cannon, Inc.; Sheryl Maibach, FSMPS, chief marketing officer, Barton Malow Company; Kate Brannelly, FSMPS, chief marketing officer, Legat Architects. The list continues to grow exponentially. The success of these women is breeding a new confidence as well as a renewed awakening. Women and minorities are learning the value of: “knowing when to hold em, and knowing when to fold em.” Some are succeeding where they are; others are leaving by choice. Speaking on behalf of minorities, Daniels pointedly remarks: “If the nation’s best companies refuse to award this highly talented new generation of Black executives with positions and power that they deserve, then they will most likely leave the largest corporations to lead smaller ones, leave American companies for foreign ones, or leave Corporate America, period, to start their own businesses.” 13 It should be pointed out that within SMPS, women and minorities are not necessarily leaving because they have been denied access to the boardrooms of Caucasian, male-dominated A/E/C firms. They are leaving because they aspire for something different, something more. Joan Capelin, FSMPS, Hon. AIA, Fellow PRSA, president, Capelin Communications Inc. shared her personal epiphany: “I realized that I was so deep into the marketing and marketing communication that if we succeeded it was because I had identified the opportunity. I had scripted the presentation. I had put together the nine-firm team and all the materials. I got the partner from my firm (who had had nothing to do with the prep work) in the room and closed the door. We had our nine people on our side of the room and the prospect’s people on the other side. Everything was up on the walls and absolutely pristine. And I realized in a flash, that if we succeeded it was because the client thought my partner was so brilliant (and he was brilliant, just not in this case) and because it was his firm. But if “he” failed, it would have been my fault. [They got the job incidentally.] At that moment, I realized I really ought to be in business for myself. I didn’t start my business because a non-licensed owner couldn’t become an owner in the firm, by culture as much as by law. I started it because I was ready to start a business.” By starting their own firms, women and minorities can establish policies to effectively deal with or eradicate prejudicial attitudes that are stifling them and replace them with ones that allow them to thrive. Margaret Hefferman (The Naked Truth) reminisces: “I remember when I ran my


first company in the United Kingdom and wondered aloud what the company policy was on a particular issue. “It’s what you say it is,” my assistant informed me. “Wow, I thought, this could be interesting.”14 As stated at the outset of this paper, women are at the helm of over 10.4 million firms. What is more astounding is that the number is continuing to grow at double the rate of all firms. Firms run by women of color are growing at a rate five times faster than all privately held businesses. They are not only growing; they are prospering.15 After Diane Creel became the CEO of Earth Tech in 1993, the company’s revenues grew from $50 million to $1.6 billion including 21 acquisitions.16 Subsequently, as President and CEO of Ecovation, she increased annual sales tenfold from 2005 to 2007; 2008 sales are expected to top $100 million. Ecolab acquired the Ecovation earlier this year for $210 million. Financial control has also become one of the prime motivators for minorities to start their own firms according to Daniels as well as Sheryl Huggins and Cheryl Mayberry McKissack (The Nia Guide for Black Women: Balancing Work and Life). Daniels contends there is a groundswell of Black clout in business that is just beginning to gather force: “Their climb up the corporate ladder is fueled by their desire to have an impact. Instead of marching for voting rights and desegregation, they are concerned with building Black wealth. The power and influence will come with that. These days, it makes sense to equate economics with power. We are, after all, in an age when our president has an MBA, not a JD, and has chosen to surround himself with corporate executives.”17 Firms that retain and promote talented women and minorities are also prospering financially. Creel’s savvy leadership of Earth Tech mentioned earlier is one example. A 2004 study of 353 Fortune 500 companies found that “those with the highest representation of women on their top management teams had better financial performance than did the group with the lowest women’s representation; the return on equity was 5 percent higher, and the total return to shareholders was 34 percent higher.”18 A second motivator cited by women and minorities for leaving Corporate America is that they are doing so because they want to have a more meaningful impact on the world. According to research by Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Carolyn Buck Luce published in the Harvard Business Review, “A majority (56 percent) believe it is very important for them to give back to the community through their work.” Hewlett and Luce admonish Corporate America to support female professionals in their advocacy and public service efforts suggesting that in so doing they might win their energy and loyalty, and retain their talent.19 Corporate America is listening. Seventy-five percent of Fortune 500 companies boast some sort of diversity initiative and chief diversity officers occupy the executive offices next to the CEOs and CFOs.20 Topping the Diversity Inc. 2008 Top 50 Companies for Diversity list is Verizon, followed by Coca-Cola in the number two spot. Thirty-nine percent of Verizon’s managers are Black, Asian, Latino or Native American. Coca-Cola’s management is 33 percent Black, Latino, Native American and Asian, compared with 15 percent nationwide. Its management team is 48 percent female. Clearly not all of the talent has left the building.


Part II: They Did It Their Way It is clear then that for over 160 years, women of all races have fought (and are winning) the battle to gain equal access to corporate boardrooms. This is true within the A/E/C industry as well, only the percentage of wins is lagging behind those elsewhere for the following reasons:

The number of women and minorities who pursue careers in the architectural, engineering, and contracting professions has historically been fewer than those choosing other professions, a subject that is outside the scope of this paper.

In certain states, non-licensed, non-registered professionals are restricted from firm ownership or board membership. This is further compounded by the fact that:

o Most executive candidates are chosen from line positions traditionally occupied by registered professionals.

o A disproportionately higher number of women gravitate to relational positions (marketing/human resources) than to line positions.

Ergo, the pool of eligible female candidates is further reduced in A/E/C firms.

The discomfort women and minorities may experience in established A/E/C firms with “old boy” cultures, coupled with the market advantage women and minorities may gain by forming Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise (MBE/WBE) certified companies, encourages talented professionals to strike out on their own, draining the pool of candidates once again.

If the number of women and minorities in the candidate pool is not equivalent to that of Caucasian males, there will be fewer in the boardrooms and executive suites as well. But this is changing. It is changing because marketers are being considered for board positions…because more women are studying architecture and engineering…because A/E/C firms are changing. One survey respondent shared that her firm has made the promotion of women and minorities a goal for the last 10 to 15 years. It is also changing because WBE/MBE firms are prospering. The latter then gives rise to a new conundrum: How does the Caucasian male marketer gain a seat in the boardroom of a WBE- or an MBE-certified firm?

“The downside of being a male marketer in a woman-owned business is that I will never have a majority ownership in the firm. They would lose their WBE certification and therefore their niche.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, EXECUTIVE TEAM, BOOMER Outside of SMPS, women and minorities have made it to the boardroom by applying the strategies shown in Table 2: Women Making It to the Top (see page 25). These are similar to the 10 winning strategies imparted below that were coalesced from input shared by SMPS members and others who have reached, or are on target for reaching, their personal career pinnacles. To foster candid and open answers, their names have been removed. Instead, the research subjects are identified by key characteristics such as gender, ethnicity, position, and generation. This is not an all-encompassing list. And many, but not all, are more applicable to women and minorities because that is the subject of this paper. It is incumbent on the reader to apply these strategies and examine the appropriateness of their application as regards their individual circumstances as well as the views of the current board members and CEOs of their firms. Finding the right firm and understanding the frame of mind of those in power is in and of itself the foremost strategy of all.


“I’ve found that the potential for rising to the top of an organization is completely dependent on the corporate culture and the people in charge. If you can find a company run by open minded people, your chances for success will depend on your performance and not on your gender.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, BOARD MEMBER, OWNER, BOOMER

1. KNOW YOUR FIRM’S LEGAL STRUCTURE AND BOARD SELECTION PROCESS It may seem obvious, but have you checked to determine if non-licensed/non-registered professionals are legally allowed to own engineering or architectural firms in your state? Joan Capelin, FSMPS, Hon. AIA, broaches this topic in her paper, “Resetting the Horizon Line: The Ultimate Career Step.” In collaboration with her research partner, Barbara Rodriquez, Hon. AIA, Capelin explores how the legal structure of licensed professional service businesses and the restrictions on ownership vary throughout the United States and the District of Columbia. (Readers are encouraged to obtain a copy of Capelin’s white paper also sponsored by the SMPS Foundation.) If non-licensed/non-registered marketers have the legal right to sit on the board of directors at your firm, your next step is to identify the requirements and the selection process. Our survey found membership rules and selection processes to be quite diverse. Examples include:

Board members are elected by weighted vote of existing shares. This limits membership to majority shareholders, those closely aligned with them, and those who can afford the initial purchase price of the stock and the continued investment.

Performance of the board is reviewed annually and members are appointed by an employee committee. (The current board members do not hold a majority of the stock.)

Board members are appointed by the partners or existing board based on interest in the firm, leadership ability, talent, performance, and/or commitment, etc. They do not need to be owners or registered/licensed professionals.

Ownership is offered when the firm needs capital; a board seat requires (but is not guaranteed by) 10 percent stock ownership. At any one time there must be one PE and one AIA on the board.

Board membership is comprised of outside (non-employee) directors.

State licensing requirements dictate percentage of directors that must be registered professionals.

What may preclude you from board membership at your current firm may not be a barrier at another firm. Be bold and find out, but don’t forget that rules can be broken.

“This restriction [licensing requirement] was in the corporate bylaws until two years ago. It was changed so our director of operations could be become a principal and, I am told, to hold open that door for me in the future.”

FEMALE, WHITE/HISPANIC, DIRECTOR, BOARD MEMBER, OWNER, GEN X


2. DON’T GET TRIPPED UP BY ENTRENCHED CORPORATE POLITICS If legal restrictions or ownership issues are not thwarting your career advancement then unstated internal corporate politics may be.

“The non-design professionals that make it to the boardroom are very few and far between. Sure there are some, but it’s climbing up a steep, steep hill. And that goes whether you’re white, black, polka dot, male, female, or undetermined.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, ARCHITECT, EXECUTIVE TEAM, OWNER, SILENT GENERATION

As stated earlier, it is common for senior executives to be handpicked from the ranks of those holding line jobs where a manager can have critical profit and loss responsibility. From there an ownership invitation may be extended and ultimately the opportunity to obtain a board position. Thus, what you may have attributed to racial or gender bias, might be that you hold a marketing position within your firm rather than a line position.

“The flaw with many A/E/C companies is that the executive staff is filled with technical staffers miscast in business management roles.”

FEMALE, HISPANIC-LATINO, CORPORATE OFFICER, EXECUTIVE TEAM, OWNER, GEN X

“I had a job offer from a larger A/E/C firm (350 employees) that does not allow unlicensed people on their board. I took that as a sign of their general attitude toward the value of marketing to their firm and did not further entertain working for or with them.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, GEN X

Because a higher percentage of women choose staff jobs such as marketing and human resources, according to Catalyst21 they are impacted to a greater degree by this practice. In 2002, women held only 10 percent of the 6,428 total line corporate officer positions in the Fortune 500.22 The high percentage of female members in both SMPS and in the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) gives credence to the premise that women gravitate to staff positions. As the position of chief marketing officer (CMO) gains prevalence and stature within the corporate structure, it is opening alternate paths to the boardroom that place less emphasis on line manager positions. According to “When a Marketer Becomes a President: Bill Scott’s Story,” Linbeck’s executive vice president in charge of business development was named the Houston division president in 2007.23 Unfortunately, not all A/E/C firms are large enough to afford CMOs or vice presidents of business development. So aspiring marketers are advised to bone up on their understanding of financial statements and balance sheets and if possible gain line experience as well.

“You really have to understand how firms make money, how fees are set.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, VICE PRESIDENT, PRINCIPAL, BOARD MEMBER, GEN X “You must be able to talk ‘shop’ and understand your firm’s business. Just making brochures or being able to spout off a list of service offerings will only take you so far. This is why many A/E marketing and sales people have limited success or reach their plateau in a short time. The ability to do technical marketing/sales and understand exactly how A/E firms make money from their architecture/engineering projects is a


major factor in marketing clients and prospects. You need to know not only ‘what’ your firm does, but ‘how’ and most importantly ‘why’ it is in business.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, VP MARKETING, CORPORATE OFFICER, BOOMER Change your image from one of proposal mill laborer to that of marketing strategist. Track key metrics and inform the executive team how marketing efforts are supporting the corporate strategic plan. If the firm doesn’t have a strategic plan, help them create one. (Don’t ask for permission. Just do it.) Increasing the amount of billable work you perform is another avenue for increasing your visibility as a possible boardroom or executive suite candidate. A/E/C firms frequently subcontract the public process and communications phases of major projects. The next time you’re asked to include a subconsultant’s qualifications for these tasks, suggest that your staff be included in the proposal instead.

“One barrier I encountered was the general thought that non-billable staff are less promotable.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, PRINCIPAL/DIRECTOR, OWNER, GEN X “In this industry, you have to show you’re willing to go the extra mile and be a ‘go-getter.’”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, EXECUTIVE TEAM, OWNER, GEN X

No obstacle is insurmountable for those truly driven by their passion to succeed.

“I think one of the reasons I have the perspective that I do in terms of our business was that I was exposed to so many things. They would take me to meetings. I was always involved with the project managers, and I tried to be a sponge.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, VICE PRESIDENT, BOARD MEMBER, OWNER, BOOMER

3. FIND A FIRM WITH A CULTURE THAT MATCHES YOUR LIFESTYLE No one needs a study to grasp that a woman’s peak career years overlap with her peak child bearing years, forcing her to make career detours. Career success in many firms continues to be based on a male career model that ignores factors of marriage, pregnancy, children, and household duties.24 Consider these statistics reported by Hewlett in “Executive Women and the Myth of Having It All” published by the Harvard Business Review in 2002:

49 percent of ultra-achieving career women (earning more than $100,000) ages 41-55 are childless.

33 percent of high-achieving career women (earning $55,000 to $66,000) ages 41-55 are childless; 57 percent are unmarried.

Only 19 percent of ultra-achieving men are childless and 17 percent are unmarried. 25

In a similar vein, Kathleen Archambeau (Climbing the Corporate Ladder in High Heels) writes that 35 percent of the women in the United States are single and the number remaining single throughout their lives is growing.25


Both Hewlett and Archambeau believe that child rearing “interrupts women’s—but not men’s— careers, permanently depressing their earning power.” Hewlett explains that “It’s hard to throttle back during that stage of a career and expect to catch up later.”

“I decided not to take a top-of-the-organization-chart path because it was important that I have time with my children.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, MANAGER, GEN X “I put my family first above my job. I stopped to have children and went back to work after they got into school. Then I switched to marketing and business development so I started back at the bottom and worked my way back up.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, BOOMER

This is particularly true in the A/E/C industry which requires overnight travel and unusual hours to meet client expectations — things that primary caregivers have difficulty committing to, especially on the spur of the moment.

“It seems like moms always have to be responsible for the kids, even when both mom and dad work. The dads I work with get away with not being “on call” for the kids. They have the freedom to stay late and put extra effort into work because they’re not responsible for making dinner, running the kids to after-school activities, and helping with homework.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, MANAGER, GEN X

Many owners and executives of A/E/C industries miss this subtle distinction. Women want to be at the top. Women will and do work hard. But companies have to build in more flexibility to afford them the opportunity to blend their work hours and their care-giving responsibilities. Granted, there are some marriages and partnerships that share primary care-giving responsibilities equally:

“My wife and I worked very hard to balance work and family. My wife has always worked fulltime since we were married. We are both at the top of our respective professions because of this. It requires a lot of flexibility and drive.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, VP MARKETING, CORPORATE OFFICER, BOOMER “Both my spouse and I worked in demanding jobs – we hired a live-in nanny to handle routine childcare duties.” MALE, CAUCASIAN, PRESIDENT, PRINCIPAL, BOARD MEMBER, OWNER, BOOMER

And men suffer from the push-pull of family and career dichotomies as well as women:

“I have had to travel or had a proposal due and not been able to get home to see my kids as much as I would like.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, EXECUTIVE TEAM, BOOMER


Even so, family time is the number one reason why women of all races leave the workforce (44 percent), compared to only 12 percent for men.26 This does not mean that women have to forego children to be successful. In an effort to retain not only star female performers, but all star employees, businesses are adopting carefully crafted corporate policies, which enable employees to juggle families and careers.

“Having a family actually helped. My firm is very family focused.”

FEMALE, AFRICAN AMERICAN/BLACK, MANAGER, EXECUTIVE TEAM, GEN X “I recently got married to someone with two children. I think it increased the rate at which I advanced because my boss saw me in a different light—someone who could continue handling their current job responsibilities, take care of new family responsibilities, and figure out how to live a healthy, balanced life.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, CMO/VP, EXECUTIVE TEAM, BOOMER Women are asking firms to acknowledge that work/life issues do impede the progress of women. They are asking for policies that eliminate those impediments, such as the creation of reduced-hour jobs, flexible workdays, and alternate work locations.

“I worked some odd hours. I would always pray that my oldest would go to bed by 9 p.m. because that was when I would head upstairs to get to work. The work I was doing then was mostly proposal support, and I didn’t have to report to an office to work on it.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, VICE PRESIDENT, BOARD MEMBER, OWNER, BOOMER Family care is only one reason employees need more flexibility in work schedules. Continuing education, temporary disabilities, and military reserve service requirements all are causing companies to rethink their policies and develop innovative means for anyone who needs a work hiatus to do so without derailing their careers. Booz Allen Hamilton recently created a pilot “reserve program that unbundled standard management consulting work, identifying bite-sized chunks that can be performed via telecommuting or short stints in the office.”27 4. BE ALERT FOR HIDDEN STIGMAS A word of caution: If you think you’ve found a family-friendly firm, don’t be too quick to call their hand. Look beyond the human resource manual and recruitment brochures to see if what they practice supports their advertising hype. Even when firms have work/life balance friendly policies in place, there may be risks associated with the practical application of those policies. Try to find out if employees who take advantage of flexible or reduced hours are penalized in any way.

“My company offers reduced hours and flexible work locations on an exception basis to highly billable employees. But I have been privy to behind-the-door conversations in executive suites which made it clear that choosing those options effectively sabotaged the employees’ careers, at least for the short term.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, BOARD MEMBER, EXECUTIVE TEAM, BOOMER

“I chose to work a four-day workweek; it affected my pay for those years.” FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, PRINCIPAL, DIRECTOR, OWNER, GEN X


“I had my child after I obtained the position…but I will be honest. It’s been a VERY bumpy road since I’ve returned from maternity leave.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, EXECUTIVE TEAM, OWNER, GEN X

These SMPS member experiences are borne out by Hewlett and Luce research which indicates that as many as 35 percent of women surveyed reported that their organization’s cultures effectively penalize people who take advantage of work-life policies. Tacit resistance to telecommuting topped the chart at 39 percent as the most penalized of those policies, followed by job sharing and part-time work.28 Fortunately, Hewlett and Luce go on to report that more and more firms are recognizing that the transformation of the corporate culture seems to be a prerequisite for success as much for the corporation as for the employee. Their advice: “Look for firms with people at or near the top that not only understand the business imperative for imaginative work-life policies but are prepared to embrace them, and in so doing remove the stigma.”29

“Get yourself into a firm that has already achieved precedence for minority/women advancement. It is extremely hard to break through that resistance.”

FEMALE, HISPANIC/LATINO, CORPORATE OFFICER, OWNER, GEN X “My firm treats all employees like adults. So long as our work gets done, we are allowed flexible schedules to accommodate family needs without penalty.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, GEN X 5. GET A MENTOR According to Hefferman: “Mentors offer protection, exposure, and visibility. Most important, they can be your champion when things go wrong. True mentors make you more powerful not because they loan you some of their power, but because they help you to develop your own.”30 Impressive! Yet the Department of Labor’s Glass Ceiling Report identified lack of mentoring and lack of informal networking as the number one and number two obstacles to the advancement of women and of minorities. Catalyst reports that as of 2003, 23 percent of women had never had a mentor31 and 48 percent of women of color attributed lack of an influential mentor or sponsor as one reason their careers stalled or progressed more slowly. (See Table 2, page 26.) Of the SMPS women we surveyed, 32 percent checked lack of mentoring as a barrier to advancement. More startling was the fact that 42 percent of the male marketers surveyed listed lack of mentoring as a barrier to advancement. Forty-six percent of minority respondents of both genders considered lack of mentoring as a barrier at some point in their careers. Why is mentoring not more common? Within SMPS, it may be because executive candidates are more often selected from line management positions. Therefore, it is logical to conclude that fewer marketers would be sought out as protégés. Elsewhere, fear of what others might think is a reason cited by women of all races and all industries for steering away from mentoring relationships either as a mentor or as a protégé. Employees are concerned that supervisors and/or coworkers may perceive them as being “teacher’s pets.” Plus, setting themselves up as “stars” is contrary to women’s natural inclinations to be relational leaders and team players. Finally, there is the added stigma that if a female protégé were to approach a potential male mentor it might be misconstrued as a sexual


advance. (As more women attain senior executive positions, the same could be said for male protégés approaching potential female mentors.) One way around these perceptions is to seek out multiple mentors and establish mentoring relationships both inside and outside your firm. Having multiple successful business women as mentors taught Debra Condren, Ph.D. (AmBITCHous) how to avoid naïve mistakes, how to recognize talent, how to work collaboratively, and how to ask for and make great use of expert advice.32 Survey respondents agree:

“Find people who are successful in what you want to do and learn from them (the pros and the cons).”

FEMALE, HISPANIC/LATINO, DIRECTOR, EXECUTIVE TEAM, GEN X

Having mentors outside your firm allows you to openly explore risks and opportunities that you may not be able to discuss with a member of your firm’s inner circle without fear of repercussion such as: Should you switch firms? Should you consider a career change? It also provides validation of your talent and abilities when your “outside” mentor “sings your praises” to his/her peers within your firm’s leadership.

“Find a champion/mentor who will give you opportunities to demonstrate your ability to contribute to senior leadership.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, OWNER, GEN X For women, having both a female and a male mentor can ensure you have all your bases covered. Female mentors can offer psychosocial support—how to deal with sexism for instance, or how to balance a career and family. Male mentors may be better positioned to facilitate their protégé’s integration into firm cultures dominated by Alpha male types, according to Boris Groysberg’s article “How Star Women Build Portable Skills” published by the Harvard Business Review.33 People of color experience the same double bind in mentoring relationships and can benefit from having multiple mentors of different races and genders, inside and outside the firm.34 Taking it full circle, males in WBE firms could benefit from female mentors and Caucasians of either gender in MBE firms should seek out mentors from other ethnic groups. Finally, it is doubly important for any employees who work for firms with global markets to enlist the aid of mentors to help them understand significant cultural differences. Don’t wait to be asked. Identify your champion.

“Alert the principals of your interest in being one of the firm’s leaders and to become an owner. Ask one of them to be your mentor. Be prepared to work hard, including overtime, to demonstrate your commitment to reaching your goal.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, PRESIDENT & DIRECTOR OF MARKETING, BOARD MEMBER, EXECUTIVE, OWNER, BOOMER

6. BUILD A NETWORK Marketers, more than any other group of professionals, should recognize the value of networking. Apply the concept of building business via networking to building your career. As Hefferman insightfully shares: “Networks grow when you are asleep, exhausted, distracted … Networks provide knowledge—by its very nature a network can always know more than you


can. Networks thrive in exponential proportion to the effort and attention to detail that you put into them.” 35 As with mentoring relationships, you can cultivate your own network and form alliances through external constituencies comprised of client contacts and former employees. The beauty of external networks is that they build portability into your skill set. Your network stays with you no matter where you go.

“Learn early to network. Carefully and thoughtfully cultivate your network being always diligent to express appreciation and quick to help others in any way you can. Whatever you do for others will be returned to you many times over.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, EXECUTIVE TEAM, BOOMER Today, it is easier than ever to connect to a women’s or minority business network. Some good places to start are the Executive Forum for Women, National Organization for Women, Catalyst, Women President’s Organization, National Association for Women Business Owners, Corporate Directors Forum, Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility, and the Center for Women’s Business Research, as well as SMPS and other A/E/C-related associations.

“You’ve got to have the support. Nobody does this on their own. I’m representing marketing on our board. If I didn’t have a good marketing team, I would have no credibility. If anybody thinks they can do this by themselves, they’re kidding themselves. It is important to be surrounded by the right people, work hard, and try to make the right decisions.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, VICE PRESIDENT, BOARD MEMBER, EXECUTIVE TEAM, BOOMER

7. LEARN THE RIGHT STUFF There’s no denying that lack of license or registration is a key deterrent for those seeking advancement in A/E/C firms. It was listed by 18.4 percent of the women we surveyed and 21.2 percent of the men.

“That is probably one of the things that I regret the most. I have my EIT. I just never took the exam. Five years out of school you don’t always have the vision that you need. And, I didn’t have anyone pushing me to do it.”


Unless the state your firm is located in explicitly prohibits non-licensed professionals from being owners or board members, don’t let it stop you. It didn’t stop the SMPS member quoted above, and today she serves on her firm’s board of directors. Licensed and unlicensed, registered and unregistered professionals agree that learning the right stuff is one of the keys to advancement, i.e., knowing everything there is to know about your firm and your firm’s business.

“My advice to everyone I mentor is that you have to understand what your client needs (technical need) and then you will be able to sell A/E services. The built environment is still primarily built by guys (minority and Caucasian), who like to figure out how things work, so you need to know what they know and how to work with them, both in the


boardroom and on the construction site. A marketing degree or MBA will not provide this knowledge.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, VP MARKETING, CORPORATE OFFICER, BOOMER “Learn as much as possible about your industry in general, make an effort to work with men and include yourself in every situation you can. Otherwise you will be overlooked. There are so many Alpha Male personalities in our office (and generally in the industry) that women need to make an exaggerated effort to be heard.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, GEN X Learn your firm’s business from the inside out. Work with multiple departments. Take courses in architecture, engineering, or construction management if necessary. At the very least, they will help you write your marketing collateral pieces and communicate with the technical professionals in your firm.

“Be interested in everything that crosses your desk. I started out as an admin with a bachelor’s in theatre (our discipline). Now I am a principal. I read EVERYTHING before I filed it and asked questions.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, CFO, PRINCIPAL, BOARD MEMBER, EXECUTIVE TEAM, OWNER, MILLENNIAL

“Learn as much as you can, take on as much as you can, then let go of trivial tasks and become the leader.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, CEO, PRINCIPAL, EXECUTIVE TEAM, BOARD MEMBER, OWNER, BOOMER

“Practical experience at every level is invaluable. Understanding how to provide our firm’s core services helps one become a better manager.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, BOOMER At the same time, SMPS members recommend that you expand your knowledge of A/E/C marketing:

Be active in your chapter’s roundtables, workshops, and local seminars.

Attend national SMPS conferences.

Read every issue of the Marketer from cover to cover.

Study for and take the CPSM exam to earn your certification as a marketer of professional services.

“Stay in your position and build a reputation with your firm. Too many professional services marketers jump from firm to firm within the same market area. It destroys credibility. Find a firm that appreciates your insights into marketing strategy and long-term business development.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, GEN X Don’t overlook continuing your formal education if you can. Hefferman writes that women talk about the confidence they gain through academic credentials. In some industries, they prove you have skills; they are the price of admission. Hefferman observes that many women, especially in financial services, see an MBA as an essential credential—it gives you permission to be there, in your own eyes and in the guys’ eyes.36


“Double major in engineering and marketing. In the engineering field, there is little appreciation for those without engineering degrees.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, BOOMER The ever increasing number of women and minorities graduating from bachelors programs and going on for post-graduate degrees bears this out. According to the National Science Foundation, women earned 45 percent of the science and engineering (S&E) doctoral degrees and 61 percent of the non-S&E doctoral degrees up from 8 percent and 18 percent, respectively, in 1966.37 Seventy-five percent of doctorates earned by Asians were in S&E fields. An additional advantage of formal education/certification is that unlike specific knowledge of your company, it is portable. Whether you are male or female, white or a person of color, your degree belongs to you. It can open doors to other firms by substantiating your qualifications to do the job. After all, isn’t education one of the things that as marketers we emphasize when writing proposals? While formal education is a definite plus to advancement, no matter how many degrees you have, in the end it boils down to knowing how to solve your clients’ problems. In fact, it is still possible to advance to the boardroom with no more than a high school diploma.

“I don’t take no for an answer. I keep opening doors, and I think that is what they [firm partners] appreciate about me. I’m not a closer, but I do get the door kicked open. I bring a technical person with me since I am not an environmental engineer. I do not even have a college degree. I think my never-give-up personality made them believe that I didn’t need a college education.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, VICE PRESIDENT, BOARD MEMBER, BOOMER 8. RISE ABOVE GENDER AND RACIAL STEREOTYPES Women and minorities who have made it to the boardrooms of A/E/C firms tell us that they rose above gender and race labels. They did not let others stereotype them, and they did not stereotype themselves.

“It’s a barrier if you believe it is. Virtually everyone falls in some demographic where there is perceived discrimination (too young, too old, too fat, minorities, women). Accept who you are and don’t believe the hype.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, EXECUTIVE TEAM, OWNER, GEN X Unlike snakes, we cannot shed our skin. We are sized up and size others up in the first 7 seconds we meet: 93 percent of how we are judged is based on non-verbal data and 7 percent is influenced by the words that we speak.38 While it does exist, gender and racial stereotyping does not need to be a deterrent to advancement in the predominately Caucasian male A/E/C industry. Only 17.5 percent of the female respondents checked it as a barrier, only one minority (Spanish, Hispanic or Latino) chose it and only two men. Furthermore, the distinction between racial and gender based bias in the office often blurs, and it becomes difficult even for those being discriminated against to separate the two. Charisse Jones and Kumea Shorter-Gooden, Ph.D., (Shifting) point out that studies show that a large sector of Black women are stuck in the lowest paying jobs that typically are relegated to women even when Black women’s high school and college graduation rates exceed those of


Black men. But since the Black community is often silent about discrimination based on gender many Black women may not immediately recognize workplace discrimination as gender bias39 and assume that it is racially motivated.40 This is true for women of other races as well:

“I found being a woman more of an issue than being of Hispanic/Spanish lineage. In fact, I get more grief over my race from other Hispanics who accuse me of ‘trying to be White’ than I do from Caucasian business peers and firm leaders.”

FEMALE, HISPANIC-LATINO, SENIOR LINE MANAGER, EXECUTIVE TEAM, OWNER, GEN X

Still where racial and gender bias exist, it is difficult to expunge.

“In that group of firms, there was a woman architect, name on the door. I placed her in the front row, facing the potential client. One of the questions was: And so, what are you doing to include women business enterprises? You could not miss this diminutive Asian woman. She was really sharp, she had spoken well during the presentation, and she was in their field of vision. No question. And still the question was asked. They were literally blind to her presence.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, CEO/PRESIDENT, OWNER, BOOMER Women and minorities intent on advancement are more likely to see past unintentional discrimination and keep on their appointed paths.

“I did have a professor tell me that I had a very good analytical mind for a woman. I did love him so I didn’t hold it against him. He was only trying to compliment me.”


Sometimes, the best option when confronted with biased leadership is to move on. (Without exception, outright harassment should be reported to human resources immediately.)

“Despite being offered a promotion and a lucrative salary increase, one of the reasons I left my last firm was a suggestion from my boss to dress more conservatively. I always wear tops with high necklines. But I have a figure that’s hard to hide when I remove my jacket. It’s their [the men] problem, not mine.”

FEMALE, HISPANIC-LATINO, SENIOR LINE MANAGER, OWNER, GEN X In the quote above, it turned out to not be just their problem, but their loss as well. This talented woman moved on and eventually became a shareholder of the firm’s key competitor. 9. ADAPT YOUR LEADERSHIP STYLE Differences in leadership styles are often misconstrued as gender/racial bias or stereotyping. These differences are the root of much of the consternation with leadership expressed by women and minorities as well as male Caucasian marketers in the A/E/C industry. In some cases it is referred to as “leadership style differences” and in others as “resistance to changing the status quo.” Nearly forty-five percent (44.7 percent) of the women responding to our survey checked “resistance to changing the status quo” as having been or still being a barrier to advancement in their firms. The “leadership style differences” category was checked by 27.2 percent of the women. These numbers are more profound when you compare them to 12.1 percent and 9.1 percent respectively for men.


Women are natural collaborators, relationship builders, team players, and are more likely to consult with experts, employees, and fellow business owners. Men, on the other hand, tend to be authoritarian, hierarchical, and fact gatherers; their decision making is more dictatorial and they employ a top down approach. Since the majority of the A/E/C firms are led by Caucasian males, more women will experience conflicts with management and leadership styles than their male counterparts. (These of course are generalities. It is recognized that there are female leaders who exhibit a more authoritarian style of leadership, and there are collaborative male leaders.)

“Marketers have to be good team players and build consensus to get things done. Architects are used to working independently. But when you are running a business you have to make decisions for the good of the firm, not the individual. I applied my ability to facilitate decision making to unify the firm and to advance.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, VICE PRESIDENT, PRINCIPAL, BOARD MEMBER, GEN X SMPS members who made it to the top were more likely to adapt their style to the one with which the leaders of their firms were more comfortable. In essence, not only should you act like an owner, you need to act like the owners of your firm.

“Learn to read people and adjust your communication style to better interact with them.”

MALE, CAUCASIAN, CEO/PRESIDENT, PRINCIPAL, BOARD MEMBER, OWNER, GEN X

10. LOSE THE CHIP, BECOME YOUR OWN ADVOCATE Approximately 7 percent of the survey respondents listed no barriers at all! It is conceivable that these men and women all worked for ultra-progressive A/E/C firms. It is more likely that they had the right mindsets. They did not see the barriers listed as career stoppers, but just normal bumps on their journey. Brush any chips off your shoulders by conducting a personal introspection. Don’t let a negative attitude become a self-fulfilling prophesy.

“Recognize that the firm and the world do not owe you just because you are a ______ (fill in the blank). Do good work and it will be rewarded. If you do not succeed, you failed; nobody failed you.” MALE, CEO/PRESIDENT, EXECUTIVE TEAM, BOARD MEMBER, OWNER, BOOMER

In her book AmBITCHous, Debra Condren, Ph.D., advises that no amount of mentoring, legal maneuvering or gamesmanship will get you where you’re going until you lose the chip on your shoulder: “I saw this ‘yeah, but’ theme repeat itself with countless other women over the years, along with other common self-sabotaging behaviors I identified. It became apparent to me that all of us—even women who are manifestly talented and experienced—struggle with confidence, don’t feel entitled to get paid what we’re worth, feel reluctant to go after the power and recognition we’ve earned, and don’t pursue careers with wholehearted passion.” 41

“Act like an owner. Dust off the perceptions…usually we think things are worse than others do. Don’t allow comments to needle you. Remember that you are as smart as they are.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, CEO/PRESIDENT, OWNER, BOOMER


“Show the board/leadership that you are a capable, professional, and astute business person whose focus is on contributing to the firm’s bottom line and long-term success and stability.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, BOOMER Confidence is essential not only to your personal success, but to the success of your firm. Those who do not possess the confidence to manage their own careers are less likely to be viewed as capable of managing the affairs of their firms. Does that mean you have to remain under the less-than-green thumbs of CEOs and partners that cling to organizational biases that restrict your growth? No. If you find yourself planted in infertile soil, uproot and move to greener acres.

“Work at a larger firm or one that has a more even distribution of shares among principals. If more than 45 percent of the shares are held by one principal in a field of three or more, then the dominant partner may be the source of the problems.”

FEMALE, ASIAN, DIRECTOR, BOOMER Dusting off your resume is an exercise that is not only essential to securing a new position elsewhere, it is also a tool for reevaluating who you are and what you are worth where you are. According to Condren, too many “women get stuck in dead-end jobs because they don’t recognize their own value and don’t see how many options it can make available to them. They’ve lost sight of their own fabulous track record and expertise.” 42 As you become an external observer of your career, the sheer volume of the education and accomplishments you have accumulated will reshape your self-image. Once you’ve bolstered your confidence, you can become your own advocate by practicing three one-word tactics: Communicate.

“Express an interest in a growth career path early in your career. Be assertive and confident, communicating interest, and then follow through in doing what it will take, based on the goals/expectation in your firm. Monitor salary levels, benefits, and roles/responsibilities of others in similar roles in the industry. This data is valuable in discussions.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, BOOMER Demonstrate.

“Take the lead. Many times people think they need approval from someone (or everyone) ‘to start an initiative’ —and most times all you need to do is ‘take the initiative’ and move an idea forward.”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, DIRECTOR, EXECUTIVE TEAM, OWNER, GEN X Ask.

“On my travels with my boss, I asked: ‘How do you get elected to the board?’ He said: ‘You have to be good in different areas and be a leader or a great example.’ So, I said, ‘Well some time I would like to be considered.’ And he said, ‘We’re already talking about that.’”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, VICE PRESIDENT, BOARD MEMBER, BOOMER


While you’re communicating, demonstrating and asking, avoid apologetic behavior at all costs. There is no rational justification for pointing out your faults and foibles to those you want to see you as an executive candidate. Act like a CEO, and you will be seen as a CEO candidate. In Closing: Know What You Are Asking For The odds for women and minorities to reach the pinnacles of their careers have never been better. America is approaching an impending vortex as the exodus of minorities and women from Corporate America dovetails with the demographic shift in the overall population. This is happening at precisely the same time that the retirement of Anglophone baby boomers coincides with the emergence of international baby boomers. The workforce, the customers, and the competition of A/E/C firms is about to change, ready or not. This paper concludes that there are no time-honored, universal truths to use, or well-trodden pathways for women and minority marketers to follow to reach career pinnacles within professional services firms. It is incumbent on each of us to find our own combination of strategies. Our forefathers and “foremothers” have paved the way by winning the right to vote, by ensuring equal access, and opportunity for all by “outing” attitudinal and organizational biases. They have led by example, proving that small firms can successfully compete against Corporate America, showing us that we have options and reminding us that we do not need to buy-into anyone else’s template for success. However, for those who do make it to the top, there is one truism: A seat at the boardroom table is the biggest contract that you’ll ever land. And with it comes a heap of responsibility. If you’re not ready to take responsibility for the employees who will be dependent on you and your leadership skills for their livelihood, perhaps you might want to rethink your goals. Being on the board should not be considered a perk awarded on the basis of tenure or sales results. It carries with it an obligation, a trust, and a responsibility beyond your own aspirations.

“The board has to make tough decisions and it may not always be a popular decision. We have to be well-prepared as well as be visionary and not just react to what is in front of us at that moment. That is one of the things I really have to be careful about. When we’re making decisions whether it is about pension planning or how we manage our workload, I ask myself what are we going to look like five years from now as a result of this decision?”

FEMALE, CAUCASIAN, VICE PRESIDENT, BOARD MEMBER, EXECUTIVE TEAM OWNER, BOOMER

If you make it, and I am sure that if you have the passion, the confidence and the ambition, that you will, then be an exemplary level 5 leader as defined by Jim Collins (Good to Great): Channel your ego needs away from yourself and to the larger goal of building a great company. After all that is what sitting at the table is all about.43


TABLE 1


Key Legislation Impacted by Women & Minorities Rights Movements

EQUAL RIGHTS (1848 – 1950)

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY (1951 – 1990) EQUAL PLAYING FIELD (1991 – present)

1848 – Declaration of Sentiments presented at first Woman’s Rights Convention. 1861 to 1865 – Civil War 1863 – Emancipation Proclamation 1865 – 13th Amendment abolishes slavery. 1866 – Civil Rights Act grants all persons have full and equal benefit of all laws. 1868 – 14th Amendment; equal protection of the laws; all persons born or naturalized in US are citizens with equal protection of the laws. 1870 – 15th Amendment guarantees African American males the right to vote by preventing discrimination at the polls from voting based on that citizen’s race, color, or previous condition of servitude (i.e. slavery). 1920 – 19th Amendment – women’s right to vote; Women’s Bureau of the Department Labor established. 1923 – Equal Rights Amendment drafted by National Woman’s Party to ensure men and women have equal rights The ERA passed the Senate and the House in 1972, but fell three states short of ratification in 1982 and has since been reintroduced in every Congress without passage. 1933 – Unemployment Relief Act forbids discrimination in employment on the basis of race, color, or creed. 1938 – Wage and Hours Act, later titled the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) bans child labor and settles the 40-hour workweek. 1939 to 1945 – World War II

1961 – Executive Order 10925, establishes President’s Committee on Equal Opportunity. 1963 – Equal Pay Act prohibits sex-based pay differential. 1964 – Civil Rights Act bans employment discrimination based on race, religion, sex, or national origin. Title VII prohibits employment discrimination and establishes Employment Opportunity Commission

(EEOC). Title VI prohibits public access discrimination and leads to desegregation.

1965 – Executive Order 11246 sets affirmative action requirements of government contractors and subcontractors.

1967 – Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) prohibits discriminatory practices in hiring, promotion, demotion, compensation, and transfers based on the age of the employee.

1972 – Equal Employment Act/Title IX Education Amendments grant equal access to higher education and to professional schools became the law. 1972 – Rehabilitation Act of 1972 prohibits government contractors from discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities.

1974 – Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act adds Vietnam-era veterans to a growing list of protected classes and establishes federal contractors or subcontractors to take affirmative action measures to hire, train, and promote disabled and other Vietnam veterans.

1978 – Pregnancy Discrimination Act recognizes that discrimination on the basis of pregnancy is discrimination on the basis of sex. 1986 – Immigration Reform and Control Act (1986) prohibits discrimination on the basis of national origin or citizenship. 1987 – Civil Rights Restoration Act closes loopholes in earlier civil rights statutes by clarifying that when any program or activity of an organization or entity—such as a college, medical center, or private contractor—receives federal funding, the entire organization or entity must comply with laws outlawing discriminatory practices.

1990 – Americans with Disabilities Act reinforced and extended protection under the Rehabilitation Act.

1991 – Civil Rights Act creates Glass Ceiling Commission. 1991 – Civil Rights Act adds provisions to Title VII protections, including right to jury trial on discrimination claims and introduces the possibility of emotional distress damages. 1993 – Family Medical Leave Act grants family leave and temporary medical leave under certain circumstances. 1995 – White House guidelines on affirmative action call for elimination of any programs that create quotas; create preferences for unqualified individuals; create reverse discrimination; or continue after the equal opportunity purposes have been achieved. 1997 – Proposition 209 enacted in California bans all forms of affirmative action in California. 1998 – Washington becomes the second state to abolish state affirmative action measures with the passage of I-200. 1998 – Commission on the Advancement of Women and Minorities in Science, Engineering, and Technology Development established by Congress. 2005 – Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 and Title V, United States Code, amended to provide entitlement to leave to eligible employees whose spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a member of the Armed Forces who is serving on active duty in support of a contingency operation or who is notified of an impending call or order to active duty in support of a contingency operation, and for other purposes. 2008 – National Defense Authorization Act amends FMLA to include Military Caregiver Leave and adds the right to leave for any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that a spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a member of the Armed Forces.

http://www.answers.com/topic/comply

http://www.answers.com/topic/discriminatory

http://www.infoplease.com/id/A0194236


TABLE 2:

Women Making It to the Top How women succeeded:

Consistently exceeding expectations ......................................................................69% Successfully managing others.................................................................................49% Developing a style with which male managers are comfortable .............................47% Having a recognized expertise in a specific content area .......................................46%

How women of color succeeded:

Access to high-visibility assignments ......................................................................62% Performing over and above expectations................................................................57% Communicating well ................................................................................................57% Having a influential mentor or sponsor....................................................................52%

What holds women back from top management?

Women executives say: Lack of significant general management/line experience .......................................47% Exclusion from informal networks of communication ..............................................41% Stereotyping and preconceptions of women’s roles and abilities............................33%

CEOs say: Lack of significant general management/line experience .......................................68% Failure of senior leadership to assume accountability for women’s advancement .37%

What holds women of color back?

Lack of influential mentor or sponsor ......................................................................48% Lack of informal networking with influential colleagues...........................................41% Lack of company role models who are members of the same race/ethnic group...33% Lack of high-visibility assignments ..........................................................................29%

Source: Catalyst, Women in Business: A Snapshot, (2003), www.catalyst.org

Bibliography: Archambeau, Kathleen. Climbing the Corporate Ladder in High Heels. Franklin Lakes, NJ: Career Press, 2006. Blake-Beard, Stacy, Audry Murrell, and David Thomas. Unfinished Business: The Impact of Race on Understanding Mentoring Relationships. 2006. Catalyst. Women in Corporate Leadership. 2003. www.catalyst.com.

Because the racial /ethnic composition of board members is not publicly available, Catalyst can collect this information only from those companies that are willing to provide it.

Center for Women’s Business Research. Key Facts About Women-Owned Businesses, www.nfwbo.org/facts. Collins, Jim. Good to Great. New York: HarperCollins Publishing, 2001. Condren, Ph.D., Debra. AmBITCHous: Learn to Be Her Now. New York: Morgan Road Books, 2006. Daniels, Cora. Black Power, Inc.: The New Voice of Success. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, 2004. Eisenberg, Bonnie and Mary Ruthsdotter. Living the Legacy: The Women’s Rights Movement 1848 to 1998. The National Women’s History Project. 1998 Groysberg, Boris. How Star Women Build Portable Skills. Harvard Business Review, February 2008. Hefferman, Margaret. The Naked Truth: A Working Woman’s Manifesto on Business and What Really Matters. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley. 2004. Hewlet, Sylvia Ann and Carolyn Buck Luce. Off-Ramps and On-Ramps: Keeping Talented Women on the Road to Success. Harvard Business Review, March 2005. Hewlett, Sylvia Ann. “Executive Women and the Myth of Having It All.” Harvard Business Review, April 2002. HR WSD Personnel, Washington State Department of Personnel. Whatever Happened to the Glass Ceiling? www.dop.wa.gov. Jones, Charisse and Kumea Shorter-Gooden, Ph.D. Shifting: The Double Lives of Black Women in America. New York: HarperCollins, 2003. Lockwood, SPHR, GPHR, Nancy R. The Glass Ceiling: Domestic and International Perspectives. Society for Human Resource Management. June 2004. Lockwood, SPHR, GPHR, Nancy R. Women and Racial Minorities in the Boardroom: Directors Who Bring New Perspectives and Resources. Society for Human Resource Management Research Translations. August 2003.


http://www.dop.wa.gov/


Maibach, FSMPS, Sheryl. “Where Women Executives Are Not—and Where They Will Be.” The Marketer, October 2007. Mastaglio, Linda. “When a Marketer Becomes a President: Bill Scott’s Story.” The Marketer, October 2007. National Park Service. Rosie the Riveter Women Working During World War II. www.nps.gov/pwro/collection/website/rosie.htm National Science Foundation, Division of Science Resources Statistics, Survey of Earned Doctorates, 1966–2005. Newswire Today. 7th Annual Female Board Members Survey Proves Staffing Women Leaders in Business Improves Companies, Haddonfield, NJ, September 28, 2007. Ramsey, Lydia. First Impressions: How Seven Seconds Can Make or Break a Deal. The Sideroad www.sideroad.com. Blue Boulder Internet Publishing: 2007. Spencer Stuart 2006 Board Diversity Report Susan B. Anthony Center for Women’s Leadership. www.rochester.edu/SBA. Tischler, Linda. Where Are the Women? Fast Company, Inc., December 19, 2007. U.S. Census Bureau. Facts for Features, Women’s History Month: March 2008, January 2, 2008. U.S. Census Bureau. News Release, Minority Population Tops 100 Million, May 17, 2007. U.S. Department of Labor. Report on the Glass Ceiling Initiative, 1991. End Notes 1 U.S. Census Bureau, Facts for Features, Women’s History Month: March 2008, January 2, 2008. 2 U.S. Census Bureau News Release, Minority Population Tops 100 Million, May 17, 2007. 3 Center for Women’s Business Research, Key Facts About Women-Owned Businesses,

www.nfwbo.org/facts. 4 Spencer Stuart 2006 Board Diversity Report 5 Catalyst.www.catalyst.com. Because the racial /ethnic composition of board members is not publicly

available, Catalyst can collect this information only from those companies that are willing to provide it. 6 Newswire Today, 7th Annual Female Board Members Survey Proves Staffing Women Leaders in

Business Improves Companies, Haddonfield, NJ, September 28, 2007. 7 Cora Daniels, Black Power, Inc.: The New Voice of Success. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons,

2004. 8 Bonnie Eisenberg and Mary Ruthsdotter, Living the Legacy: The Women’s Rights Movement 1848 to

1998. The National Women’s History Project. 1998 9 Ibid. 10 Rosie the Riveter Women Working During World War II.

www.nps.gov/pwro/collection/website/rosie.htm 11 Report on the Glass Ceiling Initiative. U. S. Department of Labor, 1991.

http://www.nps.gov/pwro/collection/website/rosie.htm

http://www.sideroad.com/

http://www.nps.gov/pwro/collection/website/rosie.htm


12 Whatever Happened to the Glass Ceiling?, HR WSD Personnel, www.dop.wa.gov. 13 Cora Daniels, Black Power, Inc.: The New Voice of Success (John Wiley & Sons. 2004) pp. 153-154. 14 Margaret Hefferman, The Naked Truth: A Working Woman’s Manifesto on Business and What Really

Matters (Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley. 2004) p.164. 15 Center for Women’s Business Research, Key Facts About Women-Owned Businesses,

www.nfwbo.org/facts 16 Bio published on Susan B. Anthony Center for Women’s Leadership website. www.rochester.edu/SBA. 17 Cora Daniels, Black Power, Inc.: The New Voice of Success (John Wiley & Sons. 2004) p. 48. 18 Nancy R. Lockwood, SPHR, GPHR, The Glass Ceiling: Domestic and International Perspectives.

Society for Human Resource Management (June 2004). 19 Sylvia Ann Hewlet and Carolyn Buck Luce, “Off-Ramps and On-Ramps: Keeping Talented Women on

the Road to Success.” Harvard Business Review, March 2005. 20 Cora Daniels, Black Power, Inc.: The New Voice of Success (John Wiley & Sons, 2004) p.82. 21 Linda Tischler, Where Are the Women? Fast Company, Inc., December 19, 2007. 22 Nancy R. Lockwood, SPHR, GPHR, The Glass Ceiling: Domestic and International Perspectives.

Society for Human Resource Management Research Quarterly, June 2004. 23 Linda Mastaglio, “When a Marketer Becomes a President,” The Marketer, October 2007, p. 7. 24 Nancy R. Lockwood, SPHR, GPHR, The Glass Ceiling; Domestic and International Perspectives.

Society for Human Resource Management, Research Quarterly, June 2004 25 Kathleen Archambeau, Climbing the Corporate Ladder in High Heels, (Franklin Lakes, NJ: Career

Press, 2006), p. 132 26 Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Carolyn Buck Luce, “Off-Ramps and On-Ramps: Keeping Talented Women on

the Road to Success”, Harvard Business Review, March 2005. 27 Boris Groysberg, How Star Women Build Portable Skills. Harvard Business Review, February 2008. 28 Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Carolyn Buck Luce, “Off-Ramps and On-Ramps: Keeping Talented Women on

the Road to Success.” Harvard Business Review, March 2005. 29 Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Carolyn Buck Luce, “Off-Ramps and On-Ramps: Keeping Talented Women on

the Road to Success.” Harvard Business Review, March 2005. 30 Margaret Hefferman, The Naked Truth: A Working Woman’s Manifesto on Business and What Really

Matters (Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley. 2004) p. 112. 31 Catalyst, Women in Corporate Leadership. 2003 32 Debra Condren, Ph.D., AmBITCHous: Learn to Be Her Now, (New York: Morgan Road Books, 2006) p.

15. 33 Boris Groysberg, “How Star Women Build Portable Skills,” Harvard Business Review, February 2008. 34 Stacy Blake-Beard, Audry Murrell, and David Thomas. Unfinished Business: The Impact of Race on

Understanding Mentoring Relationships. 2006. 35Margaret Hefferman, The Naked Truth: A Working Woman’s Manifesto on Business and What Really

Matters (Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley. 2004) p.108. 36 Margaret Hefferman, The Naked Truth: A Working Woman’s Manifesto on Business and What Really

Matters (Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley. 2004) p.97 37 National Science Foundation, Division of Science Resources Statistics, Survey of Earned Doctorates,

1966–2005. 38 Lydia Ramsey, First Impressions: How Seven Seconds Can Make or Break a Deal. The Sideroad

www.sideroad.com (Blue Boulder Internet Publishing: 2007) 39 Charisse Jones and Kumea Shorter-Gooden, Shifting: The Double Lives of Black Women in America,

(New York: HarperCollins, 2003), p. 166. 40 Jones, Charisse and Shorter-Gooden, PhD, Kumea. Shifting: The Double Lives of Black Women in

America. New York: HarperCollins, 2003. 41 Debra Condren, Ph.D., AmBITCHous: Learn to Be Her Now, (New York: Morgan Road Books, 2006) p.

15. 42 Debra Condren, Ph.D., AmBITCHous: Learn to Be Her Now, (New York: Morgan Road Books, 2006) p.

228. 43 Jim Collins, Good to Great (New York: HarperCollins Publishing, 2001)

http://www.dop.wa.gov/

http://www.sideroad.com/


Acknowledgements: I would like to thank the SMPS members who candidly shared their stories and experiences by taking time the time to complete my survey and answer my questions. In particular, my deepest appreciation goes to: Joan Capelin, Paula Harris, Anita Stevens, Angie Sanchez Virnoche, Frank H. Smith, Kate Brannelly, Rose Steele, Brent Crum, Veronica Mabe, Laurin McCracken, Michael Bianco, Kay Lentz, Leah Boltz, Lindsey Montgomery, Melissa Lutz, Debbie LeMatta, and Pamela McCraffrey, who found time in their busy schedules to be interviewed. Christine Chirichella and Tina Myers at SMPS National Headquarters by reviewing the survey questions and distributing the survey electronically. Finally, this white paper could not have been written without the invaluable guidance and words of encouragement from Nancy J. Usrey, without the interviewing skills of Chris Imbeau, and without the frank comments about what to prune from my “readers,” Pam Heeke and Vir Harrison. This paper is dedicated to Felicia Harrison, who is 14 years of age and of multiracial lineage. May she and her generation of business women-to-be write the final chapter—one where race and gender are of little matter. Author: Taree Bollinger, CPSM Taree is the director of marketing and administration of FCS Group, a firm shareholder and member of the Board of Directors. With offices in Washington, Oregon and California, the Redmond, Washington-based firm specializes in utility rates and finance, and management consulting for the public sector. Taree has been with the firm for over 13 years and has over 30 years of total experience in marketing, communications, and business processes. She oversees and directs the firm’s marketing, finance, accounting, human resources, system administration, and facilities management activities. A member of the Society for Marketing Professional Services, Taree also belongs to the Society of Human Resource Managers, and the Washington Finance Officers Association. She holds a bachelor of arts in English and communications from Washington State University and is a certified professional services marketer. Taree is a frequent contributor to a variety of popular mainstream and trade publications; author of 4 published books and 17 corporate policy, procedure, and training manuals; and has served as editor for several publications and books. She is also the proud mother of a son in the United States Armed Forces, and of a daughter who is a 2008 bride.

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