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在抗疫这件事上,女性领导者一般更在行

在抗疫这件事上,女性领导者一般更在行

Michal Katz 2021-03-24
新冠肺炎疫情对全社会都造成了冲击,人们希望有强有力的领导者带领大家走出困境,而女性十分适合这个角色。

图片来源:PEOPLEIMAGES/GETTY IMAGES

老话说得好:“时势造英雄”。新冠肺炎疫情亦然。在疫情时期,领导者们必须具备同理心、倾听、创造性合作,以及与员工真诚互动等特质。在平常时期,这些特质通常很难与企业的高管层或董事层联系起来,但很多女性恰恰都具备这些特质。

疫情也是对领导能力的一次大考验。而数据显示,当女性担任一个国家或一个公司的领导者时,这个国家或者公司通常会被照顾得很好。因而那些渴望在商界中担任领导者的女性,现在有了一个独特的展示自己价值的机会,她们应该把这个机会牢牢抓在手里。

当然,男人也不能把责任一股脑抛给女人。无论是男是女,大家都可以从近期女性领导人的一些表现上学到经验。

从疫情刚刚爆发时起,新西兰总理杰辛达·阿德恩就因为采取迅速全面的举措,阻止新冠病毒在新西兰扩散,而获得了媒体广泛关注。抗疫工作的成功让她拥有了很高的民众支持度,但更值得注意的是,她在这个过程中表现出的真情实感,在各国领导人中是并不常见的。比如她展示了她自己面对疫情的脆弱,表现了对他人的关心,这些都说明了她的高情商,同时也打破了“同情心和人性化是领导者的一个弱点”的神话。

阿德恩并非孤例。芬兰和德国等地也有女性领导人的成功案例。这是为什么呢?利物浦大学(University of Liverpool)的苏浦丽亚·加里基帕提和雷丁大学(University of Reading)的乌玛·坎布罕帕提近期的一些研究或许能够给我们一些启示。去年秋天,她们发表了一篇名为《领导抗疫事业:性别真的重要吗?》(Leading the Fight Against the Pandemic: Does Gender “Really” Matter?)的论文。文章认为,领导人的性别对抗击疫情确有一定影响,原因有以下几点。

首先,男女对风险的认识和评估方式不同。作者发现,从疫情之初起,女性领导人对公共健康就有更强的风险意识,并且将人的生命权置于其他关切之上。作者指出,这一趋势与此前的行为学研究结果基本吻合。随着时间的推移,由女性担任领导人的地区,其抗疫成功率也确实高于美国和巴西等国。

其次,是女性领导人的领导风格与男性不同。女性领导人更容易发展出更扁平化、更民主的管理架构,更强调“清晰果断的沟通”,也更注重人际关系。这些因素有助于领导者听取到不同的意见,可以更快做出符合当地实情的决策,强化责任落实,从而提高团队乃至整个国家的抗疫水平。

其他数据表明,女性在商界中处理危机的能力也更强。有大量研究显示,拥有更高比例的女性担任管理职位,对企业的业绩是有益的。同时,杰克·曾格和约瑟夫·福克曼还发现,商界的女性领导者在疫情中的表现一般也要好于男性——虽然在疫情前,女性企业领导者的表现已经略微好于男性了,但疫情进一步拉大了这种差距。“这可能说明,女性往往在危机中表现得更好。”

总之,这两项研究或许能够帮助我们重新审视人们对领导力的看法。又或许我们应该承认,同理心、人际联系,以及人性,才是未来成功的管理模式的核心要素。

虽然大家都已经做好了进入疫情“下半场”的准备,但新的全球性挑战仍然在不断出现。比如气候变化问题、自动化和人工智能导致的失业问题……领导者必须善于利用从疫情中学到的经验教训,以更好地应对未来的需要。

事实一再证明,当女性被赋予权力时,她们是可以脱颖而出的。不管是在艰难的工作环境中保持士气,还是确保项目团队在困境中获得成功,女性都能够做得很好。这场危机暴露了一个我们很多人早就知道的问题——女性在职场上的代表性仍然过低,而全社会都为此付出了代价。(财富中文网)

本文作者迈克尔·卡茨是Mizuho Americas公司的投资与企业银行负责人。

译者:朴成奎

老话说得好:“时势造英雄”。新冠肺炎疫情亦然。在疫情时期,领导者们必须具备同理心、倾听、创造性合作,以及与员工真诚互动等特质。在平常时期,这些特质通常很难与企业的高管层或董事层联系起来,但很多女性恰恰都具备这些特质。

疫情也是对领导能力的一次大考验。而数据显示,当女性担任一个国家或一个公司的领导者时,这个国家或者公司通常会被照顾得很好。因而那些渴望在商界中担任领导者的女性,现在有了一个独特的展示自己价值的机会,她们应该把这个机会牢牢抓在手里。

当然,男人也不能把责任一股脑抛给女人。无论是男是女,大家都可以从近期女性领导人的一些表现上学到经验。

从疫情刚刚爆发时起,新西兰总理杰辛达·阿德恩就因为采取迅速全面的举措,阻止新冠病毒在新西兰扩散,而获得了媒体广泛关注。抗疫工作的成功让她拥有了很高的民众支持度,但更值得注意的是,她在这个过程中表现出的真情实感,在各国领导人中是并不常见的。比如她展示了她自己面对疫情的脆弱,表现了对他人的关心,这些都说明了她的高情商,同时也打破了“同情心和人性化是领导者的一个弱点”的神话。

阿德恩并非孤例。芬兰和德国等地也有女性领导人的成功案例。这是为什么呢?利物浦大学(University of Liverpool)的苏浦丽亚·加里基帕提和雷丁大学(University of Reading)的乌玛·坎布罕帕提近期的一些研究或许能够给我们一些启示。去年秋天,她们发表了一篇名为《领导抗疫事业:性别真的重要吗?》(Leading the Fight Against the Pandemic: Does Gender “Really” Matter?)的论文。文章认为,领导人的性别对抗击疫情确有一定影响,原因有以下几点。

首先,男女对风险的认识和评估方式不同。作者发现,从疫情之初起,女性领导人对公共健康就有更强的风险意识,并且将人的生命权置于其他关切之上。作者指出,这一趋势与此前的行为学研究结果基本吻合。随着时间的推移,由女性担任领导人的地区,其抗疫成功率也确实高于美国和巴西等国。

其次,是女性领导人的领导风格与男性不同。女性领导人更容易发展出更扁平化、更民主的管理架构,更强调“清晰果断的沟通”,也更注重人际关系。这些因素有助于领导者听取到不同的意见,可以更快做出符合当地实情的决策,强化责任落实,从而提高团队乃至整个国家的抗疫水平。

其他数据表明,女性在商界中处理危机的能力也更强。有大量研究显示,拥有更高比例的女性担任管理职位,对企业的业绩是有益的。同时,杰克·曾格和约瑟夫·福克曼还发现,商界的女性领导者在疫情中的表现一般也要好于男性——虽然在疫情前,女性企业领导者的表现已经略微好于男性了,但疫情进一步拉大了这种差距。“这可能说明,女性往往在危机中表现得更好。”

总之,这两项研究或许能够帮助我们重新审视人们对领导力的看法。又或许我们应该承认,同理心、人际联系,以及人性,才是未来成功的管理模式的核心要素。

虽然大家都已经做好了进入疫情“下半场”的准备,但新的全球性挑战仍然在不断出现。比如气候变化问题、自动化和人工智能导致的失业问题……领导者必须善于利用从疫情中学到的经验教训,以更好地应对未来的需要。

事实一再证明,当女性被赋予权力时,她们是可以脱颖而出的。不管是在艰难的工作环境中保持士气,还是确保项目团队在困境中获得成功,女性都能够做得很好。这场危机暴露了一个我们很多人早就知道的问题——女性在职场上的代表性仍然过低,而全社会都为此付出了代价。(财富中文网)

本文作者迈克尔·卡茨是Mizuho Americas公司的投资与企业银行负责人。

译者:朴成奎

It has long been said that crises define leaders, and COVID certainly qualifies. The past year has demanded leaders embrace traits not always associated with high offices and boardrooms: empathy, listening, creative collaboration, and authentic engagement with employees. These qualities are overwhelmingly associated with women.

The pandemic has presented us with a real-time experiment in leadership, and the data shows that we are in good hands when women are at the helm of nations and companies alike. Women aspiring to leadership positions in business have a unique opportunity to show their value, and they should seize it.

But men shouldn’t leave the responsibility to women alone. Leaders of all backgrounds could benefit from the lessons proven by female leaders of late.

From the early days of the pandemic, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern captured headlines for the swift and comprehensive actions she undertook to prevent the spread of COVID in her island country. Her success and the resultant popular support were noteworthy, but so too were the displays of raw emotion uncommon among leaders of nations. In showing her own vulnerability and concern for others, she demonstrated a keen emotional intelligence and dispelled the myth that compassion and humanity are shortcomings in a leader.

Ardern was not alone. Women leaders have also been successful in Finland and Germany, among other places. Why? Some recent research conducted by Supriya Garikipati at the University of Liverpool and Uma Kambhampati at the University of Reading can give us an idea. This past fall, they published a paper titled “Leading the Fight Against the Pandemic: Does Gender ‘Really’ Matter?” They found it does for several reasons.

First among these is how men and women recognize and assess risk. Garikipati and Kambhampati found that from the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, women leaders have been more risk-conscious regarding their constituents, prioritizing human lives above other concerns. The authors note this tendency tracks with prior work in behavioral research, and turned out to be a more successful approach over time than riskier COVID responses like those enacted in Brazil or the U.S.

A second characteristic of female leaders that the paper focused on was their leadership style. Women are more likely to develop flatter, more democratic management structures, and prioritize “clear and decisive communications” and personal relationships. These factors make teams and nations alike more agile by inviting diverse input, allowing for faster and locally informed decision-making, and enhancing accountability.

Other data suggests women in the business world also manage crises more deftly. While numerous studies show having more women in management positions is good for the bottom line, Jack Zenger and Joseph Folkman have found they performed better during the pandemic as well. While women tended to slightly outperform men prior to the pandemic, the researchers discovered that the difference has grown larger, “possibly indicating that women tend to perform better in a crisis.”

Taken together, these two studies could help us reassess how we view leadership, and perhaps acknowledge that empathy, connection, and humanity are at the core of successful management models for the future.

While everyone is ready to be on the other side of the COVID crisis, new global challenges are emerging. From climate-related dislocation to worker displacement owing to automation and A.I., leaders have an opportunity to apply lessons learned from the pandemic and be better prepared for the demands of the future.

Women have proved time and again they are able to excel when given the reins. Whether maintaining morale in challenging work environments or ensuring project teams can prosper in difficult circumstances, this crisis has exposed what many of us already knew: Women are underrepresented at the expense of society.

Michal Katz is head of investment and corporate banking at Mizuho Americas.

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