Newswise — Despite all the barriers professional women have conquered over the years, it is no secret that obstacles still exist for those looking to advance their careers. One of the more significant obstacles facing women in the workplace today is the opportunity to move up into senior-level executive positions. According to a study conducted by Catalyst, a mere 15.7 percent of corporate officers at Fortune 500 companies today are women.
A much greater percentage of women account for upper management roles at Association Management Companies (AMCs) " companies that offer cost-effective, efficient management of daily operations at non-profit associations, trade groups, and professional societies. New research by the International Association of Association Management Companies (IAAMC) shows that, among their active member companies, 33 percent of CEO's and Presidents are women " more than double that of Fortune 500 companies.
Professor Patricia H. Deyton, Interim Faculty Director of the Center for Gender in Organizations and Assistant Professor of Management at the Simmons School of Management in Boston, offers a possible explanation for this increase in Leadership, a publication of the Center for Public Leadership at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. According to Deyton, women may be drawn to working with non-profit organizations as it affords them the opportunity to serve as the backbone of support for community services. This is a role in which women have been historically active, and one that fits a commitment to improve society by working with groups such as the American Red Cross.
"Women are equally interested in working in leadership roles in large businesses," offers Deyton. "But, as evidenced by the small numbers of women in leadership roles in the Fortune 500 companies with a tradition of male leadership, many barriers still exist that have not arisen in sectors where women have had early and frequent opportunities to take on leadership positions."
Not all associations that hire AMCs are geared towards supporting the community around them. Many are trade associations and professional societies whose aim is to improve the quality of the industries they represent. Ironically, women executives are often chosen to lead an association whose board of directors and members are primarily men.
In the six years that Molly Lopez, CAE (Certified Association Executive), has been president and owner of Association Management, Ltd., the company has become a leader in managing male-oriented financial and insurance trade associations, although her journey has not been without challenges. Lopez and her all-female staff have successfully assisted their clients in achieving their goals and thus far, gender has not been an issue.
"Resourcefulness, intelligence, mutual respect and open communication are imperative to the success of a female executive striving to gain her clients' trust while working with male- dominated industries," says Lopez. "Skills commonly associated with the female executive " strategic thinking, tenacity, financial management, communication, attention to detail, coping skills and consensus-building skills " are invaluable to her success."
Women account for a higher percentage of executive positions in larger, self-staffed non-profit organizations as well. In 2005, the Non-Profit Times' "Power & Influence Top 50" list named the 50 top senior-level executives in the non-profit sector, and of those selected, 26 percent were women.
"Holding an upper-level management position at an AMC allows women executives to excel in two ways " obtaining a high-level management position within their company while indulging in a sense of wider community or industry improvement through their non-profit clients," noted Sue Pine, Executive Vice President of IAAMC.
About Catalyst: Catalyst is a non-profit research and advisory organization that supplies information on women in business. Visit http://www.catalystwomen.org to learn more.
About Associations and Association Management Companies: The estimated impact on the economy represented by non-profit organizations including trade associations and professional societies is 10-12 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. Association Management Companies (AMCs) are professional service firms that provide association management and other association services through experienced staff, proven practices and shared resources. AMCs in the United States now manage non-profit budgets exceeding $2 billion collectively. For more information, visit http://www.amcinstitute.org.
RSS