Rarely Chosen...Unfortunately

Name the first five Chief Executive Officers (CEO’s) of large corporations that pop into your head. I bet at least four of them were men; it is very likely all of them were men. Believe it or not 95.8% of fortune 500 CEO’s are men. Why is this? Why are only about 4% of fortune 500corporations CEO’s women? There are a large array of reasons, one being image.

When at the helm of a large corporation, businesses want someone of power, one who looks bold, and someone who is confident. Quite frankly, people don’t associate those attributes with women. Many people believe that the woman is the main care giver for the children. As Nancy Pelosi stated in Miss Representation, “When women take a job of high status, they are asked who will take care of the kids. No one asks men that.” That reason alone may drive some corporations away from hiring a Women CEO.

According to money.cnn.com, one woman while interviewing for a job had to sign an agreement that she wouldn’t get pregnant for at least two years. It is things that little and that stupid that keep women out of high positions. Sometimes companies don’t want a female’s beauty to distract from the purpose. However realistically, in a highly professional setting, people are there to do business, not lust over a company’s female CEO.

Another reason companies don’t hire female CEO’s is because women are “weak.” When a woman cries on nation TV, it is seen as a weakness and everyone jumps on it. But when a man cries, it seems to show that they are sensible, and there for more liked. In all reality that’s not the case. In many situations, women would be the better option. They are often times more efficient, more organized, and can carry with them great communication skills. All that is overlooked and companies go straight to the 6’ 3’’ man with a bit of gray hair and strong in stature.

Once this gender role of men being of high importance started, it gets harder and harder for women to squeeze their way in. Corporations are trying to “keep up with the Jones’s” and often times, they believe that starts with a strong leader. Name a strong leader. I bet it was a man. Men are seen more as “strong leaders” than women and therefore corporations lean more toward hiring male CEO’s. (WC 407)