HOW WOMEN MEAN BUSINESS
PRAISE FOR THE BOOK
‘The book we have all been waiting for: a clear, visionary blueprint that moves the gender balance discussion into the realm of the practical and achievable.’
Mary van der Boon-Farmer, Director, Global Diversity and Inclusion, Philips
‘A must read for any leader wanting to use gender differences as a strategic lever to develop their business.’
Jean-Pascale Tricoire, CEO, Schneider Electric
‘At Cisco, this radically new approach has convinced me and my management team of the business opportunity that lies in effectively implementing gender balance – and how to do it. It has also made me progress on my journey to become “gender bilingual” for life!’
Laurent Blanchard, VP, CISCO Europe and General Manager, France
‘How Women Mean Business sets out a compelling blueprint for better business practices in the 21st century.’
Cherie Blair
WHY WOMEN MEAN BUSINESS
IN THE PRESS
HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW MAY 2008
“Companies that understand women will be better led and closer to their customers. The first third of the book presents a formidable array of research and case studies to support that thesis. Even if you are familiar with the field, their review makes lively reading, including as it does an observation by a senior French executive that mixing the sexes makes “les femmes moins chiantes et les hommes moins cons” (women less bitchy and men less dumb). But what’s especially valuable is the authors’ analysis of where companies go wrong in managing women…“
FINANCIAL TIMES MAR 13th
Waking up to Womenomics
by Evelyne Sevin, Egon Zehnder International
The authors try to offer a new perspective, taking men’s views into consideration through extensive interviews. They move the debate on when they say that “[womenomics] is a business issue and not solely a women issue”, or when detailing the limitations of diversity management by explaining the differences between gender and diversity. The point is that women are both different and equal and to this end they call for “bilingualism” at work – women and men bring different qualities to work, but of equal value to the company.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a6a3a27a-f11e-11dc-a91a-0000779fd2ac.html?nclick_check=1
FRANCE INFO APR 24th
INTERVIEW BY Sylvie Johnsson
Le Livre de l’Economie
“La croissance dépend aussi des femmes… Et les promouvoir, c’est l’intérêt des entreprises. D’abord parce qu’elles représentent une réserve de talents. Ensuite parce que ce sont elles qui prennent la majorité des décisions d’achat.“
http://www.france-info.com/spip.php?article126542&theme=22&sous_theme=23
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE, Apr 4th, 2008
“Why and how to improve women’s place in business leadership are the themes of “Why Women Mean Business.” The authors – Avivah Wittenberg-Cox, a consultant and founder of the European Professional Women’s Network, and Alison Maitland, a business journalist – cite research from a variety of sources to bolster their double-barreled conclusion: “Women are a huge talent and a huge market space,” and discovering and exploiting the latter “will probably depend – at least in part – on being able appropriately to manage and promote the former.”
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/04/02/yourmoney/mcolumn05.php
THE JOURNAL ONLINE, SCOTLAND MAY 2008
The Journal of the Law Society of Scotland
I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to think strategically about current trends in the economic and employment markets.
Ethical Corporation Magazine, April, 2008
Strategy & Management: Diversity – Why boards don’t get women
“European firms say they treat men and women exactly the same, but that is precisely the problem, say the authors of a new book about women at work.”
ELLE Belgium March 2008
An in-depth, 3-page profile of Avivah Wittenberg-Cox (in French)
To download, click the link below.
Profile of Avivah Wittenberg-Cox
ELLE Belgium March 2008 (PDF 131 KB)
FINANCIAL TIMES FEB 28th
The greatest neglected resource in business
by columnist Richard Donkin
“_Women have become probably the greatest neglected resource in
business, both in their market potential as consumers and in their
productive potential as employees… It is a fundamental weakness of
business models that were designed for a male-dominated world… As
the book suggests, we need a revolution in thinking_.”
http://search.ft.com/ftArticle?queryText=Alison+Maitland&y=0&aje=true&x=0&id=080228000088&ct=0
FINANCIAL TIMES FEB 26th
Nature and nurture in the executive suite
by columnist Michael Skapinker
“_If companies want to succeed they will have to come around to women’s
way of doing things, the authors argue. Faced with falling
populations, companies in Europe will need more women in senior
management … an innovative and stimulating book_.”
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/de48e4c8-e3b9-11dc-8799-0000779fd2ac.html
THE TIMES FEB 6th
“But what if men were to take on the job of demolition [of the glass ceiling]? Forget issues of equality and social justice. What if they could be persuaded that, in the interests of their own health and wealth, it was time to get serious about the issues? That is the question posed and answered in Why Women Mean Business.”
writes Yvonne Roberts in a large, 2-page spread in http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_extracts/article3313473.ece
THE SUNDAY TIMES FEB 10th
“Do women lack ambition because of their genetic make-up? Is the glass ceiling self-imposed? Absolutely not, says Avivah Wittenberg-Cox, whose book Why Women Mean Business (Jossey-Bass, £16.99), co-written with the journalist Alison Maitland, was published last month. It’s down to a phenomenon she calls “manonomics”. “It’s not nasty or deliberate,” she says, “but codes of working were simply developed in a different age, with a different family model, when there were no women in the room.” High-achieving women tend to have children in their thirties, she points out, but the average company identifies key potential in its workforce between the ages of 30 and 35, which she sees as a disaster for female advancement”
http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/article3340952.ece
THE GUARDIAN FEB 5th
A full-page article by Avivah Wittenberg-Cox and Alison Maitland
in The Guardian’s FINANCIAL section entitled:
Why Women in Business became the Solution, not the Problem
“Numbers of top female executives are failing yet evidence suggests they may hold the key to corporate success.“
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/feb/05/business.genderissues
THE SCOTSMAN FEB 22nd
“Maitland and Wittenberg-Cox call this “womenomics”. They point to statistics such as the fact that women make 80 per cent of consumer purchasing decisions, and a recent UK government report that suggested the country could gain £23 billion by better harnessing women’s skills. They argue that no business, large or small, can afford to ignore the growing economic power and potential of women in the 21st century. While such ideas may have some traditionalists up in arms, the book is littered with ringing endorsements from senior British business figures – and yes, they are mainly men. Larry Hirst, chief executive of IBM UK, is quoted as saying: “The emerging force of women in the 21st century is part of major social and economic change, which has to be acknowledged by any organisation looking for a competitive edge.”“
http://living.scotsman.com:80/features/-Women-mean-business.3789984.jp
MANAGEMENT TODAY JAN 31st
Review of Why Women Mean Business by
Amanda Wallis, MD
US Trust, Bank of America
Private Wealth Management
“This is an ambitious book, spanning a wide range of topics related to women in business and, as such, is an excellent primer for anyone interested in this area. It’s also well researched and contains a useful bibliography. Topics range from the economic power of women as consumers, the answer to the talent shortage that women represent, what makes women different from men in leadership styles, to why traditional approaches to addressing gender disparity have failed. It also examines the key phases of feamle career cycles and gives specific advice to companies on the ‘seven steps to successful implemenation’ of a gender initiative.”
PEOPLE MANAGEMENT FEB 7th
“Business leaders will benefit from the compelling case studies that demonstrate the bottom-line investment returns achieved by organisations with women in top leadership positions… HR professionals and diversity specialists zould also benefit from the book’s evidence-based approach… Perhaps the most important message is that being “women-friendly” is about being “people friendly”, which is essential in attracting and retaining talent capable of delivering competitive advantage in the 21st century.“
The Chartered Institute of Marketing Book Review
The authors put forward a well researched and compelling case for change.
Financial Times Deutschland 16/07/08
Mehr Chefinnen bringen mehr Gewinn
“Womenomics” und wie man sie nutzt
Das Buch untersucht, warum viele aktuelle Herangehensweisen an die Gleichberechtigung nicht funktionieren und warum heute eine neue Sichtweise nötig ist. Die Autorinnen nennen sie “Womenomics” – die ökonomische Revolution, die durch das Potenzial und die Kraft begabter Frauen ausgelöst wird.
LE NOUVEL ECONOMISTE Jan 31st
Avivah Wittenberg-Cox quoted in an excellent, in-depth 3-page article by Caroline Castet called “Le Second Pouvoir”
“Pour sortir de ces schemas, les managers doivent enfin comprendre que la problematique des femmes ne releve plus d’une question ethique mais d’une necessite economique”
Les Echos du 28 Mai 2008
dans : Le livre du jour, La Femme comme levier de croissance
Entreprise & Carrières du 27 Mai/2 Juin 2008
“ La mixité, un enjeu économique pour l’entreprise “
SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY Feb 10th
In an article entitled “Our workplaces are the problem, not our women”
“At last someone is talking sense, and we shouldn’t be surprised that it’s a woman.”
http://business.scotsman.com/industry/Our-workplaces-are-the-problem.3762414.jp
THE NEW STATESMAN Feb 7th
“Among explanations offered for the persistent low representation of women on the boards of Britain’s FTSE-100 companies is that women miss out on the informal chats men have at work. In a new book, Why Women Mean Business, a top banking CEO explains that these determine the mood of a firm, build mutual trust, and determine new leaders: unsurprisingly, men. So, should we dictate who talks to whom, and when? No, let’s be radical. A century after the first mass protests for women’s suffrage in this country, there are just three female FTSE-100 company chief executives. Ninety years after women were allowed to stand for parliament, they still make up only 20 per cent of MPs. We could change it at a stroke. As we have noted here before, since Norway imposed minimum quotas for women on boards, 36 per cent of its directors are female.“
BUSINESS DIGEST
Dossier RH Juin 2008
- Book review
Mixité: Enjeu stratégique et non une affaire de femmes
- Fiche Pratique
Les sept étapes d’une stratégie de mixité efficace, Réalisée sur la base de « Sept étapes
pour réussir la mise en oeuvre », Womenomics
Marre des discours sur la mixité qui répandent l’idée que « toute forme de communication entre hommes et femmes est un événement de proportion planétaire » (Vénus vs Mars) ? Voici les grandes lignes d’un ouvrage plus en nuances, qui invitent les entreprises à devenir « bilingues », capables d’écouter la voix des hommes et celle des femmes, pour enfin féminiser les plus hautes sphères du pouvoir organisationnel.
EN FRANCAIS...
Articles parus dans:
Le Monde du 14 Mai 2008 Mixité,
“ Womenomics, c’est du brutal. “
Elle du 26 Juillet 2008
Devenir Chef est-ce pour Moi ?
Le Parisien du 30 Juin 2008
Les femmes sont I’avenir de I’economie
Le Nouvel Economiste du 31 janvier
Caroline CASTETS
L’Express du 31 janvier
Brève de Valérie LION
Elle Belgique mars
Aurélie Koch
Les Echos du 7 mars
Arielle Goncalves
La Tribune du 1er avril
futuribles septembre 2008
Espérons qu’un ouvrage traduit de l’anglais, dont la bibliographie est anglo-saxonne, ce qui est toujours une caution en matière de management, persuadera enfin les dirigeants français que « les femmes ne sont pas le problème mais la solution ».
DIRIGEANT du 17 Septembre 2008
“Avivah Wittenberg-Cox et Alison Maitland proposent une passionnante enquête à travers le monde sur la relation des femmes à l’entreprise et sur leur poids dans la consommation.”
Le Temps 23 mai 2008
“C’est un enjeu économique, à traiter comme tel par les entreprises soucieuses de leur croissance et de leurs performances financières,…, ce qu’elles démontrent dans leur ouvrage,”
http://www.letemps.ch/emploi/affichearticle.asp?artid=232438
CONTACTE PRESSE FRANCE:
Anne-Marie Bouteiller
+33 6 61 73 49 67
BFM Interview Hedwige Chevrillon, 24 avril
Ecoutez la ci-dessous dans la video youtube:
COMMUNIQUE DE PRESSE
Et si la croissance dépendait aussi des femmes...
WOMENOMICS
ENDORSEMENTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
“This book ably illustrates that the companies which succeed in the 21st century will be those that realise the full potential of women and make the necessary investments towards nurturing their talent.”
Samuel Di Piazza, Jr, CEO, PricewaterhouseCoopers International
“A timely contribution to the increasingly vocal debate about the economic importance of women. It is refreshing to read the authors’ comprehensive analysis of gender as a business issue, not a women’s issue … we can’t make the future happen unless women help the men adjust.”
Niall FitzGerald KBE, Chairman, REUTERS
“There is now a growing body of evidence that gender equality is not only the right thing to do: it is good for business and good for economies. But the authors don’t just provide an excellent analysis. Through their concept of ‘gender bilingualism’, they set out the practical measures organisations can take to implement a gender strategy. Whatever your line of business, you should read this book.”
Nikolaus G. van der Pas, Director-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, European Commission
“Leveraging the power of women, as business executives and as consumers, is one of the greatest challenges and opportunities for companies. This book presents powerful arguments to commit significant resources and management thinking to that cause.”
Gerald Lema, President, Asia Pacific, Baxter International
“An important contribution to a serious business and political issue. It reframes the gender debate, providing pragmatic and realistic tools to harness the potential of women globally.”
Vivienne Cox, Executive Vice President and CEO of Gas, Power & Renewables and Shipping, BP
“Why Women Mean Business is able to push the discussion from ‘let’s fix the women’ to a powerful new source of economic growth. Not only does it give a bright roadmap with ‘how to do’ tips but more importantly it shows the shift in ‘how to think’ that is required.”
Peter Bakker, CEO, TNT
“This excellent book asks every leader in the public or private sector to act on Gender as a Strategic Business Imperative… The emerging force of women in the 21st century is part of a major social and economic change which has to be acknowledged by any organisation looking for a competitive edge.”
Larry Hirst, General Manager, IBM UK
“This is a great book – and more timely today than ever before. While there has been a lot of progress over the last two decades with regard to women in business, there has also been an element of half-heartedness among many key stakeholders. This book makes it perfectly clear why the progression of women in business is an obvious ‘win-win’ proposition for all. It goes on to highlight some of the key implementation challenges and offers practical approaches to overcome these challenges. A must read for all leading managers!”
Professor Peter Lorange, President, IMD Business School
“Talent is short again these days, but the promise of gender diversity remains elusive for many world-class companies. Full of examples from across the globe, Wittenberg-Cox and Maitland’s highly useful book shows how success comes down to treating a gender initiative like any other business opportunity. Practical yet profound, the ideas and steps outlined will help change the conversation about gender – and the bottom line.”
Herminia Ibarra, Professor, INSEAD, head of Gender Centre
“An extremely important and insightful book which blends together much of the current thinking about women, together with wisdom and thoughtfulness. All women will be the beneficiaries of their efforts.”
Lady Barbara Thomas Judge, chair, UK Atomic Energy Authority
“Why Women Mean Business provides a fresh and well researched series of insights around some of the perennial issues about women at the top of organisations. The economic arguments presented to support change, together with the solutions being suggested, combine to ensure that the book is a key resource to all those who have or should have a concern. It also quietly despatches some of the myths which have survived so long.”
Chris Thomas, Partner, Egon Zehnder International
“This is certainly a book I would recommend to CEOs preoccupied by winning the war for talent. It gives valuable insight into the core of the issue – how to adapt your systems and culture to attract ‘the other half of the talent pool’ to leadership positions.”
Hilde Myrberg, Executive Vice President, Orkla ASA
“Startling and sobering and immensely useful… an eye opening work. Wittenberg-Cox and Maitland map the emergence of the female economic engine, trace its importance to the global economy and provide a thorough-going guide to how companies can better utilise female talent.”
Sylvia Ann Hewlett, Economist, Author of Off-Ramps and On Ramps: Keeping Talented Women on the Road to Success, President of the Center for Work-Life Policy, New York
“A brilliant, entirely new perspective that puts women squarely where they belong, at the centre of the economy and society.”
Aude Zieseniss de Thuin, Founder and President, Women’s Forum for the Economy and Society
“Many of us have a lot of catching up to do to realise that the answers to most of our questions about talent, leadership, flexible working, and all that good stuff, are there already – if we just open both of our eyes and all of our imaginations. That’s why women mean business.”
Austin Hogan, Head of Human Resources, Operations & Technology, AIB Group
“This timely book enables courageous business conversations on having a business for women, with women. To enable a difficult conversation to get on the business table is a feat by itself. To have a means to tackle it is an even bigger achievement. The authors managed to achieve both with this book, which sharply articulates the inevitability of the future of business – in women’s hands.”
Rhodora Palomar-Fresnedi, former Global Head of Diversity, Unilever
“The authors clearly make the business case for supporting the career advancement of women and show organizations – though it won’t be easy – how to get on with it. Their use of international company examples highlights worldwide interest expressed by the best-managed companies in using the talents of ALL employees. A must-read for enlightened 21st century executives.”
Ronald J. Burke, Professor of Organizational Behavior, Schulich School of Business, York University, Toronto
“Avivah Wittenberg-Cox and Alison Maitland know what they are talking about. They’re realistic, practical and determined not to let anyone – corporate managements or executive women – do less than their best. Any company that is serious about success must get serious about women, and this book shows them how.”
Margaret Heffernan, author, The Naked Truth
“Wow! What the authors are doing is extraordinarily valuable. They draw upon a wealth of information and put it into a global frame. Why Women Mean Business establishes an inarguable, last-word-on-the-subject business case for why organisations absolutely must get better at attracting, retaining, inspiring, and promoting talented women. It will be at the top of the reading list I provide for clients!”
Sally Helgesen, Author, The Female Advantage, The Web of Inclusion, Thriving in 24/7
“Success for business will increasingly depend upon the ability of companies to fully utilise a diverse pool of talent. Understanding the business case for championing women is the first step, making gender diversity actually happen is slightly more difficult. This book is compelling reading for those who want to win the war for talent.”
Peta Payne, Managing Director, International Women of Excellence
“The authors are intrepid translators of the perils of today’s gender-imbalanced business world. They weave an engrossing business case as to why companies must begin integrating a gender lens into how business gets done. My advice? Stop reading the quotes on the back of this book and buy it now. Your employees, customers and shareholders will thank you.”
Joanne Thomas Yaccato, Author, The 80% Minority: Reaching the Real World of Women Consumers
