Reference no: EM132340168

Question

Can you please help with these questions. Reading Material is Below the questions.

1. Which leadership traits did Ursula Burns most represent?

2. What stereotypes did Mrs. Burns have to combat in her leadership role with Xerox?

3. Which leadership traits did she use more of to combat these stereotypes and why?

4. With gender discrimination in leadership do you think would be more effective for a long-term solution and why?

Introduction

In spite of women's impressive performance at the workplace, educational, and community level, the number of women in leadership positions is still low. Studies indicate that, from corporate boards to religious institu­tions, men dominate the leadership positions because men are seen as better leaders than women. However, ample evidence suggests that women have always played an important role in the development of commu­nities and organizations, as they frequently fill roles involving participation, nurturing, and care. Empowering women to participate in communities greatly enhances productivity and fosters economic growth. In addition, the WorldWatch Institute reported that women are responsible for 50% of agricultural output in Asia, while nearly 80% of the agricultural laborers in sub-Saharan Africa are women.

In the United States, the role of women changed as a result of their work in the First World War. After this war, women were given the right to vote and divorce was made easier. Since then, the number of women working has increased by more than 25%. The rise of feminism in the 1960s also led to an influx of women into the workforce in the 1980s and 1990s; until then, most women were limited to housekeeping while men worked for an income. Currently, the numbers of women working, attending college, and graduating from uni­versities have increased. Many women spend their lives being informal leaders in their community and family roles. However, due to many stereotypes and discrimination, these roles do not result in women being seen as equally capable leaders as men in the workplace.

Ursula Burns

Ursula Burns is the first African-American woman to lead a Standard and Poor's (S&P) 500 company that generated over $10,771 million in revenue in 2016. She pursued a strategy of growth for Xerox to expand its market reach and profits. Burns was raised by a single mother in a low-income housing community in Manhattan. Her mother worked very hard to ensure her three children got a good education. Burns truly believes that it is not where you start out in life that matters but where you end up. She graduated with a BSc in mechanical engineering and got a master's degree from Columbia. In 1980, Burns got an internship at Xerox that offered her an entry-level engineering job. In 1990, Wayland Hicks, then a senior executive at Xerox, asked her to become his execu­tive assistant, and the following year, she became the executive assistant to the chairman, Paul Allaire. Her role as an executive assistant exposed her to different leadership qualities, such as sharp perception and re­sponsiveness to the team's organizational needs. The next step in her career was working closely with Anne Mulcahy, the CEO at the time, in what both women described as a true partnership.

Ursula Burns married Lloyd Bean in 1988 and became mother to two children. From 1992 through to 2000, Burns managed several business teams, including the office of network printing and the office of color and fax businesses. In 2000, she was made senior vice president of corporate strategic services, in charge of man­ufacturing and supply chain operations. In 2002, Burns was named as the 50th most powerful black woman executive in America by Fortune magazine. Her skills and demeanor led her to be named the president of Xerox in 2007, and in 2009, she became the CEO, succeeding Anne Mulcahy. She was asked to help lead the White House national program on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, a priority of the Obama Administration that gives every American student access to a high-quality education to help better their future and that of the nation.

Since Ursula was nominated as CEO of Xerox in 2009, she has been described by many people as being self-aware and authentic. According to Blazek, her personality seems to echo well with her employees and the business environment. An editorial by The Huffington Post Ella Edmondson bell. described Burns as an open, grounded, down-to-earth person who is loved by her employees. Bloomberg Business Week authored by Nanette Byrnes reported that executives inside and outside of Xerox describe her industry knowledge and technical prowess as second to none. She is noted for her frankness and ability to take risks.

Leadership Traits

Traits theory was established based on the characteristics of born leaders, including intelligence, self-confi­dence, integrity, empathy, and sociability. Ursula Burns asserted that her personality was formed by the influ­ence of her mother. She is a charismatic speaker, approachable, compassionate, and empathetic leader. She believes that dreams can come true with a good education, strong work ethics, and the courage to lean in. She knows how to take advantage of opportunities that come her way and is willing to take risks.

She learned to manage her emotions earlier in her career, which has enabled her to develop social-aware­ness of her environment. She is empathetic and listens attentively but can also engage and get along with team members from diverse ethnic backgrounds. Her self-management competency allows her to achieve and constantly seek performance improvement. She is honest and encourages ethical behavior. She stands up for her values and speaks up for herself. She once said it is critical for women to have the confidence to speak in formal situations as if there is no one to speak for them. If you do not speak, no one will ever know what you are thinking and will assume you have nothing to say.

In one of the executive meetings, Burns was not satisfied with the executive's answer to why Xerox had few workers from different ethnic backgrounds. She stood up in front of everyone and exchanged some ar­guments with the executive. Her outspokenness allowed her to come to the notice of management, which earned her many promotions prior to her promotion to CEO.

Coaching is part of leadership development. Coaching leaders who have personal conversations with their employees manage to establish relationships and trust as they show a genuine interest in their staff. They are good at delegating and giving employees work that challenges them. Mr Allaire was a good mentor to Ursu­la Burns. Because of him and other mentors that Burns had throughout her career journey, she was always ready to undertake the next step in her career as they helped her see outside the box surrounding her daily experience. The relationship between her and her mentor benefited both of them as well as the organization. Although it was found that people prefer to have a mentor of the same gender, as they believe that they will understand the challenges predominantly faced, in the case of Burns this was the opposite.

Leaders are ambassadors of their organizational values to the rest of the world. This is evident in Burns' leadership style; she spends her time wisely as it indicates her priorities. Most of her time has been spent encouraging and empowering other women to pursue their careers, and she is also involved in championing women's courses through the STEM initiative and the Lean In movement in the United States.

The Leadership Styles

Leaders are supposed to be flexible and should be able to adapt to different situations instead of searching for one best way to lead under all circumstances. Burns established the right mix of directives and supportive leadership behaviors. Her leadership styles seem to resonate well with her employees and the business com­munity. According to one report, her deep industry knowledge and willingness to take necessary business risks set her apart from other leaders. A meta-analysis by Alice Eagly and Blair Johnson showed that female leaders do not fall into the typical stereotypes of female versus male leadership behaviors, but that feminine characteristics of care and support could be a strategic advantage for organizational effectiveness and well-being.

According to Robert Blake and Jane Mouton's managerial grid model, leaders' roles can be either people-oriented, in which the leader behavior is based on a high sensitivity to workers' feelings and openness, or task-oriented, in which leaders focus on the jobs that need to be performed to meet goals. Burns' style leans towards "people-concern" as she tries to establish relationships and consider and emphasis her teams' inter­ests.

Moreover, studies on transformational leaders have demonstrated that female leaders tend to be more partic­ipative and democratic, while according to the American Psychological Association, male leaders appear to be more task-oriented, directive, command, and control driven.

Nowadays, the social leadership style of women has gained more value and acceptance worldwide. Demon­strating a concern for her followers' needs, Burns is perceived as trustworthy, but these traits do not stop her from being concerned with the tasks and specific goals of the organization. She had an interest in integrating and uniting all workers as members of one big family.

Having been at Xerox since 1980, she is seen by followers to be a charismatic leader who has knowledge and expertise in the digital printing industry. She prides herself on looking for people who have empathy and who can work with people from all different ethnic and functional backgrounds. Victor Harold Vroom and Philip Yetton suggested that the extent to which followers are involved in decision-making is critical to leadership effectiveness, and it is important to have the capacity to learn from others. Thus, leadership behavior involves moving followers towards accomplishing the mission and vision of the organization. Burn's vision inspired Xerox's mission statement, and this is communicated throughout the organization. Her moral principles and integrity provide credibility to her vision. Peter Ferdinand Drucker mentioned how management should ac­knowledge the importance of business policy and actions upon society for the company's stability and suc­cess. After Burns became the new CEO, she changed the operations process, which made the company successful and profitable, thereby increasing its dividends.

Literature on leadership has indicated that there are many complex reasons why men are considered better leaders than women. These include work-life balance issues, stereotypic leadership views, politics, and orga­nizational culture at the top management level. Societal stereotypic views about the roles of men and women is another reason identified as the cause of underrepresentation of women in leadership. For example, men are considered to be more competitive and tough, presumably making them "good leaders," while women are considered as transformational leaders; considerate and affectionate, thus making them weak leaders.

Challenges Faced by Women Leaders

Although there are an increased number of women graduating from universities and in elite positions, the number of female CEOs is still low, with increasing inequalities and challenges constantly present. Society has a hard time letting go of the stereotype of the emotional and sensitive woman who would struggle in a leadership position, as opposed to men who are seen as competitive and in control. This glass ceiling is a so­cietal barrier that hinders not only women but minority groups from reaching top leadership positions, despite having the requisite qualifications and capabilities. Thus, this perpetuates the unequal distribution of job roles across organizations' hierarchical structure. These stereotypes are issues socially and culturally ingrained around child-bearing responsibilities, assuming that women seek less full-time employment or leave their ca­reer. Burns faced a little of some of this type of discrimination, but the majority concerned her age. She was seen as too young to have the types of responsibilities she had.

Regardless of her family and financial situation, Ursula Burns had the chance to receive an education where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Polytechnic Institute of NYU and a master of science in Mechanical Engineering from Columbia in 1981. Researchers have shown that the educational choices made by women explain the low number of executive or female leaders in science and engineering fields. Women are still under-represented in science and engineering fields as these disciplines are seen as male-dominated fields. Women tend to be seen to congregate more in positions associated with human resources, education, and community relations.

If leadership development is not on the agenda of those in top leadership positions, it will not go far. Xerox was one of the first firms that understood the importance of a diverse workforce in the early 1980s, which increased creativity and innovation and provided a larger pool of potential talent. To develop leadership skills, early work experiences are key. Burns had these experiences when she started her career as an intern at the age of 22. This allowed her to reveal her interests and dislikes, abilities, and talents. She did not let globaliza­tion be a barrier to her as she would travel anytime requested.

Conclusion

Although we are seeing more and more women become successful in politics and the private sector, there is still a long way to go. It should be the norm that such women exist in the top lists of CEOs instead of having a specialized "top women" list. It is hoped that leaders and their respective boards take up the responsibility to promote gender equality and give women the opportunities that they deserve and merit.

Exemplary leaders challenge the process and enable others to act. Taking the case of Rwanda, a country where more than 60% of its parliament are women, its commitment to gender equality pushed it forward in leading the way for advancement in opportunities for women.

To progress in developing a world that promotes gender equality and no discrimination against women, women's education is crucial in bridging the gender inequality gap as well as supporting and encouraging them to pursue their careers. It is important to continuously raise awareness and pressure for gender equality through campaigns.