Not so long ago, the culture celebrated nasty bosses. “Chainsaw Al” Dunlap, lionized for cost-cutting turnarounds at Scott Paper and Crown Zellenbach, had a best-selling business book, Mean Business, in 1996. Never mind he was blatantly abusive, gloating over lay offs and destroying good people’s careers, while he soaking up the limelight (I actually once witnessed this in person).
Eventually, Dunlap got fired, and the tough CEO craze came to an end. And in recent years, values, character, and culture have been seen as critical skills for leaders.
But it is a new book by Anne Creamer, a former director of Nickelodeon, part of the founding team of Spy magazine and journalist, that truly turns the page on the era of the cult of the mean (usually male) CEO.
It’s Always Personal: Emotions in the New Workplace, is thoroughly researched, brilliantly written, and copiously documented. Declaring that women are now the new majority in the workplace, Creamer draws on neuroscience, first-hand stories, and two new national surveys. Her argument: women experience a greater range of emotional nuances than men, and that communicating about and expressing emotions on the job are essential skills that can no longer be ignored. In fact, her book suggests that as more women assume positions of power, EQ–emotional intelligence–will become increasingly critical skills for leaders. CONTINUE READING…
No related posts.