In Interviews, Female CEOs Say They Don’t Expect Much Support — at Home or at Work

Women who have already made it to the top say that the only person who will get you there is yourself. In interviews with researchers, 12 female CEOs of large, global companies also said they proactively asked for stretch assignments and kept their eye on the long term when their children were small. They also emphasized trying to develop networks that would help them to do their current job better, rather than to get a better job, which is typically how men employ networks. Additionally, they learned to use a well-rounded leadership style: that is, they neither attempted to mimic a “male” leadership style nor presented themselves as “female” leaders, but created a balanced and distinctive blend of leadership skills. But the hardest step, they said, was the first: learning to own their ambition, rather than shying away from it.