Sylvia Ann Hewlett

Who’s pulling for you? Who’s got your back? Who’s putting your hat in the ring? Odds are this person is not a mentor but a sponsor. Mentors can build your self-esteem and provide a sounding board—but they’re not your ticket to the top. If you’re interested in fast-tracking your career, what you need is a sponsor—a senior-level champion who believes in your potential and is willing to advocate for you as you pursue that next raise or promotion. In this powerful yet practical book, economist and thought leader Sylvia Ann Hewlett—author of ten critically acclaimed books, including the groundbreaking Off-Ramps and On-Ramps—shows why sponsors are your proven link to success. Mixing solid data with vivid real-life narratives, Hewlett reveals the “two-way street” that makes sponsorship such a strong and mutually beneficial alliance. The seven-step map at the heart of this book allows you to chart your course toward your greatest goals. Whether you’re looking to lead a company or drive a community campaign, Forget a Mentor, Find a Sponsor will help you forge the relationships that truly have the power to deliver you to your destination.

The New Way to Fast-Track Your Career

Forget a Mentor, Find a Sponsor

Economist and award-winning author Sylvia Ann Hewlett blends vivid stories with powerful new data in assessing the impact of the #MeToo movement in corporate America and provides concrete action to help executives and companies create more inclusive and safe work environments for women, people of color, and LGBTQ employees. While the #MeToo movement has exposed the enormous harm done by sexual misconduct in the workplace, the movement’s full promise has not been fulfilled, Sylvia Ann Hewlett argues. Showcasing new data on the incidence of sexual harassment and assault at work, she reveals how the movement has focused almost exclusively on white women and failed to support other vulnerable groups who are also targets of abuse. Black men, gay men and women, and Latinas experience particularly high rates of sexual harassment and assault. In addition to exploring the movement’s limitations, Hewlett examines the collateral damage inflicted by #MeToo. She looks at hits to the bottom line (lawsuits and settlements, tarnished brands, and stock devaluations) and hits to the talent pipeline. In particular she shows how male leaders, fearful of gossip and legal action, are increasingly skittish about sponsoring young women, no matter how high performing they are. This makes it much more likely that women will stall out mid-career and will deprive companies of diversity in the C-Suite and “gender smarts” around decision-making tables. Digging deep into examples that range from Fox News, Nike, and Google to CBS, Michigan State University, and the Catholic Church, Hewlett lays bare the financial losses associated with sexual misconduct scandals. No wonder corporate chief risk officers newly have #MeToo in their line of sight! A third of this book is devoted to solutions and Hewlett offers a three-pronged strategy, combining legal remedies with individual and corporate action steps that can be used to protect employees and businesses they work for. Drawing from companies as different as IBM and IPG she discusses “experiments at the edge” as well as more evolved initiatives that can help any corporation create a more equitable and safer environment.

Power, Privilege, and the Path Forward

#MeToo in the Corporate World

Cornel West

The authors advocate changing the society that they suggest has undermined the accessibility and importance of parents

What We Can Do for America's Beleaguered Moms and Dads

The War Against Parents

Harvard Business Review

Deborah Tannen

Herminia Ibarra

Joan C. Williams

What will it take to create a more gender-balanced workplace? If you read nothing else on leadership and gender at work, read these 10 articles by experts in the field. We've combed through hundreds of articles in the Harvard Business Review archive and selected the most important ones to help you understand where gender equality is today--and how far we still have to go. This book will inspire you to: Better understand the path women must take to leadership Learn the root causes of the barriers that exist for women in the workplace Check your own gender biases and distinguish between confidence and competence in your colleagues Manage a more effective gender-diversity program Recognize the issues women face when speaking up about bias or harassment Help women reenter the workforce after taking time off--and create opportunities for them to reach their ambitions. This collection of articles includes "Women and the Labyrinth of Leadership," by Alice H. Eagly and Linda L. Carli; "Do Women Lack Ambition?" by Anna Fels; "Women Rising: The Unseen Barriers," by Herminia Ibarra, Robin Ely, and Deborah Kolb; "Women and the Vision Thing," by Herminia Ibarra and Otilia Obodaru; "The Power of Talk: Who Gets Heard and Why," by Deborah Tannen; "The Memo Every Woman Keeps in Her Desk," by Kathleen Reardon; "Why Diversity Programs Fail," by Frank Dobbin and Alexandra Kalev; "Now What?" by Joan C. Williams and Suzanne Lebsock; "The Battle for Female Talent in Emerging Markets," by Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Ripa Rashid; "Off-Ramps and On-Ramps: Keeping Talented Women on the Road to Success," by Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Carolyn Buck Luce; and "Sheryl Sandberg: The HBR Interview," by Sheryl Sandberg and Adi Ignatius.

HBR's 10 Must Reads on Women and Leadership (with bonus article "Sheryl Sandberg: The HBR Interview")

Are you “leadership material?” More importantly, do others perceive you to be? Sylvia Ann Hewlett, a noted expert on workplace power and influence, shows you how to identify and embody the Executive Presence (EP) that you need to succeed. You can have the experience and qualifications of a leader, but without executive presence, you won't advance. EP is an amalgam of qualities that true leaders exude, a presence that telegraphs you're in charge or deserve to be. Articulating those qualities isn't easy, however. Based on a nationwide survey of college graduates working across a range of sectors and occupations, Sylvia Hewlett and the Center for Talent Innovation discovered that EP is a dynamic, cohesive mix of appearance, communication, and gravitas. While these elements are not equal, to have true EP, you must know how to use all of them to your advantage. Filled with eye-opening insights, analysis, and practical advice for both men and women, mixed with illustrative examples from executives learning to use the EP, Executive Presence will help you make the leap from working like an executive to feeling like an executive.

The Missing Link Between Merit and Success

Executive Presence

Nancy Rankin

Taking Parenting Public makes a compelling case that parenting has become dangerously undervalued in America today. It calls for a new investment--both personal and public--into the work of raising children and argues that we are all 'stockholders' in the next generation. With a foreword by Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Cornel West, Taking Parenting Public crosses boundaries to bring together thinkers from diverse fields spanning the political spectrum. It features contributions from distinguished experts in economics, political science, public policy, child development, public health, history, and the media. While recent books have focused on working mothers or absent fathers, Taking Parenting Public is the first volume to take a comprehensive look at the common struggles of parents. These essays go beyond the usual chest-beating about busy parents torn between work and family demands to suggest bold solutions. Instead of the typical call for 'parent replacement'--more child care, more after school programs and more mentors--the contributors offer fresh strategies for 'parent replenishment, ' ways to put mothers and fathers back into the lives of their children not only as economic providers, but also as emotional and moral providers.

The Case for a New Social Movement

Taking Parenting Public

40% of women earning $50,000 or more a year are childless at age 45--and these women have not chosen to be childless. A highly controversial book about American women & the bitter paradoxes of success. Data is based on a nationwide survey conducted specifically for the book.

Professional Women and the Quest for Children

Creating a Life

Get what you really want from your career. As a woman, you may face unfair challenges in the workplace--from being passed over for promotion to being ignored in conversation. Unconscious bias and negative assumptions are working against you. HBR's Women at Work Collection will help you break through these barriers and help you get what you want from your career. This two-book set includes HBR's 10 Must Reads on Women and Leadership and the HBR Guide for Women at Work. The Must Read volume brings together the 10 best articles from Harvard Business Review, curated by our editors, on gender dynamics in the workplace, while the HBR Guide provides practical and useful tips for how to identify and overcome the factors holding women back. This unique compilation offers insights from world-class experts including Herminia Ibarra, Joan Williams, Sheryl Sandberg, and others. It will inspire you to: learn the root causes of the barriers that exist for women; better understand the path women must take to leadership; check your own gender biases and distinguish between confidence and competence; manage a more effective gender-diversity program; advocate for yourself; and demonstrate your leadership skills. HBR's Women at Work Collection is an invaluable resource for any woman seeking to reach her true leadership potential and for anyone--man or woman--looking to create a more gender-balanced workforce.

HBR's Women at Work Collection

David A. Thomas

Robin J. Ely

Reap the benefits of a diverse workforce. If you read nothing else on promoting diversity and realizing its benefits, read these 10 articles. We've combed through hundreds of Harvard Business Review articles and selected the most important ones to help you create a culture that seeks and celebrates difference. This book will inspire you to: Identify and address bias Short-circuit discrimination instead of unintentionally feeding it Attract, retain, and engage talented people who represent myriad identities Ensure that everyone has equal access to growth opportunities Trade outdated policies for practices that are proven to foster inclusion Harness employees' unique skills and perspectives to transform how your company operates This collection of articles includes "Making Differences Matter: A New Paradigm for Managing Diversity," by David A. Thomas and Robin J. Ely; "Why Diversity Programs Fail," by Frank Dobbin and Alexandra Kalev; "'Numbers Take Us Only So Far,'" by Maxine Williams; "Race Matters: The Truth About Mentoring Minorities," by David A. Thomas; "Leadership in Your Midst: Tapping the Hidden Strengths of Minority Executives," by Sylvia Ann Hewlett, Carolyn Buck Luce, and Cornel West; "What Most People Get Wrong About Men and Women," by Catherine H. Tinsley and Robin J. Ely; "Hacking Tech's Diversity Problems," by Joan C. Williams; "Why Men Still Get More Promotions Than Women," by Herminia Ibarra, Nancy M. Carter, and Christine Silva; "When No One Retires," by Paul Irving; "Neurodiversity as a Competitive Advantage," by Robert D. Austin and Gary P. Pisano; "Managing Multicultural Teams," by Jeanne Brett, Kristin Behfar, and Mary C. Kern; and "7 Myths About Coming Out at Work," by Raymond Trau, Jane O'Leary, and Cathy Brown.

HBR's 10 Must Reads on Diversity (with bonus article "Making Differences Matter: A New Paradigm for Managing Diversity" By David A. Thomas and Robin J. Ely)

The examination of the socioeconomic condition of American women draws on extensive research to demonstrate that in spite of the feminist movement, American women still lag far behind their European counterparts in earnings relative to men and in security

The Myth of Women's Liberation in America

A Lesser Life

Are you investing in the right people? Many people know the benefit of finding a sponsor--someone who goes beyond traditional mentorship to partner with a junior-level employee to help build their skills, advocate for them when opportunities arise, and open doors. But few realize that being a sponsor is just as important to career growth as finding one. According to new research from economist and thought leader Sylvia Ann Hewlett, senior executives who sponsor rising talent are 53 percent more likely to be promoted than those who don't. Similarly, middle-level managers who have proteges are 167 percent more likely to be given stretch assignments. Well-chosen proteges contribute stellar performance, steadfast loyalty, and capabilities that you, the sponsor, may lack, thus increasing how fast and how far you can go. But how do you find standout proteges, let alone develop them so that they're able to come through for you and your organization? This book has the answers you need. Combining powerful new data and rich examples drawn from in-depth interviews with leaders from companies such as Unilever, Aetna, Blizzard Entertainment, and EY, The Sponsor Effect provides a seven-step playbook for how you can become a successful sponsor. You'll learn to: Identify the right mix of proteges Include those with differing perspectives Inspire your proteges and ignite their ambition Instruct them to develop key skill sets Inspect your picks for performance and loyalty Instigate a deal, detailing the terms of a relationship Invest three ways and reap the rewards Along the way, you'll discover the enormous benefits of investing in these valuable relationships.

Sylvia Ann Hewlett

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