In the sometimes rough-and-tumble sport known as American business, there’s a strategy that savvy competitors like to employ. It’s called “soft power.”
Although it was a concept developed by a man, Harvard University political science professor Joseph Nye, women can be particularly adept at employing it, says Susan Packard, co-founder of HGTV and author of the new book “New Rules of the Game: 10 Strategies for Women in the Workplace” (Prentice Hall Press).
Packard describes soft power as a way of networking, building relationships, inspiring people to your cause and expanding your power base.
One top female executive who has mastered the art of soft power is Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube, Packard says. In her book, Packard writes about how Wojcicki created an “enormous sphere of goodwill” among colleagues and former employees as she rose to first become Google’s advertising senior vice president, then head of Google’s YouTube acquisition. She singled people out for promotions and offered support and, most important of all, just stayed in touch. The result is that she created a network of relationships that reached “beyond the universe she owns and operates.”
Both men and women use soft power, but women can be especially good at it because of their more collaborative working styles, Packard says. Employing soft power is a key way that women can advance their careers, and it’s one of the “new rules” that Packard thinks working women need to learn to succeed in business.
Packard understands the push-back to the idea that women need to adapt to men’s rules in order to succeed. She heard such comments when she was speaking to a group of executives at Stanford University earlier this month. Her response?
“I don’t sugarcoat that,” she says. “If you want a book describing equal standards of behavior in business for women and men, I’d love to write that, but it wouldn’t be reality. There is still a wide gender gap, which is why gamesmanship is such an important tool.”
Numbers changingWomen are still in the minority in most MBA programs, but their numbers are climbing, with MIT’s Sloan School of Management this past fall reaching a historic high of 40.7 percent women in its new MBA class. But men occupy most of the “C-suites,” the offices designated for a company’s chief executives, with women making up only about 15 percent of executive officers, according to the Center for American Progress.
That doesn’t mean the workplace culture won’t eventually become more friendly to women’s different styles of communication and competition, she says.
Packard came close to creating one of those workplaces as chief operating officer of Scripps Network Interactive, the parent company of HGTV. “The values we created at SNI skewed female, with such things as work-life balance, compassion and support.”
But to remake that workplace culture, she had to “be sitting at the table with the founders.”
And for women to get where they want to go, whether it’s running a company or getting day-to-day opportunities that lead to more money or plum assignments, they need to become adept at what Packard calls gamesmanship.
Playing the gamePackard’s 10 strategies for women to become more savvy, competitive players in the business game include: building your skills, developing composure, becoming an effective team player and learning “true grit” – how to keep going even when plagued by fear and self-doubt.
Probably the most important strategy women need to employ is the soft art of networking. Women should be naturals at it, she says.
“Most women work towards win-win situations. We approach work and life that way, which is why we’re such great collaborators and excellent managers of people.”
But Packard says women don’t network as much as they could, certainly not as much as men, perhaps because they think that to be good workers they need to be “A students” and keep their heads down until it’s time to go home. Instead, Packard says, they should settle for being B students so they can open up their schedules and devote energy to sending notes or meeting with colleagues in informal ways.
“Networking” isn’t being political, it’s about making connections and “learning,” says Packard, who says women also excel at lifelong learning.
Likewise, gamesmanship isn’t about being fake or manipulative, she says. It’s more about women nurturing creativity, focus, optimism and competitiveness. At its basics, gamesmanship asks women to view the workplace as most men do, as a giant playing field.
Packard clearly is fond of sports metaphors, telling women to think with the mental fortitude, composure and confidence of an athlete. However, at 59, she admits she is among that generation of women who weren’t raised to play team sports. “Most (women) weren’t trained from a young age to learn the importance of mental and physical agility and stamina.”
That means women also missed out on another one of sport’s important lessons: It’s OK to lose, Packard says. Knowing how to lose, over and over again, and to bounce back and try again until you succeed is the key to resilience. “Losing means you’re still in the game, you’re at least playing, and playing is critical to advancement.”
Her book notes other grim realities of today’s business world: that women are still judged harshly if they come off as too demanding or bossy, especially if they reasonably ask for a raise, a promotion or other recognition.
Artfully assertiveThey also become targets for rough treatment by the media if they become highly successful, such as Marissa Mayer, whose ascension to CEO of Yahoo was picked apart for her pregnancy and her alleged past romance with Google founder Larry Page, Packard says.
“Artful assertiveness” is one way gamesmanship can help women avoid the “bossy” word. It means asking for what you want in a clear, direct and respectful way and backing up your request with a rationale for how it will benefit the company.
Of course, “artful assertiveness” and other rules Packard cites are useful skills for any workplace. She said they also can apply to men.
In helping women to take the reins of their own careers, Packard says they don’t need to start acting like men.
“You don’t have to forsake your womanhood to employ gamesmanship,” she says. “It just means loving the game called business and being fueled by the raw adrenaline of winning.”
Key Concepts from ‘The Game’Practice, practice, practice: Often you have only one shot at making a pitch as an individual or as part of a team, so it’s worthwhile to rehearse different scenarios so you can look and sound polished when you make your presentation, Susan Packard says.Sportsmanship counts: If a colleague gets the promotion you thought you deserved, don’t pout. Ask for feedback on why you weren’t chosen, congratulate the winner, and don’t show up at work wearing your bruised ego on your sleeve.
Embrace loss: Loss is a part of gamesmanship, and repetition with loss doesn’t make you hopeless. “Resilience is about pushing through loss, learning from it, and keeping the faith that next time will be better,” Packard says.
Don’t talk too much: Talkative women in leadership positions are viewed negatively, studies have shown. Men, on the other hand, can filibuster in meetings with less damage to their reputations. “With use of language, less is more, and clarity is key,” Packard says. “Make your words pack a punch. My point is not to speak up less, but to speak efficiently.”
Keep it cool: “Respect and promotions in the workplace go to the individual who has a calm and confident presence,” Packard says. “Composure shows you’re grounded and in control of your emotions. It communicates to your colleagues that you make rational, well-reasoned decisions. It is an important leadership quality.”
