The Imminent Reality of Gender and Work Locations Follows You Home

Does it matter where you work as long as your work gets done?

Yes - it matters. The data says so.

Dame Stephanie Shirley's recent TED Talk was both an inspiration and a kick in the rear for me. She founded a software company in the 1960s to provide opportunities for women with dependents. She recognized the challenges and opportunities - and then she built a solution.

After many years in business her company was subsequently valued at $3 billion USD and she created a significant number of millionaires to boot. She continues to contribute through philanthropy and other endeavors.

Her idea to employ women with dependents wasn't really ahead of it's time considering that mothers have always existed. It was however an outstanding solution for leveraging an untapped talent pool. Working from home has been and will continue to be a workforce option. 

Studies show that over 20% of working Americans are remote today and the number is expected to climb to 63% approaching 2018. Formulating strategies for handling remote work assignments for individuals and for handling remote workers for corporations appears to be an imminent necessity. 

Here comes a key question:

Question #1: Can the gender equation be balanced more quickly through working-from-home (WFH) opportunities?

As with most questions on gender equality this one has a complex answer. While 90% of women feel that working from home provides for a number of distinct advantages such as increased flexibility and increased productivity, they may also be reluctant to take advantage of remote work opportunities due to fear of being "out of sight" or being thought of as less committed than their work-long-hours-all-times-of-the-day-and-night co-workers (I was one of those!).

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...women who do choose those more flexible schedules are often punished

... companies tend to reward people who stay late and work long continuous hours, over those who chose the flexible schedule - even if those two employees are equally productive

 Smithsonian Magazine (Harvard Study) [i]

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This unnecessary punitive challenge helps to explain why fewer women than men take advantage of remote work opportunities as captured by the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey. One study shows an even wider gap between WFH women (23%) and men (36%). Yet the profile of a remote worker is quite similar for men and women. 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey

Going forward the choice of whether to work from home or in an office will become less of a choice as more opportunities are outsourced to at-home workers. Whether your work-life gets balanced will be up to you.

What does all of this mean for individual earning power? Well - that's a deeper question requiring in-depth examination of the types of opportunities that are being sent to the homestead. 

The work may be part-time or full-time, knowledge-based or activity-based, etc. Work requirements will help to determine pay differentials.

Of course there's the nagging reality that average pay is already unequal - at home or at the office. 

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The advantages of WFH are expansive and inclusive - for companies, for women who are mothers, for women who aren't mothers, for men, across generations, for families, and for the planet. There are few areas in life where almost everyone agrees that the benefits outweigh the costs. Working from home (or working remotely) is one of those areas. 

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...if Americans who hold work-at-home compatible jobs did so 50% of the time, U.S. companies could collectively increase their bottom lines by between $525 and $665 billion USD as a result of savings in real estate, absenteeism, turnover, and increased productivity

Global Workplace Analytics [ii]

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Anyone who works in an office knows that you often have to go home or get out of the office in order to get your work done. If you google "working from home" you'll instantly get ~900 million responses on the topic. Do the same for "studies on working from home" and you'll come up with ~800 million responses. Ask anyone if they'd like to work from home for at least part of the time and 90% of them will say yes.

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Source: Global Workplace Analytics

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In study after study, employee satisfaction, productivity, and retention increase when individuals are allowed to work from home at least part of the time. There are compelling stats across reams of studies covering everything from saving employers money to reducing the brain-drain from retiring boomers to expanding opportunities for the disabled to increasing individual empowerment and engagement.

Yet...

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75% of women in the 25-44 age range participate in the labor force compared to 90% of men

25% of women work part-time compared to 10% of men

Global Workplace Analytics [iii]

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The answer to the Question #1 appears to be "well-maybe?"

If more women enter the workforce approaching 90% or more of the female labor force OR if more women take on full-time remote work OR if women are simply not penalized for working remotely OR if more women get paid the same as men THEN WFH opportunities may help to move the dial towards the gender balanced position.


Work location challenges aren't just here at home. The impact is felt in other places around the world. According to Fiona Cannon, Head of Diversity and Inclusion for Lloyd's Banking Group in the UK achieving their 2020 objective of 40% women in senior leadership roles is doable yet is hampered by traditional working models.

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...one of the biggest obstacles is the traditional working model on which most organisations are based: Nine to five, five days a week. Start work at 16, retire at 60. Commute into offices in the town centre. Follow a linear career path. This model no longer reflects the lives we are living...

Forbes Magazine [iv]

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Are you overwhelmed with all of the data about where we work, when we work, how we work, and what will happen in the near future about work locations? I certainly am. I prefer Ricardo Semler's unconventional approach.


Think ahead - if you haven't already! Plug in some numbers with this gender-neutral HP Telework Tool to estimate how much you could save yourself and your employer. Dame Shirley had it right way back in the 1960s as one of the first companies willing to offer flexible work arrangements to an untapped female talent pool.

Question #2 - Can you use the info provided in this post to prepare yourself for WFH opportunities?

Answer - YES! 

Thanks for reading my article. Keep climbing and share your insights by commenting, liking, or sharing.

Why Do We Have To Call It Work?

Since most of us don't like the idea of work, then why don't we call it something else?

Stats and reports keep coming to let us know that most people are 'under this...' or 'over that...' - or not quite ready for anything new when it comes to the 21st Century world of work. I'm a stats junkie so I can't help but read and digest the stuff if only to discount lots of it and move on. Many of the details or concerns raised in various areas are quite valid and deserve a second, third, or continuous deep look followed by introspective actions. 

The world of work is one of those areas.

While examining report details over the last few weeks, a question came to mind and it's sticking around. The question is around this idea of work. The question is:

Why does work cause so many of us so much angst? Could it be that we have our definitions or frame of reference all wrong?

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Work is defined as the effort applied to produce a deliverable or to accomplish a task in exchange for services or payment

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The definition seems straight forward and simple enough. As far back as the beginning of time, the idea of work has been embedded in our cultures and lives. We crave the opportunity to do work for something that is important to us or with someone who shares our goals or with a company or organization that values us. For some of us work is simply "all about the benjamins" which is alright I suppose.

Before I ramble on too much, here are some stats that made me ponder the definition of work.

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Stat #1 - 72% of productive life span is spent working

Stat #2 - 70% of U.S. workers are not fully engaged in their work and are not reaching their full potential

Stat #3 - 71% of U.S. workers spend less than 10 years with their employers

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This is a problem only if...

Stat #1 is a problem only if we don't want to spend our productive time producing results. If we enjoy what we're doing, we'll look forward to spending a majority of our waking hours performing designated tasks and activities in exchange for services or payment.

Stat #2 is a problem only if we're doing something that we don't like or are with someone that we don't like being with for a majority of our working days. If we enjoy what we're doing, then engagement will be automatic and we will crave growth and development.

Stat #3 is a problem only if we believe that everything should stay the same giving us the opportunity to remain stagnant in our careers and in our lives. If we accept that change is inevitable and important to our progress, then we will embrace it as part of the norm.

Defining how we spend our productive time in disempowering ways limits our desire to engage. The definitions that we use may even make a majority of us regret waking up on Monday mornings! 

We can change that.

A New Definition of Applied Effort

We often become masters at reframing unpleasant situations when it suits us. For example, if children don't want to eat spinach and we know that it's good for them, then we may tell them that it will make them stronger and smarter. Remember Popeye the Sailor Man? He made spinach seem cool. I still eat my fair share.

If we can do that for children, then why can't we do the same for ourselves and reframe the definition of work to suit us? When someone asks you where you "work", why not think - then say?

• I add value as a Management Consultant for ...
• I make a daily contribution in Operations for...
• I deliver outstanding service to my customers and stakeholders in ...

Aren't these the kinds of statements that we put on our resumes or include in our work histories? If so, why don't we use these types of statements every day to help us reframe what we really do with our productive time? 

Perhaps Mondays won't seem so bad if we reframe the definition of work.

We add value. We contribute. We deliver.

I realize that simply changing wording won't completely fix certain complex work situations, but it can definitely produce a shift in attitude and perspective around work. If it helps even a little bit, then isn't it worth the applied effort?

I appreciate you taking the time to read my article. Let me know what you think by commenting, liking, or sharing.

Mommy, Do Entrepreneurs Have To Go To Work?

An innocent and profound question from my amazing daughter...

Here she is at 3 years old sitting at my desk being brilliant, typing her first paragraphs of random alphabets. Today several years later, she reads and writes lengthy and creative stories. She wants to become a writer - and a psychologist - and a world-renowned violinist - and an Olympic gymnast - and possibly a World Peacemaker - and an entrepreneur.

Who am I to tell her that she can't do all of these things? There are too many examples in history and in action today to ignore the power of possibilities and potential. My job as I see it is to open doors, to show her examples of what happens when (not if), and to help her to go through any door that she chooses. She's free to imagine and build her own future the same way entrepreneurs do.

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Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions.

Albert Einstein

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I was just slightly older than she is in the picture when I recall my dad creating, organizing, building, buying, and selling things. Weekends were when his business machine would crank full speed and everyone had a role to play. During the week, preparations were being made. I had no idea about the concept of an entrepreneur. All I knew was that everyone was busy - really busy. However, I did have a sense that when I grew up I would become one of those "really busy" people.

Who Are Those "Really Busy" People?

Dreamers, innovators, game-changers, thinkers, tinkerers, and folks who have just had enough of the way it is... These are examples of the "really busy" people who help to alter the trajectory of any product, service, culture, organization, or industry. They're sometimes given labels like entrepreneur or intrapreneur. Their imagination and passion may be ignited by an idea, by an opportunity, or by a problem that needs to be solved.

Entrepreneurs work their magic with or within entities that they create, purchase, or organize. Intrapreneurs work their magic inside of entities that have been created, purchased, or organized by others. These general definitions will do for now. Either way these "really busy" people are driven to move the markers from where they are to some place better. No one has to tell them to do it. They just do it because they must. They're hard wired to make progress.

So how much time do entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs actually spend at work? The answers aren't surprising.

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While I was examining data on working hours, a pattern emerged between roles, risks, and working hours. I've captured what I learned in the diagram above. It shows an increase in responsibilities and risks as roles change over time. This interaction leads to an increase in the number of working hours.

Is this true? It certainly has been for me. What about for you? Even so an interesting factoid emerged about entrepreneurs who are shown at maximum risk and maximum working hours in the diagram. I'll unpack the assumptions, definitions, and additional conclusions at a later time.

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...[in 77% of tracked economies]

It is interesting that...entrepreneurs exhibit more work-life balance satisfaction than people not involved in entrepreneurial activities

Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Report (2013)

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Intrapreneurs Work Way More Than 40 Hours Per Week

"Really busy" intrapreneurs (or full-time employees) work on average 47 hours per week according to recent Gallup Work and Education Surveys. Standard working time in the US has been defined as 40 hours per week for purposes of calculating regular pay, benefits, holidays, and special circumstances like overtime pay.

Someone should tell intrapreneurs that they're working way too much! The red flags are waving on the idea that working an excessive amount of hours is good for business. Proof is quite to the contrary.

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...Being busy doesn’t work, because most people produce 80 percent of their results in 20 percent of their time

Entrepreneur.com

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Entrepreneurs Work Even More Than Intrapreneurs!

The paper chase is great, but it means little in the end if we're not able to enjoy the rewards. Entrepreneurs are often the busiest of the "really busy" people, but they don't have to be. Some stats show as much as 63% more working hours for entrepreneurs compared with intrapreneurs. Why so much?

Perhaps the excessive hours are due to the increased risk associated with managing complex organizations - or perhaps it's because entrepreneurs enjoy and indulge in the control that they have over their work. Regardless there's a need for systematic time management the old fashioned way because none of us are getting any more hours in our days no matter how hard we try.

Time Management Action Plan

The "really busy" people are typically proactive, passionate, driven, visionary, persistent, and determined to make a difference. These amazing traits don't mean that we have to spend all of our time at work. Here's how I escape.

• (1) TAKE TASK NOTES - Keep a note pad or device handy for capturing tasks as they come up.

• (2) CREATE ACTION CATEGORIES - Establish a short list of action categories that will make it easier to sort, reference, and schedule tasks later.

• (3) SCHEDULE "YOU" TIME - Make yourself a priority. Block off time slots for meals, snacks, relaxation, exercise, and spending time with family, friends, and co-workers.

• (4) PRIORITIZE AND SCHEDULE WORK ITEMS - Shake off your task list to see what’s really necessary to handle and by when.

• (5) LEVERAGE YOUR SUPPORT TEAM - Delegate, delegate, delegate! Put a support team in place and leverage them.

• (6) REVIEW EOD or EOP PERFORMANCE - Review end-of-day or end-of-period performance and celebrate your accomplishments.

• (7) OPTIMIZE ACTION PLAN & REPEAT - Implement controls and barriers to ensure that you accomplish your goals better next time around. Repeat steps.

With an effective Time Management Action Plan in place, an Apple Watch just might become a fun way to spend time.

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I've gone quite a distance to answer a simple question from a curious child. The complexity of the answer got the best of me.

Do entrepreneurs have to go to work? Yes - but not for nearly as much time as they think they have to...

What are some ways that you optimize your time? I'd like to know. Add your comments below.