Why they leave: reasons executive women flee South African organisations
By Desray Clark, Management Consultant and Executive Coach
Organisations that wish to address issues surrounding the voluntary turnover of their women executives and to establish retention strategies need to understand the reasons why women resign. They also need to explore why the much-discussed “glass ceiling” and family support networks do not feature as valid reasons for resignation by women who have been successful in their careers for many years.
Twenty-one executive women from a variety of sectors were interviewed for this study, eight of whom were chief executive officers; one was a chief information officer and another a chief financial officer. In addition, there were seven senior managers, two executive managers, one acting chairperson and the second-in-charge of a large financial institution.
The respondents included four of the 22 most influential women in South Africa in the private sector (Financial Mail Special Report, 2006). Four other respondents appeared in CEO magazine’s list of South Africa’s Top Businesswomen (CEO Special Edition, 2006).
They had an average tenure of eight years in their previous organisations, collectively managed budgets exceeding R80bn and were responsible for approximately 150 000 staff members.
The majority of respondents provided uninhibited accounts as to the reasons they had resigned from their organisations. In most cases, it was clear that this was an issue they had intensely pondered. All of the respondents displayed insightful self-analysis regarding their decision to leave.
The following words from one of the respondents summarises the personality profile of most of the women who were interviewed: “I am almost obsessive about taking charge of my life. I am really a fighter and I will disproportionately take responsibility for fixing things.”
The participants displayed several similar characteristics. Eighteen of the 21 participants were the first women in their respective industries or organisations to have achieved the positions they had occupied, thereby displaying true pioneering characteristics. At the time of their resignation, several of the respondents were the only women on their specific organisational level.
The most significant reasons for leaving their previous organisations were as follows:
Need to Make a Difference. The majority of respondents sensed that they were no longer making the difference they needed to make within their previous positions. A few respondents verbalised this as follows: “I need to make a difference in this country, not to them [referring to foreign company owners].
“When you are younger, your purpose is to make the people in your team happy, but as you get older, you realise the effect you can have on your country. It is exciting and as you mature, you start seeing.”
Almost three-quarters of the respondents felt that their ability to make a difference was hampered by their own lack of political acumen and negotiation ability.
Political Acumen. Respondents alleged their lack of political acumen had led to their specific situations within their previous organisations and that, had they been more politically astute, the outcome might have been different.
They illustrated their insights as follows:
“I should really have been more politically astute instead of being so open and honest. I am just naïve, I guess.”
“I don't like corporate politics, I find it very difficult, especially when the company’s values are against my values.”
“I couldn’t understand the game, couldn’t play it, but they were clever enough to keep me because they knew I made them look good.”
Burnout. Thirteen of the participants spoke about extreme feelings of tiredness and exhaustion, and about being battle-weary. They showed different emotions when speaking about their previous jobs – one became tearful, another started blinking her eyes anxiously; mostly they were quite dismayed about the events leading up to their decisions. They philosophised about their situations in the following manner:
“I left because I was really tired. I was tired of the loneliness (I was single at the time) and I would look at the men I worked with – they were going home to a family and I was going home to nothing. All I was doing was just working all the time. I think I was using work as a crutch; it was an escape. I knew I was burnt out because my whole body came out in acne.”
“I had one child, and then I had another one – that was a problem. I didn’t stay at home at all – I just kept working and travelling when they were tiny. I had to keep my chargeable ratio the same; my bottom line wasn’t allowed to go down. I was running jobs from the bed (this was before cellphones and I sometimes wonder how I managed) – it was really hectic.
“I just remember being exhausted most of the time. I did employ a full-time midwife, though, and I remember expressing in the shower overseas just to keep my milk going.”
Social Networks. Sixteen of the women interviewed referred to the existence of male social networks and how they negatively impacted their experience in the workplace. They referred to the feelings of isolation, disappointment and a sense of disbelief:
“I just got to that point of total frustration; our gut always tells us what is going on. You try and you try and you try, but you aren’t on the golf course, where they are, so you don’t take part in their discussions, and you aren’t where the discussions take place.”
“I really was fighting it alone; it is a very closed club up there – all [SA University] boytjies. Some of the guys are only there because they went to [SA University] and their positions are totally out of proportion to what they can deliver.”
Lack of Organisational Support and Mentorship. A large percentage of the respondents referred to their feelings of isolation that were exacerbated due to the lack of female support at the top levels of the organisation.
“We women are our own worst enemies – you didn’t want to be seen supporting women in the bank. I became overtly supportive of women, but I was really criticised. Men do that all the time and they don’t have a problem with that. We always back down.”
“There was another very prominent woman there, but she didn’t help me at all. Now she is very friendly when I see her, but when I was fighting no-one came to me. I was alone, they were quiet.”
Values Clash. Fifteen of the 21 respondents reported a values clash, either between themselves and the organisation or between themselves and their immediate supervisor. They were unequivocal about compromising their values and verbalised their resolve in the following manner:
“I was continually in a battle, in a fight. There was a huge clash of values and principles between the organisation and me. I just felt I lost it; I felt all I was doing was fighting. Everything started conflicting with my values and principles and it just didn’t go away.”
“It was just a different world view and the issue wasn’t going to be thrashed out because they couldn’t argue it straight on. I had stepped on one of their basic unspoken values and how could they defend that? I really thought our culture and values were something different, but then I saw there was this point that really clashed with my values. The culture and values that get espoused are the good things and that’s what they tell the organisation, but the real values – they are something else. Why didn’t I pick it up before? I was either coming up with proposals that aligned with theirs, or else I chose not to see it.”
Shocks. In 14 cases, even though there were other contributing factors, it was one specific incident that took place (mostly between the organisation and the individual) that caused her to resign.
“My pride really wouldn’t let me stay and one thing did happen – another person at the same level as me told me about his perks and his salary, and they were twice as much as mine. That’s when I decided: bugger you all!”
“I suggested I would do marketing and sales and the COO could run the operations. Next thing they brought in somebody I was supposed to report to. I told them: ‘Over my dead body!’”
Intimidation. Sixty percent of the participants referred to incidents of intimidation, ranging from inappropriate language and overt sexual advances to physical intimidation and sabotage – the worst incidents being death threats:
“I really had verbal abuse from my boss, always a sexual innuendo and comments: ‘Oh, I see you’ve put lipstick on to come and see me. You know there are a lot of other professions that you can do and you don’t need to train for them.’”
“International meetings were really difficult. They treated me with absolutely no respect and were really rude – turned their backs on me. If I argued a point, they would say that they didn’t ask for my opinion and also hit the table.”
“When the CEO interviewed me for the first time, he asked: ‘Do you have the balls to run this division?’ I replied: ‘Do you have the balls to run me?’ After that he really wanted me to work there. There was so much sexual harassment, he pushed me in the corner and said: ‘You are brilliant, brilliant. I want you!’”
“I told my boss about some possible corruption I had accidentally stumbled across. He told me to ‘just be quiet, my girl’. He said he would investigate, but that I shouldn’t say anything to anybody. I also told the director and all she said was that she wasn’t interested. The next thing I knew, there was somebody in my office putting a gun on the table. He said that if I didn’t shut up, my children and I would be eating it. He then told me this thing went right to the top and if I knew what was good for me, I would be very quiet.”
Organisational Culture. More than half of the respondents felt the organisational culture was really paternalistic, which they hadn’t noticed previously:
“Even though some of the men don’t deserve their positions, there is still a feeling that if a woman has a high position, it’s because she is a woman. Trying to be a female in a male-dominated culture is nearly impossible.”
“There is a one-liner why I left: ‘Too male’. I didn’t want to be a male anymore; I wanted to use my intuition and my EQ, and to be feminine. Now I am free to be just that.”
“Basically it’s just too white and too male. They play in the arena of men. You need to be an alpha wolf in the pack, otherwise you don’t survive.”
One of the more humorous stories was told by an elegant, beautiful woman (responsible for a substantial division of a global cosmetics company) regarding the pervasiveness of male culture within the organisation:
“I thought to myself: ‘Hey, is this what it’s all about?’ I get invited to a conference and get awarded a beer mug, the same as the men, for good performance. I’ve still got it – it’s so ridiculous!”
The aforementioned findings are the most significant shared determinants of voluntary turnover among women executives. Despite the fact that the respondents’ experiences were similar in certain respects, each respondent related unique anecdotes and awe-inspiring insights regarding the role of women in business.
The overall findings of this study reflected that the reasons why women leave organisations run much deeper than those reported in the media. The essence of the women executives – their pioneering spirit, competitive nature, compulsion for success, their search and dependence on freedom, autonomy and making a difference – is what drives their exit from inflexible, staid, unaccommodating organisations.
Organisations are failing to keep their female talent because of their paternalistic organisational culture, the poor quality of management and their inability to accommodate their top female performers, even though they have relatively few requirements. These requirements include the need for freedom and autonomy and the need to make a difference, not only to the bottom line of the organisation, but also to the bottom line of South Africa.
Companies that realise they are letting a wealth of talent walk out of their doors, and start engaging in dialogue with these women, in an attempt at changing their organisations systemically, are the ones that will be most buoyant when the talent tsunami hits the southern African shoreline.
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