Jump or Hang On: Women's Glass Cliff Is Real
The glass cliff is not new. And yes, it is a very real and dangerous precipice for women leaders around the world in every industry. It is up to you to decide if you want to scale it.
Just ask Chris Bradley, an Australia-based McKinsey & Company senior partner who was removed “from his leadership role at the firm’s research arm after he posted online comments questioning the uphill battle female executives face in the workplace.”
The McKinsey Global Institute director who has been at the firm 27 years was removed from that role—but kept his partner position—after posting on LinkedIn that the glass cliff is not real. It is “a very convenient way to always be a victim in the rain,” he posted, according to Financial Review.
Though it has been documented for years that women CEOs are hired to mend oorganizations in precarious positions, and then let go, the man who said it was imaginary kept his job.
Financial Review reports, “Over the past decade, women CEOs of Russell 3000 companies left after an average tenure of 6.2 years versus 8.9 years for men. In examining the reasons for CEO departures over the same period, the research firm found that women were more likely than men to be forced out. Just one in 10 S&P 500 companies are led by female CEOs.”
“DEO Departures: Women more likely than men to be forced out. 1 in 10 S&P 500 companies led by female #CEOs. #glasscliff”
The incendiary comment that the glass cliff is imaginary was prompted by discussion of a new book by “Julia Carreon, a former executive at Citigroup and Wells Fargo, Walking on Broken Glass: Navigating the Aftermath of the Glass Ceiling, which was published in September and co-authored by former Vanguard executive Shannon Nutter,” Fast Company reports.
“The book touched on the notion of the ‘glass cliff,’ a term that academics use to capture how women tend to be appointed to leadership positions when a company is going through a rough patch.”
Read more in Take The Lead on the glass cliff
Many say Hilary Clinton and Kamala Harris are prime examples of leaders pushed off glass cliffs. New research affirms it is often women of color who are chosen to lead on the glass cliff— when a company or organization is in trouble and needs rescue.
Candid reports, “Among nearly 60,000 public charities that shared demographic data with Candid, 18% were led by women of color. Women of color executive directors (EDs) may also take the helm during financial strain, staff turnover, or other organizational instability—a phenomenon known as the ‘glass cliff.’ Heightened scrutiny and conflict with boards can contribute to their departures. Building Movement Project’s (BMP) Beyond the Glass Cliff report shifts attention from individual resilience or fit to structure: Whether leaders succeed and remain depends on the authority, resources, and organizational conditions they inherit.”
“After crisis, whether leaders succeed and remain depends on the authority, resources, and organizational conditions they inherit. #leadership @takeleadwomen”
Take The Lead reported in 2018, “For women leaders brought in to handle crises, this phenomenon is called the glass cliff. A classic 2009 study from researchers at University of Kansas states, ‘The glass cliff refers to women being more likely to rise to positions of organizational leadership in times of crisis than in times of success, and men being more likely to achieve those positions in prosperous times.’”
Additionally, “A more recent 2017 study from researchers at the University of Geneva upholds the theories and reveals that women in corporate leadership positions handle emergencies and crises differently than male leaders, and perhaps better. ‘Glass-cliff research shows that female leaders are preferentially selected in a crisis to signal change and not for their leadership qualifications,’” according to the study.
Sophie Williams, author of the 2024 book, The Glass Cliff: Why Women in Power are Undermined and How to Fight Back, writes in InComms, “Research shows us that in moments of crisis or poor performance in a business, the psychological phenomenon ‘think manager, think male’ is replaced by something unexpected: ‘think crisis, think female’. The need to navigate – and motivate a team through – a moment of difficulty sees businesses put a premium on the perceived soft skills and higher EQ of female leaders.”
“Author @SophieWilliams: “In moments of crisis or poor performance in a business, the psychological phenomenon ‘think manager, think male’ is replaced by something unexpected: ‘think crisis, think female’. #glasscliff #femaleleadership ”
Read more in Take the Lead on risk and glass cliffs
Williams writes, “In one study, participants were asked to pick the most suitable new CEO for a business. When that business was said to be successful, only 33% picked a female leader. But when the same business was said to be facing a crisis, 63% opted for the female leader to see the business through the storm. “
Again, “Further research has shown that while women were consistently the favored option for leadership in troubled businesses, this was especially true when the leader was expected to be a sitting duck – charged with taking personal responsibility and being the face of the company’s troubles, rather than being empowered to enact transformational change, or even acting as a positive spokesperson for the business.”
It’s perhaps comparable to demanding a female Emergency Medical Technician in an ambulance to render life support, but then demand the head of surgery be male once arrived safely at the hospital.
Gloria Feldt, co-founder and president of Take The Lead, writes: “Glass Cliff theories be damned. It’s super fun to take on a big challenge and do the impossible. I want women to know that, and not to be afraid to apply for top jobs in troubled companies. In addition, it’s important for boards and search committees not to defer automatically to the safe choices, the ones most like the people they’ve always seen in the job.”
“Gloria Feldt, co-founder/president @takeleadwomen: “Glass Cliff theories be damned. It’s super fun to take on a big challenge and do the impossible. I want women to know that, and not to be afraid to apply for top jobs in troubled companies.”
Knowingly entering into a rescue can be exciting, but it can also be perilous for a leader’s reputation. The duct tape could not hold the glass floor together.
“Women are often evaluated on communal skills, such as empathy, listening, relationship building and conflict resolution. These are strengths, yet they are regularly treated as cleanup tools when the organization is already in trouble,” CRN reports.
“But the question almost never asked is whether she will have the systemic resources to create long-lasting change. Women often structurally inherit responsibility without influence, accountability without support, and visibility without safety. Many step into these roles because they want to lead and because they know their skills matter. The issue is not the women. The issue is the broken structures they inherit,” according to CRN.
“If companies want more women to lead, they must provide real authority, honest support and a culture prepared for genuine transformation. Otherwise, we will keep promoting women into instability and calling it opportunity,” CRN reports.
The expectation is the woman assigned to take the helm in a severe crisis will not be successful.
“If a woman leader then fails, her performance is seen to reinforce gender stereotypes about women’s leadership competency. Further complicating this context are gendered stereotypes that assume women leaders have exceptional people skills, meaning senior women in high-risk leadership roles receive less support and fewer resources than their male counterparts,” according to the Conversation.
“The glass cliff presents a double bind for women leaders. If women leaders behave in stereotypically feminine ways they are seen as weak or indecisive. By contrast, if they behave counter to this they are labelled as harsh and aggressive.”
“The glass cliff presents a double bind for women leaders. If women leaders behave in stereotypically feminine ways they are seen as weak or indecisive. By contrast, if they behave counter to this they are labelled as harsh and aggressive.” #genderbias ”
Regardless, the glass cliff is unstable, and it rarely holds up the leader or the organization. It is the woman who more likely falls off the cliff and earns blame. Time to change the pattern..
