Women CEOs Reveal How They Climbed to the Top

By: Liz Fedor

If a surefire strategy existed that would clear C-suite pathways for women, then women CEOs would be commonplace in U.S. corporations. Yet research by McKinsey & Co. and LeanIn.Org shows that women are entering C-suite jobs at such a slow pace that it could take 100 years to achieve gender equality.

To pull back the curtain and learn from the women who have pierced the glass ceiling, veteran journalist Joann Lublin interviewed 52 corporate women leaders. Joann, management news editor at the Wall Street Journal, has been on a similar career journey with the women business leaders who launched their careers decades ago.

Joann, who started her career at the Journal in 1971, has written the book Earning It: Hard-Won Lessons from Trailblazing Women at the Top of the Business World . The book, published October 18, 2016, features what she gleaned from candid conversations with the executives. Almost two-thirds of the women are present or past CEOs of public companies, including Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors Co.

In interviews that took place in settings that range from corporate offices to the Algonquin Hotel in Midtown Manhattan, Joann succeeded in getting the women to open up about their career triumphs and struggles. They talked about how they got to the top, how they overcame setbacks and the challenges of raising children and sustaining a marriage when you have a demanding C-suite job.

[Related: The Surprising Quality You Need to be Successful in a Male Industry ]

Here are some of the key lessons from Joann's book:

1. Raise Your Hand to Take On Difficult Jobs and Assignments

Multiple executives took on business problems that put their careers at risk, but they created opportunities for the women to show their ability to turn around an underperforming enterprise or build new revenue.

Liz Smith, chief executive of Bloomin Brands, proved her mettle early in her career when she handled a challenging company integration following a Kraft Foods acquisition. Likewise, Andrea Jung, former Avon CEO, distinguished herself when she developed a global brand strategy for Avon when the company was accustomed to operating in a decentralized fashion with regional fiefdoms.

2. Be Collaborative and Decisive in Your Leadership Approach

Former Xerox CEO Ann Mulcahy walked the fine line between collaboration and decisiveness when she managed men for the first time at Xerox, Joann wrote. Five years into her tenure with Xerox, Mulcahy was selected to become the companys sales manager for Maine, which was a poor-performing region.

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All of her team members were male and older than Mulcahy, so she forged a common alliance and went on sales calls with them. By earning their respect, Mulcahy had credibility when she had to make tough business decisions.

Mary Dillon, now CEO at Ulta Beauty, said she received helpful feedback at U.S. Cellular that she needed to set clearer expectations for her staff and be visibly decisive. Male subordinates must see women executives as both decisive and collaborative, she told Joann.

3. Enlist Male and Female Mentors and Sponsors to Support Your Career

Mentors build a womans self-esteem and serve as an empathetic sounding board, but sponsors expend valuable chips on a womans behalf and provide air cover so she can take risks, Joann wrote.

She tells the story of how Bruce Chizen, who became CEO of Adobe Systems in 2000, served as a sponsor for Melissa Dyrdahl, who rose up the Adobe corporate ladder. Melissa, who recently served as CEO of Ella Health, was a beneficiary of Bruce's willingness to help her navigate the male-dominated software industry.

But their experience also is a cautionary tale about appearances and rumor mills. Even though their families socialized together, some Adobe employees jumped to the conclusion that Melissa and Bruce were having an affair. So they had to take steps to avoid scenarios that would fuel gossiping.

[Related: How to Develop a Healthy Mentoring Relationship ]

4. Accept that Work-Family Balance is a Myth and Set Priorities

Buffalo Wild Wings CEO Sally Smith noted that there is no such thing as balance, and she learned to deal with handling a heavy corporate load while raising two children.

Mary Barra, who travels internationally as CEO of General Motors, said she always keeps her phone turned on so she is available to take calls from her children regardless of where she is in the world. When she is back on U.S. soil, she said she is able to make it to 80 percent of her childrens games.

[Related: The Truth About Work-Life Balance ]

Ambitious women often marry equally ambitious men, a combination that can create dangerous roadblocks for womens high-powered careers, Joann wrote. Meg Whitman, CEO of Hewlett Packard Enterprise, married a physician, and both members of the couple have made relocation sacrifices for their respective careers. Sometimes, she told Joann, You have to do things that you do not want to do if you want to stay married. It should also be noted that husbands of multiple women interviewed for the book gave up their positions to support their wives careers.

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Liz Fedor is a journalist based in Minneapolis and has written extensively about women in leadership. A graduate of Harvard Universitys Kennedy School of Government, she has covered the intersection of politics and government. This year she served as a residential fellow at the McCarthy Center for Public Policy & Civic Engagement at St. Johns University in Collegeville, Minnesota.

Ellevate Network is a global womens network: the essential resource for professional women who create, inspire and lead. Together, we #InvestInWomen.