W. Brad Johnson and David G. Smith tackle becoming courageous watchdogs for equity, dignity, respect and fairness in the workplace. They share the essential need for active confrontation of other men for sexism, bias, harassment and all inappropriate behavior. Public allyship, they say, may be the toughest part of male allyship. Allyship is hard work. Excellent allies have … [Read more...]
Search Results for: gender
RBG, champion of women’s rights, dies
Commentary “Change is needed not only to inspire the women of our profession, but also to ensure that the culture of the profession moves forward. We must reject the dogma that has challenged the changing gender proportions of veterinary medicine and work to represent what is actually going on at the grass roots,” writes Simon R. Platt, BVM&S, Diplomate ACVIM … [Read more...]
Noisy children get WFH parent fired
Whizy Kid’s article sparks memories of a 15th century saying, “Children should be seen not heard.” Fueled by the story of a California woman whose employer fired her because her children were allegedly too noisy, Kid discusses employment at will, just cause, gender discrimination and wrongful termination. Source: Refinery 29, July 10. Link. The pandemic has burst the dam on … [Read more...]
Mentoring women is not about trying to rescue them
W. Brad Johnson, PhD, and David G. Smith, PhD, discuss cross-gender mentorships toward high-value reciprocal mentoring. These are essentially partnerships in which men and women play complementary roles leading to career and personal development for both parties, and ultimately, greater gender equality in the workplace. Source: HBR Ascend, June 23, 2020. Link. … [Read more...]
PRIDE VMC shares with The Bridge Club
Commentary – developed with Catherine Haskins, The Bridge Club Leaders from the Pride Veterinary Medical Community (PRIDE VMC) organization participated in a virtual discussion organized and produced by The Bridge Club, Monday June 22. Even with the cloud of uncertainty from Covid-19, recent civil rights issues and supreme court decisions were top of mind for the … [Read more...]
Commitment versus compliance in practice cultures
The discussion of practice culture applies to corporate practice, private practice and various industry business units. Bob Lester, DVM, is uniquely qualified to discuss the passion of commitment versus managing and dictating for compliance. He identifies the absence of trust as a barrier to achieving a commitment culture which maximizes potential. Source: Today’s … [Read more...]
Moving generational labels aside to focus on perennials
Helping two college kids move into their new apartment last week, I caught myself labeling them as Zs. One expressed disgust at being labeled. After all, she had planned and orchestrated the lease, packing, move and transition beyond admirably. She was correct. She didn’t belong in a bucket with a label. I apologized and acknowledged her initiative and strategic skills. For … [Read more...]
Dog allergies linked to male dogs
Doctors have discovered that up to 30 percent of dog-allergic patients are only sensitized to one specific protein made in the prostate of male dogs. In other words, pet owners with allergies might be able to tolerate female dogs or male dogs that have been neutered. Source: Animal Wellness, February 3, 2020. Link. Also see: Allergic to dogs? It may only be the males, … [Read more...]
Female office rivalries are MYTH
Andrea S. Kramer and Alton B. Harris share findings from research for their book, It’s Not You, It’s the Workplace < link >. Their conclusion? There’s no evidence that there is more conflict at the office between women than there is between men or between different genders. . . . one’s sex has little or no bearing on personality, cognition and leadership.” – authors … [Read more...]
The young don’t hold a monopoly on career potential
Women get hit harder than men when it comes to age discrimination. Mika Brzezinski and Ginny Brzezinski discuss age bias and the challenges women encounter. They call for a change in narrative and to reimagine the possibilities of mid- to late-career reinvention. Source: LinkedIn, January 10, 2020. Link. Ageism and particularly gendered ageism may be illegal, but it is hard … [Read more...]
Myths about mental illness cause high rates of unemployment
Awareness of inequalities with respect to race, gender, age, sexuality, class and other related factors, as well as the benefits of diversity, is growing, but society has a long way to go with mental illness, writes Bandy X. Lee. She says, to dispel stigmas surrounding mental health in the workplace, we need first to tackle several myths: Everyone has different abilities … [Read more...]
Why does tipping still exist? (podcast)
Stephen J. Dubner’s podcast features economists who discuss tipping. Tipping is something that some people say they dislike, and yet they do it all the time. Some consider ita tax and others see it as a form of altruism. It’s estimated that tipping in America adds up to at least $40 billion a year. Source: Freakonomics Radio, November 6, 2019. Link. Tipping is an unfair way … [Read more...]
Beef genetics not equal in dairies
Crossbreeding dairy cows with beef genetics is a growing practice. Between being able to predict calf gender and various processors refusing to buy dairy cows for meat, dairy producers are using beef bulls as a way to add value to bull calves and generate additional income. There is a misconception that all beef genetics are created equal in terms of usefulness in creating a … [Read more...]
Spayed, neutered dogs more likely to become overweight or obese
New research published in PLOS ONE < link > found that de-sexing large-breed dogs increases their risk of becoming obese and/or suffering from non-traumatic orthopedic injuries. Using data from the Morris Animal Foundation’s Golden Retriever Lifetime Study, researchers found that spayed or neutered dogs were 50 to 100 percent more likely to become overweight or obese. The … [Read more...]
Women at work podcast series
Amy Bernstein, Amy Gallo and Nicole Torres are into season 4 of the Women at Work podcast series featuring conversations about the workplace, and women’s place in it. The list of topics from previous seasons is impressive. Transcripts are also available. Source: Women at Work, HBR. Link. INSIGHTS: Topics such as competing, being a working parent, issues with eldercare, … [Read more...]
The advice half of working women need to hear
Ursula Mead’s company, InHerSight, recently polled website users about whether they had ever negotiated their salary < link >. Almost half of the 1,041 respondents said no. Self-advocacy is difficult for many people, but for women in the workplace, it’s particularly complicated. That’s why more women need support from their peers. Source: Fast Company, October 4, 2019. … [Read more...]
Authenticity important to women’s work success (video)
Female leaders must account for gendered perceptions when considering their leadership styles, according to a KPMG report. Because women are often characterized as being "too bossy or demanding," "not aggressive enough," "not collaborative enough," or "too direct," 58% of women said they have changed their leadership styles to avoid such perceptions, the report found. Source: … [Read more...]
Understanding sexlink hybrid chickens
Don Schrider delves into chicken breeds, crossbreeding and explains how sexlink chickens produce dependable gender offspring for retail locations to sell. He includes a good history of breeds and crossbreds to expand your chicken knowledge if you are unfamiliar with commercial or backyard chicken production. His information is useful for veterinary teams and retailers … [Read more...]
In #Metoo backlash, men retreat from mentoring women
Wendy Murphy shares that many senior male managers are reportedly responding to the #Metoo movement with a better-safe-than-sorry attitude and are pulling back from mentoring women. This reaction is both biased and shortsighted she says. Repercussions of depriving female employees of the counseling, developmental opportunities, exposure, and visibility that come from … [Read more...]
The future is female
Adrienne Wagner provides a celebration of women in veterinary medicine through a collection of thoughts and advice from female DVMs. The professionals were asked how they would answer this question: What one message do you have for the women of veterinary medicine? Loving animals isn’t enough to be a good veterinarian. You have to also love the people and the business. –Dani … [Read more...]
Why dogs smell each other’s butts
Butt sniffing is how dogs gather information about each other. It is normal and a necessary ritual that dogs do during greetings, writes Jill Breitner. She describes the 3-second dog greeting rule can keep everyone safe and happy in the event a dog goes overboard in its zeal for getting to know another dog. … [Read more...]
Navigate the gray areas of what constitutes sexual harassment
Much negative reaction to women’s voices being raised about sexual harassment stems from a lack of understanding about what exactly constitutes harassment. Because there is a lot of gray area in determining mild to serious forms of gender-based offenses, Kathleen Kelley Reardon developed the Spectrum of Sexual Misconduct at Work (SSMW). It helps people define and differentiate … [Read more...]
Policing women’s anger
Gathering knowledge and experiences from a female star athlete, an NFL coach, a governor and conference speakers, Katie Sanders writes about defining a strong female lead. . . . speaking out . . . can be a challenge in the workplace, where women are disproportionately penalized for expressing emotions, especially when they are perceived as angry. Source: Fast Company, October … [Read more...]
Watch out for “The iPhone Effect”
As a manager, when you talk with employees do you incessantly check your cellphone? Or, are the employees looking at theirs? “The iPhone Effect: The Quality of In-Person Social Interactions in the Presence of Mobile Devices,” was published in the journal, “Environment and Behavior.” It examined the relationship between the presence of mobile devices during social interactions … [Read more...]
Older people who feel younger have fewer signs of brain aging
A study published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience <link> is the first to find a link between subjective age and brain aging. We found that people who feel younger have the structural characteristics of a younger brain,” said Dr. Jeanyung Chey. “Importantly, this difference remains robust even when other possible factors, including personality, subjective health, … [Read more...]
You’re never done transitioning, so get good at it
We all have transitions, or changes, in life whether we make them ourselves or they’re made for us. Aviah Wittenberg-Cox, author of Seven Steps to Leading a Gender-Balanced Business, says mapping out transitions on a timeline from zero to 100 years will give you an idea of how many transitions you’ll experience. Source: Harvard Business Review, July 5, 2018. Link. Longevity … [Read more...]
How women can succeed by rethinking old habits
Sally Helgesen and Marshall Goldsmith discuss self-limiting behaviors that are simply part of being human. Their combined experiences with women in virtually every sector taught them that even women at the highest levels can undermine themselves with specific self-sabotaging or self-limiting behaviors that are different from those that most frequently undermine men. Not all … [Read more...]
Women can overcome being interrupted and talked over
Women are interrupted twice as often as men in meetings, writes Eleanor Beaton. She provides seven tips for women to get their voice heard: Interrupt back. Sit in the power seat Speak in shorter sentences Get feedback on your meeting style Cultivate allies Take credit Make direct eye contact and lean in Source: Inc., June 6, 2018. Link. No one likes … [Read more...]
Sponsorship programs could undermine women
A mother/daughter research team sought to gauge the efficacy of two isolated ideas related to sponsorship: the idea that being personally chosen by a sponsor as a protege could serve as an important vote of confidence the idea that linking sponsors’ compensation to their proteges’ outcomes might serve as further motivation to the proteges The results indicate certain … [Read more...]
Animal welfare tops list of American causes
Americans say they care more about animal welfare than children’s education and hunger. That’s according to the findings of the “Causes Americans Care About,” a new study that gathered responses from 1,000 adults: 41% chose animal welfare number one. Children’s education ranked second with 38% of respondents. Hunger, chosen by 33% of respondents ranked number … [Read more...]