The Bromance Keeping Men in A Loop (Workplace Edition)

There is no doubt that communication between men and women differs due to the way society has shaped our upbringing. This legacy from the patriarchal era still lingers today, impacting our interactions and perceptions. Despite efforts towards gender equality, certain gender-specific experiences continue to influence individuals, affecting how they communicate and relate to one another.

The distinct communication styles between men and women can lead to various problems, such as conflicts, misunderstandings, and the unfortunate undervaluing of women’s contributions. This issue becomes evident in the disproportionate number of men holding leadership positions. It’s not that women lack the capability to lead, but rather that men find it easier to convey ideas to their male peers. This ease of understanding often leads to faster promotions for men compared to their female counterparts. Trust and comprehension appear stronger among peers of the same gender, creating an advantage for men.

Efforts across societies have been made to achieve gender balance in workplaces, with many recognizing the benefits of such a balance. A gender-balanced workforce brings diverse perspectives, meeting customer needs more effectively. This balance enhances decision-making and problem-solving, leveraging the unique experiences and coping mechanisms of each gender. Creativity and innovation also flourish in a diverse team, drawing from a wider array of ideas and approaches. From a business standpoint, a balanced gender representation ensures a better grasp of diverse customer preferences, enabling stronger connections with a broader audience.

In contemporary times, the gender ratio in the workforce is becoming more equitable. However, women often find themselves predominantly in non-leadership roles. Even when women do attain leadership positions, their subordinates are typically female. An unconscious bias emerges, as many men are hesitant to be led by women. Furthermore, it’s not uncommon to hear unfounded rumors suggesting a woman’s ascent up the corporate ladder is solely due to her success but also her looks and affair. Such skepticism is rarely directed towards men in leadership positions.

What’s needed is not just a gender-balanced workplace, but equal opportunities for both genders to assume leadership roles. The absence of equal opportunities hampers productivity and performance, particularly for women. Singular gender-based decision-making leads to a lack of understanding and appreciation for the other gender’s experiences and challenges in the workplace. This results in undervaluation and marginalization of one gender, while the other feels entitled to leadership roles.

Consequently, women face heightened pressure to outperform their male counterparts in the race to secure leadership positions, fostering an unhealthy competitive environment among women. It is because the positions to be women leaders are very limited, women would try so many ways to get it, even if sometimes it means hurting other women in the process. While men, they can be as mediocre as ever but still being praised for little input in the team.

Efforts to achieve gender equality will remain futile unless reform begins from the highest echelons of leadership. Promotions to leadership roles often align with same-gender relationships, commonly referred to as bromances, and are based on communication rather than actual merit. Ideally, promotions should be based on individual work performance.

However, if we should play on men’s game, we should prepare ourselves on the battlefield by demanding to reform high hierarchy position to be gender balanced. The worst-case scenario, at least the next generation of leaders will be balance again even if it will run favoritism over one gender. This is because both genders in highest echelons of leadership could favoritism over each other. This kind of scheme of favoritism is still better than the status quo favoritism because it will guarantee the voice of other gender to be heard and valued, improving productivity and performance of the organization as a whole.

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