Managing director, executive office
Goldman Sachs
New York, New York
In the early years, what I found challenging was that there weren't a lot of senior-women role models in the business to define success. I almost quit my job many times. There were days when I was unable to sleep or eat, and I'd cry in the ladies' room. It's important for me to tell women that even though I cried, I made it. For many years, I felt that crying was a weakness. It isn't. It releases stress, it cleanses, and it shows that you take things seriously. Women need examples of other women who succeed despite being a little "different." Different works, and strong organizations embrace differences.
Today, we have more women role models, though clearly still not enough. I worry that too many women remain trapped in the past. They are still willing to accept not being treated fairly at home or at work. Some still think, Hey, if my butt's not getting pinched, I should be happy. I say, Know your power. And make sure that you have a good set of power tools: talent, enthusiasm, confidence, and your own bank account. Then, when you get promoted up the ladder, keep pushing.
Jacki Hoffman-Zehner (jacki.hoffman @gs.com) was the first female trader to make partner in the fixed income, currency, and commodity division at Goldman Sachs. Prior to joining the company, she was among the first to graduate from the prestigious Portfolio Management Foundation program at the University of British Columbia. The 1982 and 1983 Canadian Women's Junior Body Building champion, Hoffman-Zehner sits on the board of Future Possibilities, a nonprofit organization that provides life-skills coaching to inner-city kids.
Professor of pediatrics
Director, Child Development Center
Georgetown University School of Medicine
Washington, DC
I didn't enter Georgetown thinking that I would be anything but successful. I wasn't aiming for tenure. I was focused on the work and the mission: finding imaginative ways to support chronically ill children and their families. I focused on linking with the physicians who were here to achieve that goal. My training and experience have taught me that if you enter a group with the belief that you have something positive to contribute, then you have a better chance of succeeding.
When I think about the past five years in this country, I find it rather remarkable that the new economy could have been so robust, yet so many women have been left behind. So although my colleagues accept me as an equal, leveling the playing field for mothers and their children in our society hasn't happened. We have not yet solved the problem of the poor -- poor women or poor children. A large percentage of women still don't get prenatal care. Insufficient health insurance disproportionately affects women. The new economy has not really lifted the bottom. In fact, the gap is greater than ever. I don't think it's a political issue. It's an issue of will and personal commitment on the part of both women and men.
Phyllis Magrab (magrabp@gunetgeorgetown.edu) has been teaching for more than 30 years at the Georgetown University School of Medicine. She was the first woman to be granted a full tenured professorship in a clinical department at the medical school. She consults for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Center for Educational Research and Innovation and remains active in Best Friends, a community-outreach program that she cofounded for teenage girls in Washington, DC.
Chief information officer, e-GM
Process information officer, supply chain
General Motors Corp.
Detroit, Michigan
I didn't even think about gender when I took my job at GM. Throughout my career, I've looked at the job and its challenges. And by doing that, I've been successful. I've never felt like I've been held back because I'm a woman. My focus is on results and on building relationships. In my field, you have to have technical skill. General problem-solving skills are important. You also have to be able to communicate in business terms. But these are larger skills that aren't gender driven. The opportunities are there -- you just have to find them.
The new economy is just one more step in time. I haven't seen more doors opening for women. I just think that people have gotten more sensitive to needing a work-life balance. For managers, the new economy raised the level of sensitivity to the importance of time off and of not keeping employees on the road all the time.
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