Good Books from Business Week
Meghan’s Blog
Monday, May 28, 2007
![BusinessWeek’s June 4 issue outlines four of the books that are out on the shelves this month relating to On Ramping. Much of below is directly from them, but I think all 4 books look like interesting reads!
Off-Ramps and On-Ramps: Keeping Talented Women on the Road to Success by Sylvia Ann Hewlett…this book is part of the foundation of the whole movement that inspired us to create this event.
BusinessWeek says: “Hewlett focuses on how 34 global companies have realized the value in refashioning jobs and careers so as to accommodate both mega-hour gray-flannel types and talented, get-it-done-quickly mothers”.
Hewlett uses case studies of real companies; I like the reference to “get it done quickly” moms, because that’s one of my repeated arguments—that mothers in the office can often accomplish a great deal in a short time, because of the prioritization of getting home to kids (not gossiping).
Mothers on the Fast Track: How a New Generation Can Balance Family and Careers by Mary Ann Mason and Eve Mason Ekman…this one covers “how even though women far outnumber men among graduate-degree holders, they still disappear at the top corporate ranks…the authors divide their book into dishy chapters on how to navigate careers in different industries…and show how women have successfully handled the tug-of-war by taking matters into their own hands instead of expecting bosses to do so.”
Again, a big focus of our conference isn’t just flex time and getting back to “any work”—it’s getting to meaningful work. I personally vouch that as a mom my MBA, experience, and track record meant nothing when there were less qualified men around! I think the tips here, even through anecdotal evidence, of how to get the job you want are invaluable.
Opting Out? Why Women Really Quit Careers and Head Home, by Pamela Stone
Pamela Stone was on CBS Evening News recently speaking about the phenomenon of how women are leaving jobs because those jobs just aren’t fulfilling—and they’d rather be home with kids. Her point is, it’s not just a return to traditional values—it’s choosing not to be in a job not worthy of their time.
And Back on the Career Track: A Guide For Stay-at-Home Moms who Want to Return to Work, by Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin…I can’t wait to read this one. I think it looks so interesting…BW sums it up by saying that it’s a “tasty, anecdote-filled field guide to getting back in, [with] lessons on how to de-stigmatize resume gaps and get spouses and kids to buy in to the idea of a return to work”.
BW ALSO says that “women can only do so much…for real change to occur—especially for the majority of mothers, who have no choice but to work—Washington must also wake up”.
Amen.](B8C79B3C-74A8-470A-8488-7939DB3613CC_files/shapeimage_27.png)