According to Bentley’s Myers, women in the C-suite nowadays typically fall into one of three categories.
The categories are flexible, but in general, they include the following: the late bloomers, whose careers take off after they have cared for children; the power couple’s half, where both members have demanding jobs; and the breadwinners, who frequently have spouses who are stay-at-home parents or who have flexible employment.
According to Myers, “the lady may have worked part-time or [stayed at home] with her children while they were young” in the first model. However, her business really takes off after her kids are older or out of the house.
Consider Brenda Barnes, who left a high position at Pepsi to care for her three children for six years before being chosen COO and then CEO of Sara Lee in her early 50s. These women were always ambitious, but they tended to spend more time in the traditional roles of mother and wife when their more driven peers were working long hours at the office or volunteering for specialized tasks. This may have been out of choice, necessity, or due to their husbands’ expectations and needs.
One of the biggest craft beer firms in the United States, Shipyard Brewing Company, employs Judy Forsley as its CFO. She has two kids who are 19 and 22 years old. However, she only recently received the title. She used to work at Shipyard in the accounting division when her kids were little.
She was a single mom for a significant portion of her children’ childhoods after her first marriage broke down in divorce.”I did far more of the kids’ stuff,” she claims, “including picking the kids up from daycare, setting up playdates, scheduling piano lessons, and going to soccer games. “I continued working 40 hours a week. My top concern was my children. Second to me was my career.
