"Divided We Fall" from Making It in Corporate America, Smallen-Groeb

            Though women have succeeded in entering the workplace, this does not mean that women are working together.   Too often there is competition between women in the workplace.   Many women in the workplace work individually to try and advance themselves in the workplace.   The author argues that this may not bet the best strategy for female success.   Instead, women need to help each other and be willing to work together.   Women need to be perceived as team players if they plan to succeed in the board room.   The author also looks at the importance of mentorship for women who wish to achieve corporate success.   The article clearly makes an argument for women to work together and be "team players" in workplace instead of competing against one another.   It adds to the literature that provides a strategy for those women who wish to be successful in upper level positions in the corporate world.   -E.S.

Smallen-Groeb addresses women's success in relation to men in the workplace. She points out the accomplishments as well the discrepancies that plague women in the workplace. She brings up the interesting notion of being a "team player" and how there is an ongoing belief that women somehow do not fit this description.   Moreover, Smallen-Groeb addresses the belief that powerful women in corporate America are oftentimes labeled as "bitches" for being assertive while men are simply praised for their forcefulness. She writes, "But as a man loses his temper, acts irrationally, makes excessive demands, he will just always be seen as the ultimate company guy, a go-getter. She will always be the bitch" (30). This article incorporates testimonials from successful women in corporate America who have succeeded as leaders in their respective companies. By citing the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) policies and ongoing gender discrimination lawsuits, this article provides keen insight on the glass ceiling, the subtle struggles women face in reaching top positions in corporate America. -M.B.