Career Strategies

UNIT VIII

Teena C. Wyatt
Columbia Southern University

Career Strategies for Women

I hold the position of Administrative Assistant in an academic medical university. I provide secretarial support to the physicians and senior management team. My decision to return to school was to further my education and further my career opportunities. This is why I chose career strategies topic, with an emphasis on challenges for women. Career advancements were once a challenge for women, however in recent years gender discrimination is viewed deeply. Once were male dominated positions are becoming gender neutral. Being a military spouse for over 15 years, I typically did not hold a position for more than 3 years before we received orders to our next duty station. My resume was one that initially appeared to be of someone who could not hold a job. Recent years the legislature has realized the impact and sacrifice spouses make in their career due to the military. National Conference of State Legislatures, “recognizing that spouses of military service personnel who quit their jobs due to a military transfer may not be quitting so “voluntarily,” state legislators have amended unemployment compensation laws to help military families who are relocating between states.” Currently 46 states provide military spouses eligibility for unemployment compensation (MOAA, 2012). I reviewed two separate articles regarding career strategies. They included “Choices and Challenges: A Qualitative Exploration of Professional Women’s Career Patterns” and “Managers, Values and Executive Decisions: An Exploration of the Role of Gender, Career Stage, Organizational Level, Function, and the Importance of Ethics, Relationships and Results in Managerial Decision-Making”. Both articles share a common core “Self-Efficacy”. What is Self-Efficacy? Self-efficacy refers to an individual's belief in his or her capacity to execute behaviors necessary to produce specific performance attainments (Bandura, 1977). The most common conflict that women face is juggling the responsibilities of full time job and family life. Women careers are placed on hold when they decide to have children. For some this maybe a short 8-12 week period, for others this could be a break for several years before they return into the work force. Due to current lifestyles, it is almost required for dual incomes resulting in the mother/wife to return to work following the maternity break period (Whitmarsh, 2007). Another challenge that women face in the workforce is relationships. Women are more concerned with relationships than men are. Women concentrate on the planning and researching the best method for achieving the career goal. Men tend to just look at the result of the strategy, looking at the bottom line (Barnett, 1989). A final area that can be a challenge is career stage. Studies show that younger managers tend to focus less on trust and honor and more on money and advancement. Senior managers are more interested in personal growth and enjoyable work vs. advancement and money (Barnett, 1989). The two articles were very well written and made me look at my current position and career