Playing to Strength

This book offers a new approach for helping managers and organizations make better, more productive use of both men and women at work—an approach based on what they have in common, not on what some think divides them.

Rather than focusing on how men and women differ, Playing to Strength: Leveraging Gender at Work describes how to build a more productive work environment based on what men and women have in common. Second, unlike other books on the subject, Playing to Strength is not an advice book for women employees, but a forward-thinking guide for managers and organizations who want to achieve the type of gender-balanced environment that brings out the best in both men and women.

Playing to Strength first looks at how the exaggerated focus on gender differences affects the workplace. It then provides a critical look at a number of current attempts to resolve gender-based conflict, promote fairness, and address gender segregation in the workplace—which efforts work and why, and which are likely a waste of time and money. The rest of the book offers detailed plans for building better gender balance at work, addressing such topics as gender-inclusive teams, mentoring programs, the role of middle managers, and employee resource groups.

• Appendices include a case study of gender in the corporate world, a sample gender inclusion plan, and experiential accounts of gender dynamics in the workplace