We all know about the good old boys network. The guys take off work and play golf on Friday afternoons. They close deals over scotch. They hire other men just so they can discuss the latest NFL trade at the office.
Okay, so I might be stereotyping—and exaggerating—a bit. But only a bit. My question: should we build a good old girls network? If we complain so much about the good old boys network, perhaps we shouldn’t promote a women-only club. Maybe business should be gender-neutral.
Well, yeah, sure, in la-la land that would be perfect, but here in the real world, there is a good old boys network, and we women should help each other out too! For one thing, most of us don’t have time to play golf or drink scotch. If we leave work early, we are likely headed to a ballet recital or some other family obligation. Like it or not, we have different lives than men, and we need our own brand of support.
I was reminded of this during the National Association of Women Business Owners’ annual conference. I attended as a guest on the first day, met some wonderful businesswomen, and heard Donna Orender, the president of the WNBA, speak.
I was thrilled to eat lunch with the owners of four very different businesses. One has an executive search firm, one heads a CPA firm, one owns a trucking company (yeah, trucking, isn’t that cool?), and one is a financial planner. We chatted over salad and a chicken entree about a variety of topics—why it’s smart to get a payroll service for one’s company, how to find a good nanny, public versus private school, why diversity is good for business, etc. Somehow, I have never enjoyed quite that mix of conversation with a table full of men!
Around the time we dug into strawberry shortcake, Orender was introduced. She talked about working in a male-dominated environment (she was an executive with the PGA Tour for seventeen years). “It was always me and the guys,” she said. Nobody understood why she would leave her great job to run a women’s basketball league. She explained to her fellow PGA executives, many of whom had daughters, that she was making the change for their girls. And for her own sons. She wants the next generation to grow up with strong women as role models.
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