Women and Leadership: The State of Play and Strategies for Change

16

ISN'T SHE DELIGHTFUL?

Creating Relationships That Get Women to the Top (and Keep Them There)

Karen L. Proudford

Much is written about leadership—including identifying the key traits of leaders, determining what behaviors effective leaders engage in, and determining conditions under which leaders can be effective. However, the social processes by which one becomes a leader are not often addressed. To do so here is beyond the aim of this chapter; however, I would simply note that an elemental process occurs when a leader is chosen or identified. One of the most fascinating, perplexing questions that both frustrates and challenges many of us interested in organizational life is: What does it take to enter the proverbial inner circle? Some process—which ...