Women at Work: Flats are Replacing High Heels -- And It's Not Only About Style

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Photo by rawpixel on Unsplash

Women At Work: Flats Are Replacing High Heels — And It’s Not Only About Style

In 2016, temp secretary Nicola Thorp was sent home from her work at a corporate finance company for not wearing shoes with two to four inches heels. This sparked outrage among the female working class with politicians and women protesting against Thorp’s dismissal through using the hashtag #fawcettflatsFriday. In a story by The Guardian Thorp said she asked the company why wearing flats would impair her to do her job. “I don’t hold anything against the company necessarily, because they are acting within their rights as employers to have a formal dress code. I think dress codes should reflect society and nowadays women can be smart and wear flat shoes,” she said.

Thorp then launched a petition calling for the law to be changed so companies will not be able to force women to wear heels to work.  It accrued 152,420 signatures in six months but went down in the British Parliament in 2017.

Robyn Denholm, A Chairwoman Co-driver for Elon Musk at Tesla

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Robyn Denholm, A Chairwoman Co-driver for Elon Musk at Tesla

By Isabelle Chaboud, Associate Professor of Financial Analysis, Audit and Risk Management, Grenoble School of Management (GEM). First published in The Conversation la France.

Robyn Denholm, 55, was officially named on November 7, 2018 to replace the iconic Elon Musk as chairman of the board of Tesla, the US electric vehicle manufacturer. Why this choice ? Is it announcing a desire to profoundly reform a governance questioned by certain investors? Can she tame the whimsical boss? And can she really play her role independently?

The appointment comes in the wake of the SEC's sanctions against Elon Musk after the famous tweet of August 7, 2018, in which the automaker's boss said he planned to withdraw Tesla from the $ 420 stock market with guaranteed financing. Elon Musk had been fined $ 20 million and resigned as chairman of Tesla's board of directors. A function that he has been prohibited from exercising for at least three years. While some investors and stakeholders may welcome the separation of power between the CEO and the new Chair of the Board, others may see a new blow of communication and ask questions about the real independence of Robyn Denholm.

Why Robyn Denholm?

The 'Fearless Girl' vs 'Charging Bull' Faceoff Is About Far More Than Women In US Boardrooms

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The 'Fearless Girl' vs 'Charging Bull' Faceoff Is About Far More Than Women In US Boardrooms

Oh wait!! The mayor tweeted: "Men who don't like women taking up space are exactly why we need the 'Fearless Girl'. 

That blast surely got the Arturo di Modica's attention, especially with the Charging Bull artist adamant that he is not sexist and neither is his bull. Perhaps for di Modica; nada for the bull. Christina Cauterucci writes for Slate today that until 'A Fearless Girl' faced off against 'Charging Bull', the sculpture was an "encouraging representation of a booming economy. Now, charging toward a tiny human, it’s a stand-in for the gendered forces that work against women’s success in the workplace. "

I'm not one to quote a woman's age, but Cauterucci got her journalism degree in 2013. That makes her about 15 years old in the midst of America's major financial crisis in 2007/2008. It makes her ready to graduate from high school in the birth of the Occupy Wall Street movement that began on September 17, 2011, in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district. 

No symbol of Wall Street was more directly tied to the Occupy Wall Street movement -- so much so that it was protected for well over a year by the NYPD, wrote the New York Times in September 2012.  For those who believe Occupy accomplished nothing in its core arguments, I refer you to the recent Democratic presidential party between Sanders and Clinton -- and the presidential election itself. 

'A Fearless Girl' stands for far more than making more women executives in business.  In the minds of many, 'A Fearless Girl' is a moral symbol of standing up for the little people as America becomes an increasingly story of the very rich and the rest of us. As defined by Princeton University prof Martin Gilens and Northwestern University prof Benjamin I Page is no longer a democracy and is increasingly an oligarchy. 

Anne of Carversville has written about 'Charging Bull' for years, and always within the context of raging testosterone untempered by estrogen. 

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'A Fearless Girl' Takes On Wall Street's 'Golden Bull' Citing Stronger Financial Returns With Women In Leadership

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'A Fearless Girl' Takes On Wall Street's 'Golden Bull' Citing Stronger Financial Returns With Women In Leadership

A four-foot tall bronze sculpture is now eyeball to eyeball with Wall Street's iconic bull sculpture, and she is not backing down. Arriving just in time for International Women's Day March 8, 2017, 'The Fearless Girl' -- created by artist Kristen Visbal -- is on a global mission to increase the participation of women on corporate boards. A plaque laid at the bronze girl's feet reads: "KNOW THE POWER OF WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP/SHE MAKES A DIFFERENCE. 

'The Fearless Girl' arrived in the  middle of the night, compliments of McCann New York and client State Street Global Advisers, the world's third-largest asset manager with a $2.5 trillion portfolio.  The guerrilla art aspect of her landing "is in keeping with the Charging Bull itself, which was installed without permission by artist Arturo Di Modica in 1989. Following the stock market crash of 1987, the sculpture represented strength and power and the promise of prosperity that would return. After the American economy's 2007 meltdown, Charging Bull came to represent a day-trading, short-term results economy running wild. Simply stated, Charging Bull now represents a potentially out-of-control, testosterone-driven American Dow stock-buying spree making a big comeback under President Trump.

Ivanka Jumps In Dad's Oval Office Driver's Seat On Behalf of Women | Will She Succeed?

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Ivanka Jumps In Dad's Oval Office Driver's Seat On Behalf of Women | Will She Succeed?

Women attending the Monday Trump-Trudeau meeting included General Electric Canada CEO Elyse Allan, TransAlta Corp. CEO Dawn Farrell, Accenture North America CEO Julie Sweet, and Monique Leroux, chair of the board of directors for Investissement Québec, according to the AP. GM CEO Mary Barra was represented by Carol Stephenson of GM's board of directors. 

Katie Telford, Trudeau's chief of staff, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, and Dina Powell, an assistant to President Trump and a senior counselor for economic initiatives, attended. The trio is responsible for setting up the new council and recruiting participants like Barra, GE vice chair Beth Comstock, and Catalyst CEO Deborah Gillis.

The week prior Ivanka Trump hosted a small dinner party at the New York apartment of Wendi Murdoch, ex-wife of Fox News media mogul Rupert Murdoch. Attending the private dinner were IBM CEO Ginni Rometty, Deloitte CEO Cathy Engelbert, Xerox chairman Ursula Burns, designer Tory Burch, and television host Mika Brzezinski. Ivanka Trump explained to the women that she wanted to learn about what the leaders were doing in areas like entrepreneurship, equal pay, paid leave, and education.

Planned Parenthood, Birth Control, Abortion Rights

Yes, Ivanka Trump champions the idea of gender equality -- although she refuses to openly support Planned Parenthood. This is relevant because controlling her fertility is the top tool a woman employs to advance her family's welfare and her own career.  

Designer Tory Burch, builder of one of America's most successful fashion brands and an attendee at Wendi Murdoch's private dinner, not only supports a woman's right to control her fertility, but she co-organized with designers Tracy Reese and Diane von Furstenberg New York Fashion Week's campaign to support Planned Parenthood, now under vicious attack by her father's administration. 

Melinda & Bill Gates were more confrontational than ever before in their annual letters and interviews this week, as they aggressively confronted the devastating impacts of now President Trump's expansion of restrictions around the Mexico City policy, governing USAID dollars supporting women's health initiatives worldwide. 

Global Antiquities Heavyweight Dealer Nancy Wiener Arrested In Manhattan

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Wiener is also accused of having items—like a $500,000 bronze Buddha—restored to conceal signs of illegal excavations, like shovel marks. The aforementioned Buddha was seized in a March 2016 raid on her gallery, while affixed with a selling price of $1.5 million.

Prominent antiquities dealer Nancy Wiener was arrested in Manhattan on December 21 and charged with possessing stolen property in the form of looted antiquities from East Asis since at least 1999. Wiener is accused of destroying documents about the pedigree and purchase route of stolen objects she delivered to Christie's and Sotheby's as well as private collectors and institutions. She is charged with knowingly creating false paperwork.

ArtNet writes: that the arrest "comes as part of the US federal investigation Operation Hidden Idol, which has been tracking down antiquities smuggled into the country by the New York dealer Subhash Kapoor. Kapoor is currently on trial in Chennai, India, for allegedly heading a $100 million international smuggling ring, bringing 2,622 stolen objects to the US. Wiener was allegedly in possession of some of Kapoor’s stolen Indian antiquities."

One must also wonder about the hush-hush complicity of Sotheby's and Christies in facilitating her 'presitigious' alleged antiquities looting operation. ~ Anne

 

 

Barbara Jatta Appointed First Female Director of Vatican Museums

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Pope Francis' Tuesday announcement that art historian Barbara Jatta will become the new director of the Vatican Museums, marking the first time that a woman will lead one of the most important art institutions worldwide. Previously, Jatta worked at the Vatican Library, overseeing its collection of prints.

A Rome native, Jatta has worked for the Vatican since 1996 and will now become one of its most powerful administrators. While Pope Francis wants to increase the roles for women in the Catholic Church, he remains firm that the most important Vatican posts are reserved for cardinals and bishops, who are universally male. 

The Vatican Museums represent 54 galleries acrross seven kilometers, receiving six million visitors in 2015. Regularly listed among the top 10 visited museums in the world, the Vatican museums represent one of the Holy See's biggest income sources. Estimates are about $311 million in gross revenues and $41 million in profits are driven by Barbara Jatta's new assignment.

Long Ring Finger Traits Similar Between Men & Women Sexually & In Business

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Long Ring Finger Traits Similar Between Men & Women Sexually & In Business

New research examining individual attitudes relating to non-committed sex versus committed sexuality suggest that the length of the ring finger compared to the index finger is a strong predictor of tendencies to ‘stay’ or ‘stray’ in both men and women.

A longer ring finger is associated with greater exposure to testosterone in the womb.

Professor John Manning of Northumbria University’s Department of Psychology has studied finger ratio data for nearly 20 years and believes this is the first study to suggest that both men and women may have alternative mating strategies. Women were not included in earlier studies examining finger lengths and promiscuity.

Boys Club | Harvard Study Suggests Anti-Women Policies Greatest Barrier To Women's Success | Amazon Has NO Senior Women Execs | Women Computer Programmers Drop In Half

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French Roast News

Anne is reading …

Stop Blaming Women for Holding Themselves Back at Work New York Magazine

The Harvard Business School surveyed three generations of 25,000 MBA graduates of Harvard Business School, in a serious effort to understand why there aren’t more women in the corner office. Their exhaustive study concludes that the problem isn’t that ambitious women are insufficiently tough, savvy or competitive at work. At least among the Harvard grads, the problem isn’t that the women are diverted during their 30s and 40s by wanting to breast-feed when they should be test prepping. The women are not ‘opting out’ or failing to ‘lean in’, deciding instead to ‘ratchet back’.

The authors found no correlation at all between career success and decisions an individual makes to accommodate family, by limiting travel, choosing more flexible hours, or moving laterally within a company.

It is true that women were more likely than men to have made such decisions. But men at the top often made demands that accommodated their family lives.

Very few commentators in all the recent bloviating about female success have come out and said what the HBR authors have: that the problem lies with the culture in the workplace itself. Most women work full-time through their child-rearing years, and yet they achieve less than men at work  (measured by numbers of direct reports, bottom-line responsibility, and senior-management status) because, well, they’re women. There are wide gaps between the way women envision their futures (professionally, as well as domestically) and the way those futures evolve over time not because of the choices they make, necessarily, but because the systems within which they live are entrenched and fundamentally sexist.

The Harvard Business School concludes that women should stop blaming themselves or saying they must try harder.

 … as the HBS study reminds us, when there’s a whole lot of trying without commensurate succeeding, then you have to start to consider that the game is rigged.

Amazon Employs 18 Women Among 120 Senior Managers The Guardian

Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos has made a ton of money selling books to women on how to succeed in business. Within his own Amazon business model, it seems the few women are able to work their way up the Amazon ladder. Bezos employs only 18 women among his 120 most serior managers, and has no direct female reports.

An all-male group of 12 men — known internally as the S Team — runs Amazon. Of the 18 women in senior management, 13 are executive assistants. 

Amazon may consider itself to be a great innovator, but when the topic is promoting and developing the careers of women in the company, it reads like ‘Mad Men’ to me.

Secrets of Silicon Valley (That Only Women Know) Glamour

Women comprise only 26 percent of the computing workforce. It gets worse, today only 18 percent of undergraduate computer science degress go to women — a number that has dropped in half from a high of 37 percent in 1985.

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Boys Club | Forget Research Results: Women Get A Pittance Of Venture Fundings | Girls For Spuds 2015

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French Roast News

Anne is reading …

Crowdfunding To Narrow The Gender Gap in Venture Capital Forbes

Of the 6,793 companies funded by VCs between 2011 and 2013, women CEOS led only 2.7% of those companies – according to the recent Babson College study titled “Women Entrepreneurs and Bridging the Gap in Venture Capital” (PDF).

Over the same period, 85% of all businesses funded by VCs had not a single woman on the management team. This reality reflects the gender gap among VC investors themselves, with women making up only 11% of the group, based on a 2011 survey by the National Venture Capital Association.

The problem, concludes Forbes, is tha men invest in men and women invest in women.

Rebecca Kaden at Maveron, a consumer-focused VC fund, said:

“I am extremely fortunate to work with a team of consumer-centric men who have deep appreciation for the value that comes from diversity in opinion. 80% of household spending is dictated by women—so any VC investing in consumer that doesn’t have this is severely mistaken. I try to focus on what it takes to be a world class investor—not a world class female investor—while remembering that’s a relatively unique perspective, even if I wish it wasn’t so unique in my industry, allows me to differentiate and bring something unique to the table.”

Is Crowdfunding the Answer?

Forbes contributor Chance Barnett, CEO of crowdfunder.com explains crowdfunding on an investor level, including the bundling of smaller investors in special funds. He also ranks known fundraising sites like Kickstarter, GoFundMe and Indie GoGo.

California Cops Snoop For Nudies

California Cops Steal Naked Photos of Women in Custody, Send Them to Other Cops, Call It A ‘Game’ Slate

California cops have admitted to searching the cell phones of arrested women in hopes of finding nude photos. When they do, images from the women’s confiscated cell phones are shared along with ‘disgusting’ commentary and details of their arrest for drunk driving and other violations. Apparently officers often include civilians in their circle of prying eyes.

Writer Matthais Gafni has detailed similar incidents in other US police stations from Houston to New York.

Calendar Girls Love Potatoes

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Dean of Harvard Business School Apologizes To Women | Davos Attendees 16% Women Is No Problem Says Klaus Schwab

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Dean of Harvard Business School Apologizes To Women | Davos Attendees 16% Women Is No Problem Says Klaus Schwab

Women make up a record 41% of this year’s MBA class.

Nohria’s comments come after an in-depth front-page article in The New York Times that described the school’s two-year experiment in dealing proactively with gender inequality. The story fueled dialogue and debate around gender inequality in male-dominated business schools. At Harvard, a third of the female junior faculty left from 2006 to 2007.