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Why are so few highly qualified and ambitious Asians making it to the top?
Asian-Americans Still Feel Like Outsiders in Corporate America, New Study from the Center for Work-Life Policy Finds
Why are so few highly qualified and ambitious Asians making it to the top?
New York, NY; July 20, 2011 – Despite graduating from top universities at rates that far exceed their peers and forming an important part of the talent pipeline for many professions, AsianAmericans remain largely underrepresented in leadership ranks, according to “Asians in America: Unleashing the Potential of the ‘Model Minority,’” a new study from the Center for Work-Life Policy. The study findings were announced today at Time Warner’s Screening Room in New York City.
Although Asians are a mere 5 percent of the US population, they are one of the fastest growing minority groups and a vital part of the nation’s talent pipeline. Consider, for instance, the representation of Asians at top schools: they account for 15 to 25 percent of Ivy League enrollment, 24 percent at Stanford and a stunning 46 percent at UC Berkeley. At the same time, Asians are fewer than two percent of Fortune 500 CEOs and corporate officers. How can we understand this disparity? According to the study, what keeps Asians from making it to the top are subtle workplace biases that are masked by the general perception of Asians as a highly qualified, successful “model minority”.
Asians in America have long been lauded for their ambition, drive and impressive qualifications, stereotypes that resurfaced in the recent controversy surrounding Amy Chua’s book Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. In contrast, Asians in the workplace are often portrayed as unassertive and reticent, lacking in leadership potential in spite of their skills and dedication. The study examines the uneasy place Asians occupy in corporate America. It shows how educated Asians struggle to conform to the dominant leadership model and hit a “bamboo ceiling” that prevents them from breaking into upper management positions. They report difficulties not only in “fitting in” but also in establishing the professional networks and relationships that are essential for advancement. As a result of these challenges, 63 percent of Asian men and 44 percent of Asian women report feeling stalled in their careers. Seeing little chance of fulfilling their ambitions, many highly qualified Asians scale back or have one foot out the door. Corporations need to understand and respond to these workplace realities for Asians, not least in order to stay competitive in the global market. Barbara Adachi, the managing director of Deloitte Consulting LLP’s human capital practice, says, “The Asian community is a very large economic force both inside and outside of the U.S. The more you understand what’s going on globally, and the impact that China and India are having on the world, the more you will recognize the importance of having Asians be part of your organization and leadership team.” The study showcases best practices and innovative programs that allow Asian talent to reach their full potential. The authors, Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Ripa Rashid note that “Fully rounded programs should not only provide development opportunities for Asians, but also target organizational culture so that Asians’ strengths are more readily recognized by those in leadership positions.”
Key Findings
• Asians are more likely than Caucasians to aspire to hold a top job: 64 percent of Asians versus 52 percent for Caucasians.
• Asians are more likely than other groups to value being highly compensated and to place importance on having a powerful position and prestigious title.
• In contrast to the image of the unassertive Asian, the study revealed that Asians are just as likely as other groups to directly ask a manager or supervisor for a pay raise or a promotion.
• Asians are more than three times as likely as Caucasians, and significantly more likely than African-Americans and Hispanics, to scale back at work— reduce their ambitions, work fewer hours, consider quitting, etc.—owing to issues of bias.
• Nearly half of Asian men and women (48%) report that conformity to prevailing leadership models—having to act, look, and sound like the established leaders in their workplace— is a problem.
• Only 28 percent of Asians say they feel very comfortable “being themselves” at work, versus 40 percent of African-Americans, 41 percent of Hispanics and 42 percent of Caucasians.
• Revealing differing communication styles, results from the study show that Asians, particularly Asian women, are less likely than people of other ethnicities to share new ideas or challenge a group consensus in a team meeting
• Fewer than half (46%) of Asians have a mentor in their professional life, making them 15 percent less likely to have a mentor than Caucasians
• Asians are much more likely than Caucasians to have eldercare responsibilities. These range from 9 percent of Asians having elders living with them, to 30 percent providing monetary support to their parents.
• Asians are more likely than Caucasians to report feeling guilty about the tradeoff between their childcare and eldercare responsibilities and their work.
• Only 23 percent of Asian women have off-ramped—voluntarily leaving their jobs for a period of time—versus 32 percent of Caucasian women.
At the event to launch the study, remarks were made by
Barbara Adachi, National Managing Director, Human Capital, Deloitte Consulting LLP
Alex S. Chi, Managing Director, Financial Sponsors Group, Goldman Sachs
Sylvia Ann Hewlett, President, Center for Work-Life Policy
Jane Hyun, President, Hyun & Associates
Peter K. Kim, Corporate Counsel, Pfizer
Sanjay Prasad, Vice President, Financial Planning and Analysis, Time Warner
Lisa Garcia Quiroz, Senior Vice President, Corporate Responsibility and Diversity, Time Warner
Ripa Rashid, Executive Vice President, Center for Work-Life Policy
一
一份July 20,2011 發布的調查報告顯示，亞裔美國人擁有常春藤盟校學位的比例較大，但當上公司高管的比例低於其他族裔。
紐約非盈利智庫工作-生活政策中心(Center for Work-Life Policy)一份報告顯示，大約5%的美國居民將自己認定為亞裔，但財富500強公司管理職位中，由亞裔美國人士擔任的不到2%。
隻有八位亞裔人士目前為財富500強公司一把手，其中包括花旗集團(Citigroup Inc.)的潘偉迪(Vikram Pandit)和雅芳(Avon Products Inc.)的鍾彬嫻(Andrea Jung)。但亞裔常常是拿著很多人夢寐以求的文憑進入職場的。據全國教育統計中心(National Center for Education Statistics)數據，亞洲人和亞裔美國人占常春藤盟校本科生的16%，占加州大學伯克林分校(University of California at Berkeley)、麻省理工學院(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)和斯坦福大學(Stanford University)本科生的35%。
工作-生活政策中心這份報告調查了2,952人，涵蓋所有族裔，包括亞裔美國人（其中一半出生在美國）。報告還包括對受調查者和幾家公司的後續訪談，這幾家公司正為亞裔員工建立職業發展規劃。
報告顯示，四分之一的亞裔受訪者說，他們在工作中麵臨著歧視，同時隻有4%的白種人相信亞裔人在工作中受到了不公平對待。
報告顯示，迄今為止，還很少有公司因為亞裔被視為“模範少數族裔”而為亞裔員工建立職業發展規劃。報告作者之一拉希德(Ripa Rashid)說，這次調查揭示了她常從員工和管理者那裏聽來的一些東西：在美國公司裏常常帶來成功的那種高調和自誇，亞裔美國人由於文化上的原因並不擅長。拉希德說，他們隻管埋頭苦幹，以為就這樣就能做到高層。
調查還顯示，亞裔員工可能不擅長跟同事分享個人生活，所以讓更多資深同事成為導師和支持者的可能性也就更小。
製藥巨頭默克公司(Merck & Co.)啟動了一個名為“精通文化之藝術”的計劃，來幫助亞裔員工改善他們的軟技能，比如怎樣做演示報告。默克公司的文化多樣性負責人達吉特(Deborah Dagit)說，幾年前知道自己需要的是一個大膽計劃時，我們恍然大悟。2009年年底，默克公司在美國的員工有6%聲稱自己為亞裔，但在該公司的高管當中，這個族裔隻占4%。
從2010年年初開始，基金管理公司聯博(AllianceBernstein)讓非盈利演說組織Toastmasters來為其亞裔員工舉行每月兩次的自願性學習班。聯博目前在紐約、聖安東尼奧、得克薩斯和英國都開有Toastmasters的學習班。該公司負責人才管理和多元文化的瓦利亞(Vicki Walia)說，我們不想把它做成一個培訓項目，因為培訓項目往往是一刀切。企業顧問、《打破竹子天花板》(Breaking the Bamboo Ceiling)一書作者Jane Hyun說，亞裔美國人在工作中麵臨著十分微妙但又很強大的文化屏障。她說，亞洲有一種說法是最吵的鴨子挨槍子，而在美國則是會哭的孩子有奶吃；這些事情完全相反，相互矛盾。
Jane Hyun幫助默克公司製定了前述計劃。她指出，這個計劃是否成功，關鍵在於20名非亞裔高管是否認可。她說，在美國，我們往往以為我們應該簡單地用同樣的辦法對待所有人，但這不一定是應對迥異文化價值觀的最佳方法。
KYLE STOCK
Asian-Americans Still Feel Like Outsiders in Corporate America, New Study from the Center for Work-Life Policy Finds
Why are so few highly qualified and ambitious Asians making it to the top?
New York, NY; July 20, 2011 – Despite graduating from top universities at rates that far exceed their peers and forming an important part of the talent pipeline for many professions, AsianAmericans remain largely underrepresented in leadership ranks, according to “Asians in America: Unleashing the Potential of the ‘Model Minority,’” a new study from the Center for Work-Life Policy. The study findings were announced today at Time Warner’s Screening Room in New York City.
Although Asians are a mere 5 percent of the US population, they are one of the fastest growing minority groups and a vital part of the nation’s talent pipeline. Consider, for instance, the representation of Asians at top schools: they account for 15 to 25 percent of Ivy League enrollment, 24 percent at Stanford and a stunning 46 percent at UC Berkeley. At the same time, Asians are fewer than two percent of Fortune 500 CEOs and corporate officers. How can we understand this disparity? According to the study, what keeps Asians from making it to the top are subtle workplace biases that are masked by the general perception of Asians as a highly qualified, successful “model minority”.
Asians in America have long been lauded for their ambition, drive and impressive qualifications, stereotypes that resurfaced in the recent controversy surrounding Amy Chua’s book Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. In contrast, Asians in the workplace are often portrayed as unassertive and reticent, lacking in leadership potential in spite of their skills and dedication. The study examines the uneasy place Asians occupy in corporate America. It shows how educated Asians struggle to conform to the dominant leadership model and hit a “bamboo ceiling” that prevents them from breaking into upper management positions. They report difficulties not only in “fitting in” but also in establishing the professional networks and relationships that are essential for advancement. As a result of these challenges, 63 percent of Asian men and 44 percent of Asian women report feeling stalled in their careers. Seeing little chance of fulfilling their ambitions, many highly qualified Asians scale back or have one foot out the door. Corporations need to understand and respond to these workplace realities for Asians, not least in order to stay competitive in the global market. Barbara Adachi, the managing director of Deloitte Consulting LLP’s human capital practice, says, “The Asian community is a very large economic force both inside and outside of the U.S. The more you understand what’s going on globally, and the impact that China and India are having on the world, the more you will recognize the importance of having Asians be part of your organization and leadership team.” The study showcases best practices and innovative programs that allow Asian talent to reach their full potential. The authors, Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Ripa Rashid note that “Fully rounded programs should not only provide development opportunities for Asians, but also target organizational culture so that Asians’ strengths are more readily recognized by those in leadership positions.”
Key Findings
• Asians are more likely than Caucasians to aspire to hold a top job: 64 percent of Asians versus 52 percent for Caucasians.
• Asians are more likely than other groups to value being highly compensated and to place importance on having a powerful position and prestigious title.
• In contrast to the image of the unassertive Asian, the study revealed that Asians are just as likely as other groups to directly ask a manager or supervisor for a pay raise or a promotion.
• Asians are more than three times as likely as Caucasians, and significantly more likely than African-Americans and Hispanics, to scale back at work— reduce their ambitions, work fewer hours, consider quitting, etc.—owing to issues of bias.
• Nearly half of Asian men and women (48%) report that conformity to prevailing leadership models—having to act, look, and sound like the established leaders in their workplace— is a problem.
• Only 28 percent of Asians say they feel very comfortable “being themselves” at work, versus 40 percent of African-Americans, 41 percent of Hispanics and 42 percent of Caucasians.
• Revealing differing communication styles, results from the study show that Asians, particularly Asian women, are less likely than people of other ethnicities to share new ideas or challenge a group consensus in a team meeting
• Fewer than half (46%) of Asians have a mentor in their professional life, making them 15 percent less likely to have a mentor than Caucasians
• Asians are much more likely than Caucasians to have eldercare responsibilities. These range from 9 percent of Asians having elders living with them, to 30 percent providing monetary support to their parents.
• Asians are more likely than Caucasians to report feeling guilty about the tradeoff between their childcare and eldercare responsibilities and their work.
• Only 23 percent of Asian women have off-ramped—voluntarily leaving their jobs for a period of time—versus 32 percent of Caucasian women.
At the event to launch the study, remarks were made by
Barbara Adachi, National Managing Director, Human Capital, Deloitte Consulting LLP
Alex S. Chi, Managing Director, Financial Sponsors Group, Goldman Sachs
Sylvia Ann Hewlett, President, Center for Work-Life Policy
Jane Hyun, President, Hyun & Associates
Peter K. Kim, Corporate Counsel, Pfizer
Sanjay Prasad, Vice President, Financial Planning and Analysis, Time Warner
Lisa Garcia Quiroz, Senior Vice President, Corporate Responsibility and Diversity, Time Warner
Ripa Rashid, Executive Vice President, Center for Work-Life Policy
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