IT Life Radio: Leadership Lessons For Women (And Everyone Else)IT Life Radio: Leadership Lessons For Women (And Everyone Else)

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For the latest episode of IT Life Radio, Wednesday, April 15 at 3 p.m. EDT, we're offering a frank and honest discussion about one of the most important issues facing the enterprise today: How should women lead? We're bringing in best-selling author and CEO Debora McLaughlin to answer that question and many others.

Is leadership the same for men and women? Should it be? And how can more women move into leadership positions in an IT industry that is still predominantly male?

While they've got a long way to go, women are starting to make some headway in Fortune 500 companies. The 24 female Fortune 500 CEOs represent only about 5%, but it is a record. More women are taking on leadership positions in the C-suite and in board rooms. That's long overdue. But getting there is less than half the battle. Women in the board room and the conference room have to find their own path to leadership which allows them to be authentic and effective.

[ Is it possible to be authentic in the phase of sexist Google searches?. Read Google Image Search Results Amplify Sexism, Study Finds. ]

Forget sexism for a moment (just for a moment).

Everyone has to find their own way as a leader. It's only normal that some women and some men will need to find a way that doesn't match the leadership books they read in MBA programs. As a career coach, McLaughlin has helped leaders find that authentic leadership style and has interviewed dozens more who have.

We'll ask her the questions every woman and every leader wants to know. Do I have to join the "old boy's club" to lead? Is it a good time to be a woman in leadership? How can we support women leaders in IT?

Those also happen to be some of the questions Debora McLaughlin answers in Running in High Heels: How to Lead with Influence, Impact, and Ingenuity. MicLaughlin will draw on her years as a leader and executive coach as well as her interviews with female CEOs to talk about what female leadership looks like. In our episode we'll discuss:

Woman or man, if you are a leader, this show is a must listen. Tune in April 15 at 3 p.m. EDT.

Debora McLaughlin is the best-selling author of The Renegade Leader: 9 Success Strategies Driven Leaders Use to Ignite People, Performance and Profits. Her new book, Running in High Heels: How to Lead with Influence, Impact & Ingenuity, is a how-to leadership companion for women in business. She is CEO of The Renegade Leader Coaching and Consulting Group.

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