When asked who they would prefer to work for — a man or a woman — the largest chuck of employees really don't care. However, it turns out that people who report to a female boss are more engaged in their jobs than those who report to a male.
At least that's what folks told Gallup in a recent survey that combined questions about engagement and bosses.
Gallup has been following workers' opinions on their preferences in managers since 1953. Of course back then, more people preferred working for a man than a woman. And, they had little choice, since nearly all bosses were male.
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But over time, that sentiment has shifted. Today, 46 percent really don't care what gender their boss is. And more — 33 percent vs. 20 percent — say they'd rather report to a man.
But when engagement is added to the equation, the takeaway for human resources managers seems to be that women should be considered over men as managers.
Women bosses are more engaged in their work, this study found, and as a result, their employees are more engaged — 6 percent more engaged than are those who work for a man.
Right now, Gallup reports in State of the American Manager: Analytics and Advice for Leaders, only a third of U.S. managers are women. A shift in that ratio might benefit businesses and the U.S. economy, Gallup suggests.
"Though there are many highly successful female and male managers, female managers do have a slight advantage when it comes to engagement. And it's an advantage leaders should consider when deciding whom to name manager," Gallup said. "Leaders should also know that female managers themselves tend to be more engaged than male managers. Gallup finds that 41 percent of female managers are engaged at work, compared with 35 percent of male managers.
"In fact, female managers of every working-age generation are more engaged than their male counterparts, regardless of whether they have children in their household. These findings have profound implications for the workplace. If female managers, on average, are more engaged than male managers, it stands to reason that they are likely to contribute more to their organization's current and future success," Gallup said.
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Dan Cook
Dan Cook is a journalist and communications consultant based in Portland, OR. During his journalism career he has been a reporter and editor for a variety of media companies, including American Lawyer Media, BusinessWeek, Newhouse Newspapers, Knight-Ridder, Time Inc., and Reuters. He specializes in health care and insurance related coverage for BenefitsPRO.
