Men or Women...Who Are the Better Bosses? (employee, work, company)

[Northwoods Voyager]

Men, in general. I have worked for both. Women bosses must overcome the lasting stigma that applies to them. They can still be looked at as a threat to any of the males within the company and also mus overcome any jealousy that may exist with any of the females. Men can be aggressive, however, women cannot. Women can be assertive tho'. There is a difference.

Unfortunately, women are viewed as catty when discussing another employee. They are viewed as pushy, when making a suggestion. They are viewed as bossy when handing out assignments. They are accused of having a 'monthly' problem whenever they show any signs of being disagreeable.

It is still a difficult situation for any woman to compete in our man's world. I do know, i owned and operated a real estate company for many years.

[Padgett2]

Put it this way.....if you were hiring someone to be the boss over a department in your business, which would you hire, male or female? And why?

[FireCracker27]

Men are usually better at seperating business and their emotions. Women have more chemically going on inside to deal with, it's just a fact of nature. I think both sides have their pros and cons, it's basically up to the individual to be aware of their own strenghths and weaknesses and take it from there. Anyone is capable of learning to be one way or another. You could debate who is better at what until you are blue in the face, someone always has their opinion (we all know what they say about those). One thing is for sure, we all benifit from having the opposite sex around, and there is plenty to learn from one another.

[katie45]

Great comments from everyone! I would like to believe that gender is not a factor in my opinion of men vs women in a managerial role. However, as a rule, men are more logical while women are more emtional (again, for the most part).

If I were able to hire either male or female to manager our department, I would choose a man. For the simple reason that most men are more interested in getting the job done, not who is the most popular.

I really enjoy reading everyone's input. And a lot of it is relative to personal preference; but again, I prefer a boss who is more business-oriented vs fashion/popularity contest-oriented.

[Global Friend]

Most of my bad experiences have been with male bosses but I've also had mostly men as bosses. Some have been great but the ones that were bad, were really bad. Hit on me, lazy, drunk everyday (and that was an attorney), stealing from the company, passing off their work and taking credit etc...
The good ones were calm in a crisis, patient and just good guys.

I've been a manager for most of my adult life and I admit to being more emotional then maybe a man but I know I've also worked really hard and most impotant thing was being fair to all employees. I've always exceded sales goals and was well liked by employees. It probably depends on the job but it has been hard sometimes being a female boss. Some people don't give you any respect just because you're female and I've had to fight several times to get paid the same rate as my male coworkers. One time I even had another male manager start a rumor about me just because I was promoted and he was demoted.

[mommabear2]

I have had both men and women bosses. My favorite boss happened to be a female though. Looking back I think my female bosses were b**chier but only because they had to be in order for people to take them seriously.

[Sgoldie]

I've only really worked with men except for a few short stints in the business world around women which weren't especially good. The women would have an endless hissy fit if a stamp was put on an envelope even slightly crooked. They were obsessed with minor details. The men would give you a job and let you run with it as long as it got done right, and were there for advice without being judgemental. They were more generally relaxed and just as effective.

I was trained from a young age to be a manager by my father who was an excellent one. I have no trouble, as is my normal perogative, taking charge any place, anytime, without freaking people out or intimidating them. The great majority of my employees were men and I like to think I was a good example of what an employer should be. I often get comments from men that they've never met a woman quite like me which I find rather humorous. That, I suppose is because of my background, knowledge, experience in things generally considered by them to be in their realm.

[Rcm58]

If i'm hiring someone i'd hire either a women or a large man, the most problems i've had is with smaller men because they don't seem to command the respect that larger men or women do. Just my dealings!

[eufo]

I've had many many bosses in my past, both men and women. I'll divide them into subgroups for comparison purposes.

#1 Assertive Men - These have been my best bosses. They are clear on what they want and very generous when you exceed their expectations.

#2 Assertive Women - These are a close second. Sometimes will change their mind too frequently, but fair employers and definitely have a softer touch when it comes to personal problems.

#3 Relaxed Women - They don't expect as much work, and are very fun to be around. You feel like you want to help them look good to their bosses.

#4 Relaxed Men - These guys don't expect much and don't get much out of their employees. Not quite so fun as the women, though.

#5 Uptight Men - These guys are jerks, but end up juicing a decent amount of productivity out of people.

#6 Uptight Women (who have a significant other) - These gals are b_tches, but tolerable and get the job done.

#7 Uptight Women (who don't have a significant other) - These are the worst employers possible. They seem to "have it out" for everyone they employ. They hate on the guys because they don't have one, and they hate on every girl that's prettier than they are. They spend most of their day trying to make everyone as miserable as they are.

So, overall, I'd say men. But it truly makes a big difference what kind of person they are.

[NYnowNC]

I've had both men and women as bosses. I prefer men. I think some women try to hard way too prove themselves, and sometimes this doesn't come across well to the staff. There is an art to being strong, focused and assertive without being nasty.