The data proves it: Women bosses are better.
A new Gallup report finds that female managers are more likely than male managers to be engaged in their work. Their employees also tend to be more dedicated to their jobs.
All of this vastly affects productivity and profitability. The Gallup report found that 51 percent of managers who are not engaged, along with the 14 percent who are actively disengaged, cost the economy $319 billion to $398 billion per year.
Related: More Women Are Working, But Not in the Highest Paying Jobs
The survey, “State of the American Manager: Analytics and Advice for Leaders,” finds that 41 percent of female managers are engaged in their day-to-day work, compared to just 35 percent of men (and 30 percent of all employees). Those who work for a female boss are six percentage points more engaged than those with a male boss.
Female workers with a female boss have the highest engagement score (35 percent) – while male employees working for male managers have the lowest (25 percent). Employees who report to a female manager have higher scores than those with male managers on 11 out of 12 engagement categories, including communicating expectations and encouraging development.
Managers make a major difference in the workplace: Half of all workers have left a job to get away from a supervisor.
Related: 3 Secrets to a Better Job (and More Money)
Yet companies regularly promote the wrong people into management roles. Gallup reports that companies fail to choose the right talent for a management job 82 percent of the time. That’s partly because businesses often promote people based on tenure or performance, rather than their management or leadership skills.
“Being a successful programmer, salesperson, or engineer, for example, is no guarantee that someone will be adept at managing,” the report states.
It also shares this: “Great managers possess a rare combination of five talents. They motivate their employees, assert themselves to overcome obstacles, create a culture of accountability, build trusting relationships, and make informed, unbiased decisions for the good of their team and the company.”
Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
