There are many benefits that come from having both women and men working together. Women tend to be more highly rated on empathy, communication and people skills whereas men are more outgoing and co-operative in their leadership style (Appelbaum, Audet, & Miller, 2003, p. 48). The most important benefit is that men and women can learn from each other. By learning and adopting some of each other’s strengths the outcome will be better well rounded managers. The behavior of women and men in a group tends to differ in regards to the way they handle similar goals. Women are open and like to share and discuss problems which open up the opportunity to explore with others how to resolve the issue. Men prefer to work more independently and like to approach a problem one piece at a time. Men see themselves as either "one up or one down" in relation to others. They need to "preserve independence and avoid failure." Women, on the other hand, tend to see the world as a "network of connections," and their communications and interpretations of others' communications seek to "preserve intimacy and avoid isolation." (Hahn & Litwin, 1995). Both of these communication styles can work and they each have their own benefit. By women being open and getting others involved this can lead to too many opinions which can cause problems. Men on the other hand by working more independently may lose out on helpful input by others. Both men and women bring their own strengths to a project. Women tend to be more relationship oriented and accomplish tasks by building relationships first. This allows them to become familiar with each member of the team and makes them feel

comfortable to ask others to get things done. Men tend to be more task oriented and go straight to the task or problem. This allows them to stay focused on the task and avoids discussing issues that may not be relevant to the goal. A combination of these two approaches can lead to a better solution to the task at hand. The challenge that is evident among men and women in the work place is miscommunication. This is where the biggest differences occur. Women and men who work together often get tied up in communication knots, especially over issues that involve power, advocacy and managing their teams. That’s because the sexes have distinct ways of communicating ("Business Women in Management Differ from Men in Style, Not Skills", 2008). They need to realize that these differences exist and find a way to accept each other’s way of communicating and not to get offended or irritated because it is not the way they do things. In order to increase the effectiveness of the group men and women need to get past the communication gap between them. They both need to be open to each other’s point of view and how they tackle the task or goal they are currently working on. If they both focused on the strengths that they brought to the table it will benefit their team and company as a whole. Based on this case study the following actions will help to strengthen the effectiveness in a mixed-sex work situation:
1. Recognize and appreciate the difference between the approach that men and women take to complete a task.

2. Realize that men and women approach tasks in a different way due to gender and social upbringing and that it is not necessarily about a power struggle between the two.

3. Embrace the differences between men and women and use them to benefit the team instead of having it cause a problem. In conclusion relationships between men and women whether in the work place or in a personal setting do not have to be difficult. They just need to realize that they are different and that these differences do not need to cause frustration and can actually benefit each other if looked upon as an asset instead of a hindrance.

Bibliography

Appelbaum, S. H., Audet, L., & Miller, J. C. (2003). Gender and leadership? Leadership and gender? A journey through the landscape of theories. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 24(1/2), 43-51.

Business Women in Management Differ from Men in Style, Not Skills. (2008). Management Training By and For Contemporary Career Women. Retrieved December 1, 2012, from http://www.coaching-for-new-women-managers.com/business-women.html

Hahn, S., & Litwin, A. (1995). Article - Women and Men: Understanding & Respecting Gender Differences in the Workplace. Ann Litwin and Associates. Retrieved December 1, 2012, from http://www.annelitwin.com/publications/genderatwork.html