Recently, SteelBridge Solutions, Inc. earned certification as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, a non-profit organization that provides certification, opportunities, and resources to businesses owned, controlled, and operated by women. Excited by this honor, I attended the annual WBENC Summit and Salute in New Orleans last month. Conscious of the never-ending debate about the differences between women and men in how they approach business, I paid particular attention to interpersonal dynamics.
Here’s what I noticed: Everyone at Summit and Salute was making introductions, looking for opportunities to partner or collaborate, and offering advice, coaching, and feedback on everything from sales pitches to business card design. From my perch at the communal table in the center of the room, I observed an interesting phenomenon. When a conference attendee came in, she only sat alone for a few minutes before at least one person approached and started a conversation. I have no idea how many ‘deals’ were done, but lots of connections were made and relationships started or strengthened.
Relationships.
Instinctively, I’d identified one of the biggest differences between men and women, described succinctly in a recent article about women entrepreneurs on the Regions Financial Corporation website. The article quotes Nada Jones, founder and CEO of ltd365.
“Men lead with a handshake and, ‘Here’s my title,’ and they begin talking from that space,” [Jones] says. “They generally begin talking about what it is they do and what it is they’re after in the other person. But for women, often it begins with, ‘I love what you’re wearing,’ or, ‘I heard you say you’re a mother.’ It begins from the relationship, it begins with, ‘I want to know you, and then I want to know about your business,’ whereas men more often approach it from the business side…Fostering a personal connection from the start lays a foundation of trust and paves the way for more open and transparent collaboration.”
Women invest in building relationships and want to do business with others who are willing to do the same. A theme that kept coming up at the conference was the notion of “coming back.” One business owner even said—and I’m paraphrasing—”The first time we see you, we acknowledge you. The second time, we want to get to know you. The third time, we want to do business with you.”
Don’t misunderstand – there was healthy competition among the women at the Summit and Salute for available opportunities. At the same time, these women were eager to partner and collaborate to drive more business—a very different mindset from the common belief that the business “pie” is only so big and everyone has to fight to get their sliver. These women believe in a coordinated, holistic approach. They believe that when teams go to market, combining their expertise, they uncover more related opportunities. The result: more pie!
That concept appeals to me for several reasons. First, I’m a bit of an open book, unhappy when I’m playing games. Second, I’ve observed competition get ugly and hurt everyone involved, including the client. Third, I can’t be everything to my clients, so I’m thrilled when I can recommend others whom I trust. In that spirit, I’ll be “coming back” to WBENC at a regional event with BMW in Greenville, SC later this week and at the National Conference in Philadelphia in June. I have no doubt that my relationships will be stronger and the pool of extraordinary resources I can bring to bear for my clients will be larger when I return home!
I would love to get your thoughts…what have you observed when working with women leaders and business owners?