Women at Work

By Harvard Business Review

Women face gender discrimination throughout our careers. It doesn't have to derail our ambitions — but how do we prepare to deal with it? There's no workplace orientation session about narrowing the w... more

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FAQs about Women at Work:

How many episodes does Women at Work have?

The podcast currently has 163 episodes available.

Best of Women at Work

The most played episodes among Podcast App listeners.

Number 1: Managing Up, One Conversation at a Time
Have you ever realized, partway through a project, that you and your boss aren’t on the same page? Maybe your definitions of success differed, or their expectations were unclear. Maybe you couldn’t get them to listen, or you couldn’t figure out why they insisted on doing things a certain way. Managing up means tackling these disconnects head-on—and doing it through honest, well-timed discussions. Executive coach Melody Wilding joins Amy G to explain why alignment on goals and clarity around working styles are essential. They talk through how to start these conversations without awkwardness, what to say to make them productive, and how to adapt your approach without losing your authenticity. Plus, they answer listener questions and hear from Amy B about how she handles alignment with both her boss and her team. Guest expert: Melody Wilding is an executive coach, human behavior professor, and author of Managing Up: How to Get What You Need from the People in Charge. Resources: “The Essentials: Managing Up,” from Women at Work “7 Questions to Decode Your Managers Priorities,” by Melody Wilding “Before You Start Collaborating with Someone, Talk About Your Work Styles,” by Anke Thiele “28 Questions to Ask Your Boss in Your One-on-Ones,” by Steven G. Rogelberg et al. “Managing Up When Leadership Is Stuck in the Weeds,” Ian Gross and Samir Ranavat “When Your Manager is Ineffective—and You Feel Stuck,” by Sarah Mann and Luis Velasquez Sign up for the Women at Work newsletter.
June 02, 202538min
Number 2: That’s Our Show
This is the last episode of the most meaningful project we’ve ever been part of. The Amys couldn’t imagine signing off without telling you why the podcast is ending, reminiscing with founding producer Amanda Kersey, and fitting in two final Ask the Amys questions. HBR’s Maureen Hoch is here too, to tell the origin story of the show—because it was her idea, and a good one, right? Saying goodbye to all the women who’ve listened since 2018 is gut-wrenching. If the podcast made a difference in your life, please bring us to tears/make us smile with an email: [email protected]. If and when you do that, you’ll receive an auto reply that includes a list of episodes organized by topic. Hopefully that will direct you to perspectives and advice that’ll help you make sense of your experiences, aim high, go after what you need, get through tough times, and take care of yourself. That’s the sort of insight and support we’ve spent the past eight years aiming to give this audience, and you all have in turn given so much back—to the Women at Work team and to one another.
July 07, 202534min
Number 3: Let Go of the Beliefs That Limit How You Lead
Many of us have internal beliefs—I need it done now, I know I’m right, I need to be involved—that feel like truth but actually hold us back as leaders. Executive coach Muriel Wilkins calls these counterproductive beliefs “hidden blockers,” and she talks the Amys through the process of identifying theirs and then reframing them. They also explore how blockers show up at the team and organizational level, like when lack of trust leads to a bloated meeting culture. Muriel shares how leaders can encourage mindset shifts in their organizations, beginning with themselves, and how to create conditions that allow others to examine what’s driving their behavior without judgment or overreach. Guest expert: Muriel Wilkins is an executive coach who hosts the HBR podcast Coaching Real Leaders and whose latest book is Leadership Unblocked: Break Through the Beliefs That Limit Your Potential. Resources: “What Self-Awareness Really Is (and How to Cultivate It),” by Tasha Eurich “Becoming More Collaborative — When You Like to Be in Control,” by Jenny Fernandez and Luis Velasquez “Are You a Micromanager or Too Hands-Off?” by Carole-Ann Penney “How to Manage Someone Who Thinks Everything Is Urgent,” by Liz Kislik “The Insidious Effects of Hurrying,” by Kandi Wiens Sign up for the Women at Work newsletter. Email us: [email protected]
June 16, 202535min
Number 4: Consumed by Caregiving
Marti Bledsoe, a past guest of the show, recounts how she burned out, quit her job, intended to get a new job after taking a breather, and then wasn’t able to for over a year. That’s because someone in her family kept getting sick or hurt, she had to move twice, and all of the logistics and emotional support fell to her (because who else was going to do it?!). These ever-expanding, relentless set of responsibilities is the norm for lots of women in the U.S., especially mothers. Sociologist Jessica Calarco joins Marti and Amy B to help make sense of Marti’s exhausting year of unpaid work and the forces that put her and other women into the position of being people’s default, unpaid caregiver. Guest expert: Jessica Calarco is a sociologist at the University of Wisconsin and the author of the book Holding It Together: How Women Became America’s Safety Net. Resources: “Your Employees Are Also Caregivers. Here’s How to Support Them,” by Gretchen Gavett “Working While Managing Your Child’s Mental Health,” from Women at Work “When You’re Responsible for Eldercare,” from Women at Work Sign up for the Women at Work newsletter. Email us: [email protected]
November 25, 202441min
Number 5: Working While Parenting a Teen: Not What I Expected
Do you expect and hope that you’ll have more time for yourself and for your career as your kids become teens and young adults? Amy G did. However, she didn’t fully anticipate the emotional intensity of being a working mom of a teenager. Responding to seemingly urgent texts, keeping track of an ever-changing after-school schedule, and being an on-call problem-solver would affect anyone’s ability to focus, including hers. There’s little research on or conversation about this phase of working motherhood, and Amy wants to help other working moms not not only get through it but enjoy it as much as possible. She’s joined by Babson College professor Danna Greenberg, who’s the co-author of Maternal Optimism and a mother of three twenty-somethings. Amy and Danna talk though questions like, How do I recover my focus after my kid calls to unload? How might I counter people’s judgy comments about how involved (or not) I am in my teen’s life? How can I avoid becoming my kid’s de facto boss? Guest expert: Danna Greenberg is a professor of organizational behavior at Babson College and the co-author of the book Maternal Optimism: Forging Positive Paths through Work and Motherhood. Resources: “The Upside of Working Motherhood,” from Women at Work “How Being a Working Parent Changes as Children Grow Up,” by Danna Greenberg and Jamie Ladge “How Working Parents Can Manage the Demands of School-Age Kids,” by Daisy Dowling The HBR Working Parents Series Collection, by Harvard Business Review Sign up for the Women at Work newsletter. Email us: [email protected]
November 18, 202453min