What Citi’s New CEO Can Teach Us About Succeeding in a Man’s World

It was a truly earth-shattering decision. CNN calls it “unthinkable on Wall Street.” What did Jane Fraser, the new CEO of Citi (and the first woman ever to run a major Wall Street bank) do to cause such a stir? She told her employees to leave work at 5:00.

Last March, Fraser announced that the bank was encouraging its people not to schedule meetings outside of work hours, and to keep Fridays Zoom-free. And once employees do return to the office, they can work a hybrid schedule, working two days from home. This is in sharp contrast to Citi’s competitors, whose “Stop piddling around at home and get your butts back to the office!” approach has been on display for some time.

Fraser is, of course, being strategic, as this angle will lure talent to the firm. But she’s also a working mother doing what makes sense. (Fraser has two children.) Pandemic-stressed employees have been asking for and need and want flexibility. And working mothers have needed and wanted flexibility, well, forever.

It’s no accident that Fraser’s approach is different. There is plenty of research out there telling us that women lead differently than men—in ways that tend to make companies more successful. They also bring different priorities to their leadership roles having to do with community, family, and inclusion.

But how to you get the chance to make that kind of a difference? Getting to the very top of the ladder isn’t easy for women in male-dominated industries. What Fraser shows us is that you do have to respect how male communication and power work, but it doesn’t mean you have to “act like a man.” Here’s an example:

There are certain communication styles, like straightforwardness, that are valued and expected in male-dominated environments, but you can do it in your way. Fraser says, “I do it with empathy…I always imagine myself as the other side of the audience and how would I like to hear things. And so I have learnt the courage to talk straight, but if you do it with empathy, you can be a straight talker without being an unpleasant person.” That take is unique to Fraser, and I would argue decidedly female. And it most certainly has not stopped her from getting to the top.

Thinking that women can simply transform male-dominated industries is foolish. We have to master the game before we can change it. And we don’t have to give up ourselves in the process. In fact, we can’t. Our true power lies in our authenticity, and that includes our femaleness.

So get in the game, and do it your way.