acts: Asians are the fastest-growing group in the U.S. labor force and are projected to increase their representation from 5 percent to 11 percent between 2000 and 2050. A 2003 Catalyst Report discovered that although Asian American women make up a growing and important source of talent in the workforce, they constitute merely 0.29% of corporate officers in Fortune 500 companies.

With the economy, customer base, and talent pool of the Unit-
ed States becoming increasingly globally focused, Asian American women are a growing segment of the workforce that organizations can no longer afford to ignore. Their bicultural and bilingual assets offer cultural capital to their employers. However, their full potential has yet to be tapped, as Asian American women may encounter a variety of personal and organizational challenges on the road to the executive suite.

Being bicultural has its advantages, but it also carries the burden of straddling two worlds in an effort to navigate both. Some of the hurdles faced by Asian American women arise from deeply embedded cultural values, family experiences, and community expectations. Many report that they have to operate one way at home (respectful of elders, self-effacing for the sake of family and in-laws), and then are required to behave differently at the office, where they are rewarded for their initiative, outspokenness, and risk-taking.

Asian
Women are a growning segment of the work force that organizations can no longer afford to ignore.

Asian American woman often mention that the deep-rooted cultural value of respect for authority, although admirable, can contribute to an employee’s reluctance to question the boss’s decisions and may lead colleagues to view her as a yes-woman. Similarly, a worker who hesitates to speak up about her contributions during a meeting may be seen as lacking self-promotional skills. Take, for example, Jennifer Woo (whose identity has been changed for privacy), 32, an operations manager for a large bank in New York City. After struggling with political infighting for six months, she says, “I decided to share with my boss the cultural challenges that stem from being raised in a very traditional Asian family, where I was taught not to publicly confront people in senior roles. Her response left me numb. She told me, ‘Jennifer, it’s hard for every woman out there! You’ll just have to learn to deal with it.’” Had her manager responded, “Tell me more about some of these cultural challenges,” Jennifer might have felt that her experience was validated.

Managers can learn from Jennifer’s experience by coaching Asian American women and asking them open-ended questions about their experience in a genuine effort to connect with them. Companies can benefit from discovering and supporting the talents of this growing workforce by empowering them to leverage their strengths in order to break through the bamboo ceiling. DW

Jane Hyun, author of Breaking the Bamboo Ceiling (HarperCollins, 2005) and president of Hyun & Associates, is an executive coach and multicultural leadership strategist living in New York City. Visit: www.janehyun.com.