Wake Forest Faculty Discuss Mayer's CEO Post at Yahoo

Mayer

The Huffington Post published an intuitive column this weekend by Sherry Moss, a professor at the Wake Forest University Schools of Business, and Gina Katzmark, who works in the marketing department. The duo examined Yahoo's decision to appoint former Google executive Marissa Mayer as CEO and her subsequent Twitter announcement that she is pregnant, pondering whether it is possible for woman to have it all in terms of a professional career and a family.

Their conclusion? That no one can ultimately "have it all" and that the best outcome is instead to have the most of both professional and personal pursuits. Here are some excerpts from the column, which can be read in its entirety here.

Moss

"Personally, I have concluded that no one can have it all," Moss wrote in her section of the column.

"It's just not possible to be in two places at the same time," Moss added. "Inevitably, one life will interfere with the other and a person literally cannot do it all! Optimistically though, I DO believe that we can have most of both! I have most of both: a challenging job and the flexibility to do most (but not all) of the things I would like to do with my kids. I am not always able to do everything and sometimes I sacrifice one for the other, but I do believe I have most of both."

The key, Moss wrote, is to have flexibility at work.

Katzmark concurred, though her decision-making to date has been focused more on her professional career. "[T]he further along I progressed in business school and the more I learned about the reality of gender diversity (or the lack thereof) in the c-suite and corporate boards, I became even less interested in attempting motherhood."

It seemed, however, that Mayer's choices could influence Katzmark and other career-oriented women going forward. "Then, Yahoo gave Marissa Mayer a chance," she concluded. "The board judged her on her track record and credentials, not her hairstyle, wardrobe or the status of her womb. It's time for the rest of us, both men and women, to follow suit. Maybe I don't have to choose between a life as an executive or a life as a parent."