Breaking the Bamboo Ceiling: Career Strategies for Asians

Despite popular media's stereotype of Asian Americans as being highly educated and successful, they are all but absent in executive suite positions in the corporate world. As the ethnic minority with the largest percentage of tertiary graduates, many Asian Americans join the corporate workforce but seem to stall in their career paths. Jane Hyun outlines the essential career guide for every Asian American and their co-workers to bridge the cap between Asian cultural values and Western corporate culture.

Publisher Comments:

You're educated and ambitious. Sure, the hours are long and corporate politics are a bane, but you focus on getting the job done, confident that you will be rewarded in the long run. Yet, somehow, your hard work isn't paying off, and you watch from the sidelines as your colleagues get promoted. Those who make it to management positions in this intensely competitive corporate environment seem to understand an unwritten code for marketing and aligning themselves politically. Furthermore, your strong work ethic and raw intelligence were sufficient when you started at the firm, but now they're expecting you to be a rainmaker who can "bring in clients" and "exert influence" on others. The top of the career ladder seems beyond your reach. Perhaps you?ve hit the bamboo ceiling.

For the last decade, Asian Americans have been the fastest growing population in the United States. Asians comprise the largest college graduate population in America, and are often referred to as the "Model Minority" – but they continue to lag in the American workplace. If qualified Asians are entering the workforce with the right credentials, why aren't they making it to the corner offices and corporate boardrooms?

Career coach Jane Hyun explains that Asians have not been able to break the "bamboo ceiling" because many are unable to effectively manage the cultural influences shaping their individual characteristics and workplace behavior — factors that are often at odds with the competencies needed to succeed at work. Traditional Asian cultural values can conflict with dominant corporate culture on many levels, resulting in a costly gap that individuals and companies need to bridge. The subtle, unconscious behavioral differences exhibited by Asian employees are often misinterpreted by their non-Asian counterparts, resulting in lost career opportunities and untapped talent.

Never before has this dichotomy been so thoroughly explored, and in this insightful book, Hyun uses case studies, interviews and anecdotes to identify the issues and provide strategies for Asian Americans to succeed in corporate America. Managers will learn how to support the Asian members of their teams to realize their full potential and to maintain their competitive edge in today’s multicultural workplace.

Book News Annotation:

Career coach Hyun helps Asian Americans understand the effects of their cultural values on career advancement in the competitive corporate environment. Though they are the fastest-growing population in the US and comprise the largest college graduate population in the country, Asians lag in the workplace, often overlooked for promotions and rarely selected for the special projects and teams that lead to increased exposure among senior management. Hyun attributes the situation to deep-seated attitudes and behaviors that can cause misunderstandings in a Western business setting, and offers practical ideas and case studies to help change things. She includes stories of people from a variety of Asian ethnicities. Hyun notes that the information may also help non-Asian managers better understand a diverse work force.
Annotation ?2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Synopsis:

Despite popular media's stereotype of Asian Americans as being highly educated and successful, they are all but absent in executive suite positions in the corporate world. As the ethnic minority with the largest percentage of tertiary graduates, many Asian Americans join the corporate workforce but seem to stall in their career paths. Jane Hyun outlines the essential career guide for every Asian American and their co-workers to bridge the cap between Asian cultural values and Western corporate culture.

About the Author

Jane Hyun is a career coach, human resourcesconsultant and diversity strategist to Fortune 500 companies. Previously, shewas a VP of Human Resources at JP Morgan, and a Director of Recruiting at Deloitte & Touche and Resources Connection. She has written for Monster.com, the Five O'Clock Club, and speaks regularly to corporations,alumni groups, schools, and industry associations. She has appeared on "CNN", "CNBC", and various local and national media. She serves on the Advisory Boardfor the Diversity and Inclusion Institute at Bennett College. She graduatedfrom Cornell University and lives in New York City.

From Booklist
A different take on people issues that corporations face is proffered by Hyun, a former human resources executive who knows the subject well. After all, she points out, Asian Americans are growing 41 percent faster than any other demographic group yet hold only 12.5 percent of U.S. management positions. What underlies those startling statistics is one word: culture. Eastern values are almost diametrically opposed to Western. Asians are risk averse, for instance, preferring to keep their heads down rather than speak up or confront workplace issues. That emphasis on collective decision making and conflict avoidance hinders career advancement, at best, and, at worst, can derail future vocational choices. Hyun's help is multiple, from individual profiles and skill-defining exercises to interviewing and mentoring tips, all geared to the special needs of people growing up Asian in a very macho, aggressive culture.
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Barbara Jacobs

Book Dimension
Height (mm) 237 　　　　　　　　　　　　 Width (mm) 167

Despite popular media's stereotype of Asian Americans as being highly educated and successful, they are all but absent in executive suite positions in the corporate world. As the ethnic minority with the largest percentage of tertiary graduates, many Asian Americans join the corporate workforce but seem to stall in their career paths. Jane Hyun outlines the essential career guide for every Asian American and their co-workers to bridge the cap between Asian cultural values and Western corporate culture.

Publisher Comments:

You're educated and ambitious. Sure, the hours are long and corporate politics are a bane, but you focus on getting the job done, confident that you will be rewarded in the long run. Yet, somehow, your hard work isn't paying off, and you watch from the sidelines as your colleagues get promoted. Those who make it to management positions in this intensely competitive corporate environment seem to understand an unwritten code for marketing and aligning themselves politically. Furthermore, your strong work ethic and raw intelligence were sufficient when you started at the firm, but now they're expecting you to be a rainmaker who can "bring in clients" and "exert influence" on others. The top of the career ladder seems beyond your reach. Perhaps you?ve hit the bamboo ceiling.

For the last decade, Asian Americans have been the fastest growing population in the United States. Asians comprise the largest college graduate population in America, and are often referred to as the "Model Minority" – but they continue to lag in the American workplace. If qualified Asians are entering the workforce with the right credentials, why aren't they making it to the corner offices and corporate boardrooms?

Career coach Jane Hyun explains that Asians have not been able to break the "bamboo ceiling" because many are unable to effectively manage the cultural influences shaping their individual characteristics and workplace behavior — factors that are often at odds with the competencies needed to succeed at work. Traditional Asian cultural values can conflict with dominant corporate culture on many levels, resulting in a costly gap that individuals and companies need to bridge. The subtle, unconscious behavioral differences exhibited by Asian employees are often misinterpreted by their non-Asian counterparts, resulting in lost career opportunities and untapped talent.

Never before has this dichotomy been so thoroughly explored, and in this insightful book, Hyun uses case studies, interviews and anecdotes to identify the issues and provide strategies for Asian Americans to succeed in corporate America. Managers will learn how to support the Asian members of their teams to realize their full potential and to maintain their competitive edge in today’s multicultural workplace.

Book News Annotation:

Career coach Hyun helps Asian Americans understand the effects of their cultural values on career advancement in the competitive corporate environment. Though they are the fastest-growing population in the US and comprise the largest college graduate population in the country, Asians lag in the workplace, often overlooked for promotions and rarely selected for the special projects and teams that lead to increased exposure among senior management. Hyun attributes the situation to deep-seated attitudes and behaviors that can cause misunderstandings in a Western business setting, and offers practical ideas and case studies to help change things. She includes stories of people from a variety of Asian ethnicities. Hyun notes that the information may also help non-Asian managers better understand a diverse work force.
Annotation ?2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Synopsis:

Despite popular media's stereotype of Asian Americans as being highly educated and successful, they are all but absent in executive suite positions in the corporate world. As the ethnic minority with the largest percentage of tertiary graduates, many Asian Americans join the corporate workforce but seem to stall in their career paths. Jane Hyun outlines the essential career guide for every Asian American and their co-workers to bridge the cap between Asian cultural values and Western corporate culture.

About the Author

Jane Hyun is a career coach, human resourcesconsultant and diversity strategist to Fortune 500 companies. Previously, shewas a VP of Human Resources at JP Morgan, and a Director of Recruiting at Deloitte & Touche and Resources Connection. She has written for Monster.com, the Five O'Clock Club, and speaks regularly to corporations,alumni groups, schools, and industry associations. She has appeared on "CNN", "CNBC", and various local and national media. She serves on the Advisory Boardfor the Diversity and Inclusion Institute at Bennett College. She graduatedfrom Cornell University and lives in New York City.

From Booklist
A different take on people issues that corporations face is proffered by Hyun, a former human resources executive who knows the subject well. After all, she points out, Asian Americans are growing 41 percent faster than any other demographic group yet hold only 12.5 percent of U.S. management positions. What underlies those startling statistics is one word: culture. Eastern values are almost diametrically opposed to Western. Asians are risk averse, for instance, preferring to keep their heads down rather than speak up or confront workplace issues. That emphasis on collective decision making and conflict avoidance hinders career advancement, at best, and, at worst, can derail future vocational choices. Hyun's help is multiple, from individual profiles and skill-defining exercises to interviewing and mentoring tips, all geared to the special needs of people growing up Asian in a very macho, aggressive culture.
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Barbara Jacobs

Book Dimension
Height (mm) 237 　　　　　　　　　　　　 Width (mm) 167