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Beyond Leaning In: Gender Equity and What Organizations are Up Against
Professional women are tired of being told to just lean in.
What about…
the challenges that make it harder for women to lean in,
the unequal rewards and penalties when they do, and
the fact that “leaning in and acting more like men” ignores the stereotypically feminine traits needed for modern leadership?
Beyond Leaning In tells the story of Debra, a pioneering CEO in her early sixties who is much beloved by her team at her growing start-up. But sales are declining, and her strongest women leaders are departing one after the other.
It isn’t until she enlists the “reverse mentorship” of the much younger Cassandra that Debra begins to understand the challenges the next generation of women leaders face and the impact on the bottom line. But can she respond fast enough to save her company and her job?
Beyond Leaning In is a different kind of business book—based on research, but told as a novel and designed to spark discussion among friends, family, classmates, and co-workers across genders and generations.
Through the perspective of female and male characters across generations, readers gain new insights about why gender gaps are so hard to close despite our best intentions. We are inspired to think differently about what both individuals and organizations must do to ensure all employees thrive.
What about…
the challenges that make it harder for women to lean in,
the unequal rewards and penalties when they do, and
the fact that “leaning in and acting more like men” ignores the stereotypically feminine traits needed for modern leadership?
Beyond Leaning In tells the story of Debra, a pioneering CEO in her early sixties who is much beloved by her team at her growing start-up. But sales are declining, and her strongest women leaders are departing one after the other.
It isn’t until she enlists the “reverse mentorship” of the much younger Cassandra that Debra begins to understand the challenges the next generation of women leaders face and the impact on the bottom line. But can she respond fast enough to save her company and her job?
Beyond Leaning In is a different kind of business book—based on research, but told as a novel and designed to spark discussion among friends, family, classmates, and co-workers across genders and generations.
Through the perspective of female and male characters across generations, readers gain new insights about why gender gaps are so hard to close despite our best intentions. We are inspired to think differently about what both individuals and organizations must do to ensure all employees thrive.
348 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 8, 2021
20 people are currently reading
570 people want to read
About the author
Melanie Ho
1 book6 followersIn writing BEYOND LEANING IN, Melanie drew from hundreds of conversations with women across industries, secondary literature, and her own experience becoming a corporate executive in her thirties. Her career has also included serving as a consultant to hundreds of university presidents, vice presidents, and deans; teaching literature at UCLA while earning her PhD in English; and being a political activist and organizer.
She is the founder of Strategic Imagination, a firm dedicated to supporting organizations with transformational change.
View her feminist webcomics, based on scenes from her book, on Instagram (@melanieho13) or her website (http://www.melanieho.com).
She was born and raised in California and currently resides in Washington, DC.
She is the founder of Strategic Imagination, a firm dedicated to supporting organizations with transformational change.
View her feminist webcomics, based on scenes from her book, on Instagram (@melanieho13) or her website (http://www.melanieho.com).
She was born and raised in California and currently resides in Washington, DC.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
March 8, 2021
Beyond Leaning In is a business book for the future. By weaving essential equity research and concepts into a page-turning novel, Melanie Ho gives us the perspective and understanding we need to be true champions for intersectional equity in our workplaces and beyond.
I loved this book for so many reasons:
(1) I couldn't get over how smart and effective it was in integrating practical management advice and business research into a page-turning novel. This whole new genre that Ho has created understands that storytelling is an incredibly effective way of helping readers learn new concepts, reflect on how they've shown up in our own lives, and then apply those new concepts in our own work.
(2) In Beyond Leaning In, we see what happens when the potential and talent of various team members are thwarted by existing cultural norms. Many organizations struggle with retaining and unlocking the full potential of their team members due to the "unwritten rules" that exist, and the gender norms that drive many workplaces today play a significant role in who advances, what success looks like, and how leaders signal who is most valuable.
(3) This book makes us think. There are no easy answers, but there are so many great places to start - with intention - evolving our workplaces into holistically inclusive and equitable environments.
(4) While this book focuses on gender equity, I found the sections about intersectional identity and equity especially powerful.
This is a book for everyone - and especially for managers - to help us create future-minded workplaces that drive performance and progress through inclusion and equity.
I loved this book for so many reasons:
(1) I couldn't get over how smart and effective it was in integrating practical management advice and business research into a page-turning novel. This whole new genre that Ho has created understands that storytelling is an incredibly effective way of helping readers learn new concepts, reflect on how they've shown up in our own lives, and then apply those new concepts in our own work.
(2) In Beyond Leaning In, we see what happens when the potential and talent of various team members are thwarted by existing cultural norms. Many organizations struggle with retaining and unlocking the full potential of their team members due to the "unwritten rules" that exist, and the gender norms that drive many workplaces today play a significant role in who advances, what success looks like, and how leaders signal who is most valuable.
(3) This book makes us think. There are no easy answers, but there are so many great places to start - with intention - evolving our workplaces into holistically inclusive and equitable environments.
(4) While this book focuses on gender equity, I found the sections about intersectional identity and equity especially powerful.
This is a book for everyone - and especially for managers - to help us create future-minded workplaces that drive performance and progress through inclusion and equity.
June 9, 2021
I thought that using fiction to illustrate all the different forms sexism can take in the workplace was really clever. Business books can be so boring, but using consistent characters throughout the book made the concepts so clear, and directly showed the consequences of the characters' actions. Yes, some of the characters give little speeches explaining why something is sexist that you wouldn't necessarily hear in real life, but, honestly, it gave me some good ideas for how to articulate the same ideas to other people in the workplace.
Melanie Ho makes it clear that this book is only about the gender equity gap. It very briefly touches on the intersection of other identities with gender, but that's not what the book's about, and a single book can't be all things to all people. This isn't the *only* book you'd want to read for your company's diversity, equity, and inclusion program, but I'd definitely include it on the reading list.
I've experienced (or at least witnessed) every SINGLE example of sexism in this book. If you're a woman or female-presenting, I'm sure you have too. You might not need to be taught that sexism exists, but I did appreciate the new ways of talking about specific gender equity problems presented here. Obviously, the people who really need to read this are men, but I don't hold out much hope that they will. Hmmm, maybe I could anonymously send copies to a long list of people...
Melanie Ho makes it clear that this book is only about the gender equity gap. It very briefly touches on the intersection of other identities with gender, but that's not what the book's about, and a single book can't be all things to all people. This isn't the *only* book you'd want to read for your company's diversity, equity, and inclusion program, but I'd definitely include it on the reading list.
I've experienced (or at least witnessed) every SINGLE example of sexism in this book. If you're a woman or female-presenting, I'm sure you have too. You might not need to be taught that sexism exists, but I did appreciate the new ways of talking about specific gender equity problems presented here. Obviously, the people who really need to read this are men, but I don't hold out much hope that they will. Hmmm, maybe I could anonymously send copies to a long list of people...
February 17, 2022
I was hesitant about reading this book, but I thought it was great. I appreciated that it was written as a novel but founded in research. It says it wants to be thought provoking and it is. I will definitely be recommending this to colleagues and friends.
I agree with Nicole Finch's review, so read that.
I agree with Nicole Finch's review, so read that.
April 1, 2022
Great to see in fiction, laying out the different types of ways that unconscious bias (and other forms of racism/sexism/ageism) influence subtle workplace actions, build up over time and across situations where people do or do not notice it or say nothing about it, thereby further condoning such behaviors/actions.
I would have liked to see more meaningful examples of what "works" - e.g. how to navigate radical candor conversations or confrontations -- there are a few examples of these but they by and large occur as one-on-ones between the company's C-suite execs and the "chosen" employees that they seek to lead them into the 'woke' future.
There are also a few chapters where a male character who hangs out with female colleagues stays silent when he could advocate for his colleagues and it makes me question how realistic we should be about 'expecting' those in the majority to acknowledge and promote the work of underrepresented people.
The company also doesn't seem to find a solution for the fact that their highest performing staff (majority women) are also the ones with the lowest engagement scores. All in all, it was great to see reflected in fiction some of my experiences but doesn't quite hit home in terms of productive, specific actionable things for leaders to do differently. And maybe that's the point: there isn't a silver bullet for equity and inclusion in the workplace..until folks in leadership positions have their own 'a-ha' moments.
I would have liked to see more meaningful examples of what "works" - e.g. how to navigate radical candor conversations or confrontations -- there are a few examples of these but they by and large occur as one-on-ones between the company's C-suite execs and the "chosen" employees that they seek to lead them into the 'woke' future.
There are also a few chapters where a male character who hangs out with female colleagues stays silent when he could advocate for his colleagues and it makes me question how realistic we should be about 'expecting' those in the majority to acknowledge and promote the work of underrepresented people.
The company also doesn't seem to find a solution for the fact that their highest performing staff (majority women) are also the ones with the lowest engagement scores. All in all, it was great to see reflected in fiction some of my experiences but doesn't quite hit home in terms of productive, specific actionable things for leaders to do differently. And maybe that's the point: there isn't a silver bullet for equity and inclusion in the workplace..until folks in leadership positions have their own 'a-ha' moments.
June 21, 2021
I expected to nod along in agreement with the ideas in this book, and I did. I didn't expect to love it so much as a novel--but I do. Melanie Ho swept me into the story and made me care about the characters and their predicaments, even the ones whose viewpoints I disagreed with or whose lived experiences were vastly different from my own. When the novel weaves in research on gender equity and DEI, Ho puts those ideas into the mouths of characters who could legitimately have read that research for work or personal development--so the comments feel believable and grounded in experience. Readers looking for more information can find it in the helpful endnotes, but the story holds up on its own. Best of all, Melanie Ho's story doesn't stop short at dramatizing the challenges women and organizations face. Beyond Leaning In gives us characters who struggle and yet keep striving to imagine their way into a better organization and a better world--and in doing so the book inspires readers to keep struggling and striving too. I'm recommending this book to friends and colleagues of all gender identities and can't wait to see what Melanie Ho publishes next. If you haven't checked out the webcomics yet, you won't regret doing so.
June 14, 2024
I had the pleasure of hearing Dr. Ho deliver an inspiring keynote speech/drawing activity at a women’s leadership conference earlier this year, and couldn’t wait to read her book. Melanie’s use of fiction (and comics, in other settings) better characterizes gender equity and DEI lessons for organizations beyond what another HR training or dull non-fiction read. It is heartbreaking that I have either firsthand experienced, or know a woman-identifying friend/colleague who has dealt every single one of these scenarios. It also makes me feel guilty for times that I have been a “Debra” in being complicit, or not a better advocate or ally for others in creating long-lasting institutional improvement. Obviously there is no easy fix or silver bullet, but this book does leave the reader with questions, challenges, and ideas for future action.
P.S. Is there where the “bear or man” hypothetical conundrum started?!
P.S. Is there where the “bear or man” hypothetical conundrum started?!
April 15, 2021
A fiction that spoke to my non-fiction
A small group of my friends started a a book club so we could stay connected during the pandemic. As we started this book the characters were immediately recognizable and their experiences were all too real. I love the different perspectives she offers and humanizes even the most frustrating characters.
Working in HR for a corporation, the scenarios seemed all too real that I often found myself or cases I knew of described to a “T” in these pages.
Melanie’s response to “Lean In” hit home for my friends and I who continuously are leaning in, raising our hands, asserting ourselves and still get undermined, feel unseen, and talked over. She illustrates in her stories that real change should not just come from the people who want/need the change but more importantly should be championed by those who have the power to change it.
A small group of my friends started a a book club so we could stay connected during the pandemic. As we started this book the characters were immediately recognizable and their experiences were all too real. I love the different perspectives she offers and humanizes even the most frustrating characters.
Working in HR for a corporation, the scenarios seemed all too real that I often found myself or cases I knew of described to a “T” in these pages.
Melanie’s response to “Lean In” hit home for my friends and I who continuously are leaning in, raising our hands, asserting ourselves and still get undermined, feel unseen, and talked over. She illustrates in her stories that real change should not just come from the people who want/need the change but more importantly should be championed by those who have the power to change it.
November 1, 2021
Absolutely loved this book! Inequality based on subtle (and some not so subtle) biases is so prevalent in many industries. I’ve seen this repeatedly in tech organizations, and experienced a similar struggle to the characters in this book. I found myself cheering along for the characters throughout the whole thing as if it were real. It just felt so relatable!
The book gives a variety of ways to talk about and address issues in the workplace, with many perspectives. I’m going to keep some of these conversations in my back pocket for when I inevitably come across them in the real world.
I was energized and motivated by this book to address these issues as I see them come up. And I can’t stop talking about it and sharing the stories. Would highly recommend!
The book gives a variety of ways to talk about and address issues in the workplace, with many perspectives. I’m going to keep some of these conversations in my back pocket for when I inevitably come across them in the real world.
I was energized and motivated by this book to address these issues as I see them come up. And I can’t stop talking about it and sharing the stories. Would highly recommend!
January 27, 2022
This is a helpful and insightful book. Melanie Ho has woven a powerful message into an easy read. It keeps you thinking, reflecting on experiences you’ve had or witnessed, and how different actions will lead to improved equity. By using fiction to show relatable business situations she helps us recognise that even likeable, good people can act in ways that impact gender equity, and whether unintentional or not the actions compound and have consequences. I loved the story, became connected to the characters, and was eager to see what happened next. Love this book!
February 2, 2025
Ok hear me out: I wanted to throw this book across the room several times. But in the best possible way. If that makes sense. It's not the book's fault that I felt like I was reading about my own professional trajectory. Ho simply nails it. I was just as frustrated as Amber (no spoilers) and wasn't even clear who my target was. Debra? The Man? Everyone? No one?
This is one of those books that you can keep coming back to. Highly recommend for ERGs, trainings, and other forms of professional development.
This is one of those books that you can keep coming back to. Highly recommend for ERGs, trainings, and other forms of professional development.
November 25, 2021
Time to level up! Melanie Ho uses short narratives to help us see the challenges and blind spots we all face every day. This book encourages you to think critically about your own unconscious biases and how to spark change in your organization. As someone who works with startup organizations, this book is helpful to setting the culture from scratch as well as transforming a culture that has been decades in the making.
April 10, 2022
This was written very well & so relevant to experiences many of us have in the corporate world. I liked how Melanie placed these ideas into a novel format. It helped me remember past leaders and how not to be/act like them. Can’t wait to talk to my Women in Healthcare Administration book club about this book & see how others felt/thought about the underlying ideas. Thank you Melanie for writing this.
August 11, 2021
I definitely learned a lot from this "teaching novel." As you meet the different characters in the novel you learn about their challenges and frustrations in the corporate world. Different techniques are introduced as ways to solve the problems women have being recognized for their strengths and achievements. I'm in favor of reverse mentorship!
January 15, 2024
Well-written fiction novel based on some of the true challenges women face in the modern workplace. The plot had me engaged from front to back, also while deep diving into sexism, both blatant and more hidden. The characters felt familiar as though they’re people we’ve met before. Definitely recommend.
August 7, 2024
Absolutely well done. This book presents an engaging gateway drug to non-fiction. It's narrative style makes it a very easy read. As a manager especially as a man, I lack first-hand experience and this book was just the first step to opening my eyes to ongoing issues in the workplace. Grateful for this book.
February 4, 2022
Seeing in HD
An important book focused on continuing gender inequity and how the challenges and their responses have changed for the next generation of women in the workforce. Engaging, thought proving and highly recommended.
An important book focused on continuing gender inequity and how the challenges and their responses have changed for the next generation of women in the workforce. Engaging, thought proving and highly recommended.
January 3, 2024
I did really like the examples of the way people think at the fictional business. I do think that this puts a nice shine on things at the end and how people are so willing to take a step in the correct direction. I feel like that this is goal of the perfect business but not real life. .
January 5, 2024
Excellent book for diving into gender and equality concepts with real life examples. The book is written like a story with a narrative that explores all the topics while also citing references and research. Highly recommend!
December 30, 2022
Very provocative take on gender dynamics in the workplace. Uses a novel format to integrate years of workplace research.
April 29, 2023
This book is such an innovative way to get people thinking about these important issues! The characters will stick with me.
August 1, 2025
Eye opening, thought provoking, and inspiring.
November 15, 2023
wow!!! what an insanely good look into how an entire organization can suffer from inequality and relying on women to speak up without putting forward a thought into lifting them up and helping. it can be a bit exaggerated but that's the best way to make the point, and honestly, real life can make you feel like you're going crazy with how blatant things can be. i want everyone to read this tbh.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews