A poster describing the characteristics of a good female boss/superior circulated around Facebook yesterday; it came from MedikTV’s Facebook fanpage, and among those who shared it was Malaysia’s Department of Information. We saw some comments agreeing to this poster, while others were quite outraged by the ‘advice’ given by MedikTV on how to be a good female boss. Here’s a loose translation of the poster (which was written in Bahasa Malaysia):
How to be a good ‘female boss’:
- You need to ‘relax’ and be calm in all situations, whether in a normal or tensed situation.
- Discuss a lot with your subordinates, especially male subordinates.
- Don’t show off your ego and power in front of subordinates, especially when giving instructions.
- Don’t be too strict or fierce.
- Must know how to flatter your subordinates.
- Create a calm and happy environment when giving orders to subordinates.
- Give power to subordinates to do/execute their task.
- Don’t control subordinates too much until you’re ‘stifling’/’smothering’ them.
The above poster, shared by the Department of Information, was also accompanied with the following description (see above):
“There are always rigid problems when working with a female boss. Women have the tendency to talk and nag. This behavior is dangerous in an organisation. Talking and nagging will make your subordinates feel bored, confused and disgusted. […]”
According to its fanpage, MedikTV is the official broadcaster for the Ministry of Health, and the Department of Information, on the other hand, falls under the Ministry of Information, Communication and Culture.
What do you think of these ‘tips’? Are they right or do they seem sexist to you, as they only target female bosses?
Share your thoughts with us here, on Twitter, Facebook or our forum!
(*Update: the above poster has been removed from MedikTV’s Facebook page)
