Women as leaders: vive la difference.

• Author: Jones, Rich
• Position: Includes related article om leadership styles - Cover Story

Women have invaded the male bailiwick that is the state legislature, and even the crusty old die-hards admit they're doing a pretty good job.

For years lawmakers wanting to get business done in the Connecticut House of Representatives inevitably found their way to the ornate, antique-filled speaker's office in the old Capitol building. There they would take part in the ancient, but necessary, art of negotiation, lobbying and horse trading.

Sometimes there was even the whiff of cigar smoke in the air.

But when former Majority Leader Moira Lyons was elected to the speakership on the opening day of this year's session, it seemed to some that a grand tradition had come to an abrupt end.

"A male friend of mine asked, 'How should we act around you now?'" recalls Lyons, who was first elected to the state legislature in 1980. "He went on, quite seriously, to tell me that with the guys, 'we put our feet up on the desk, smoke a cigar . . . and make deals.'" Lyons, who is known for being direct, said she had a quick response: "I told him he has known me for 15 years, why did he or anyone have to treat me differently now?"

Life in the Connecticut legislature moves on. Both female and male lawmakers are still welcome in the speaker's office, with or without cigars.

But that such a thought was even voiced underlines the sometimes uneasy relationship many women legislative leaders have with their still predominantly male chambers and raises some questions: Are women leaders really the same as the men? Can they truly lead in the confident, commanding ways of their male predecessors?

The answer to both questions is no.

And that's the good news.

"Women approach leadership positions in an entirely different manner than the men do," says Mary Hawkesworth, director of the Center for Women and Politics at Rutgers University's Institute of Politics. "Some of the research I've gone through indicates that women are very good at consensus building, but they tend not to be as prone to power plays. They are good at bringing people together and helping bridge groups with divergent views to help them arrive at a consensus." The political scientists call it the "collaborationist model."

"Yes, I think that is so," agrees Oregon's Speaker Lynn Snodgrass, who, like Lyons, took over the House leadership in early 1999. "Perhaps I'm not what the public might see as the typical insider leader, a beefy guy with a cigar or something, but I am very comfortable with negotiating. That, to me, is what public service is all about."

Known for her quiet and calm demeanor, "I have a very long fuse," Snodgrass says, the new Oregon speaker is nonetheless well regarded for the swift and efficient way in which she makes decisions. "I don't agonize forever over what needs to be done," she says. "And once the decision is made, I move on."

Arizona Senate Majority Leader Lori Daniels, in a state that has seen women this year take over the top five statewide government positions from governor on down, thinks women in leadership tend to posture less. "There may be more long-winded speeches or political points to be made when you only have men," Daniels laughs. "I know I am willing to listen to all of the different points of view, but, in the end, I want to see some sort of resolution."

New Hampshire Speaker of the House Donna Sytek thinks women have confidently assumed leadership roles because in recent years they have done just about everything else. "Women have been doing the heavy lifting in legislatures for years," says Sytek, who is serving her second term as speaker and her 12th as a member of the New Hampshire legislature.

"We have been effective advocates for a variety of causes, committee chairmen, caucus leaders, whips and majority leaders," she continues. "This experience has established a comfort level among our peers that has allowed us to overcome the last hurdle and attain the top jobs."

Sytek adds that the emergence of women is not as revolutionary as it is evolutionary: "I don't think there has been a seismic shift in the attitudes of legislatures. Rather, it has been a gradual transformation, reflective of the evolution of opinion by the people who elect us."

Observing the Washington Legislature, which has had more than a third of its committees headed by women and currently leads the nation in percentage of women law-makers, Seattle political consultant Cathy Allen noted a...