Would You Prefer A Male Or Female Boss? - Does It Matter?

If we are truly going to treat both genders the same in our society, then it is a foregone conclusion that there will be both male and female bosses in the workplace -- and that is slowly becoming a reality, as more women are promoted to positions of responsibility. This brings up an argument that has been going on for years now -- which is better, a male boss or a female boss? I have heard arguments for both sides, and you probably have also.

The folks at the Gallup Poll decided to see just what the public thought about this question. They have been asking this question since 1953, and their results are in the charts on this page. Their most recent survey was done between August 7th and 10th of a random national sample of 1,032 adults, with a margin of error of 4 points (and previous year surveys would be much the same).

As you can see from the chart above, the preference for a male boss has declined since 1953, and the preference for a female boss has risen. But nearly half of the public says it makes no difference to them whether their boss is male or female. About 46% say it makes no difference, while 33% would favor a male boss and 20% would favor a female boss.

But even more interesting to me was the difference in how men answered the question compared to how women answered it. A whopping 58% of men said it made no difference to them, while 26% preferred a male boss and 14% preferred a female boss. The answers given by women were quite different though. About 39% of women said they preferred a male boss, while 34% said it didn't make a difference and 25% preferred a female boss. It seems that males are more willing to work under a female (72%) than females are (59%). I have to admit I was surprised by that.

I would fall in the 46% of the public (and 58% of men) who don't think it makes any difference whether the boss is male or female. When considering this post, I thought over my long work history and decided that I had worked under six bosses that I considered to be excellent. And it turns out that three of them were male and three of them were female. Personally I think a good boss is a good boss regardless of gender, and a bad boss is a bad boss regardless of gender. Being qualified, being competent, and being fair are far more important in a boss than gender.

What do you think? Would you prefer to work for a man or woman? Does it even matter? I'd love to know what you readers think.