How Women's Reluctance to Delegate Can Hurt Their Careers: The Broadsheet

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! 2020 candidates go after Sen. Elizabeth Warren on the debate stage, Marc Benioff talks equal pay, and researchers explain why we should get comfortable with delegating. Have a wonderful Wednesday.

EVERYONE'S TALKING

- Don't do it. Every so often, you come across a piece of research that really hits home. That's what happened when I read this Wall Street Journal story about women's reluctance to delegate.

According to a series of studies from Columbia Business School, "women are less likely to delegate than men, are more likely to feel guilty about doing so, and tend to have less-courteous interactions with subordinates when they do pass on tasks." (Sound familiar?)

It turns out that that tendency to think, "Hell, I'll just do it myself!" can really hurt your career. The time sucked up by all those little jobs keeps women from doing the important big-picture work and limits the amount of training and mentoring they can provide to their reports.

That's perfectly logical—but can be surprisingly hard to keep in mind on a day-to-day basis. So I appreciate the advice that Modupe Akinola, an associate professor of management at the business school who supervised the studies, shared with the Journal. Try thinking of delegation this way, she suggests: “Not only are you saving time for yourself, you’re giving other people an opportunity.”

Kristen Bellstrom
kristen.bellstrom@fortune.com
@kayelbee

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

- Debate stage dynamics. Now that Sen. Elizabeth Warren is a frontrunner in the Democratic race for the 2020 presidential nomination, her rivals, for the first time, focused debate stage attacks on her. Sen. Amy Klobuchar called Warren's plans a "pipe dream" while Sen. Kamala Harris asked why Warren didn't back her call for Twitter to ban President Trump from its platform. Joe Biden and Mayor Pete Buttigieg both criticized Warren's plans on health care; Buttigieg also went after Rep. Tulsi Gabbard on foreign policy. Harris, notably, criticized the questions asked at this and past debates—for failing to address women's health care and access to abortion. New York Times

- More in politics. Before the debate, #MeToo founder Tarana Burke launched a new hashtag—#MeTooVoter—to mobilize voters and push candidates to address issues of harassment and sexual violence in political conversation. A new Washington Post profile of Warren analyzes her five years in Houston, when she "split with a husband who struggled with her ambition," "started dabbling in the research that would establish her as one of the nation’s foremost experts on consumer bankruptcy law, and "found her voice"—i.e., her distinctive speaking style.

- Game is up. In 2018, Steve Wynn was removed as CEO of Wynn Resorts following reports of alleged sexual assault and harassment. Now the Nevada Gaming Control Board is moving to remove Wynn's gambling license. The board says Wynn is "unsuitable to be associated with a gaming enterprise or the gaming industry as a whole." Washington Post

- Off book. Salesforce founder and co-CEO Marc Benioff talked to Fortune editor-in-chief Clifton Leaf about his new book, Trailblazer: The Power of Business as the Greatest Platform for Change. In their interview, Benioff addresses Salesforce's work on closing its gender pay gap: "Because this is a subconscious bias, you have to monitor and measure it on a regular basis. ... What business books talk about that?" Fortune

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: DocuSign hired Emily Heath, former chief information security officer of United Airlines, as chief trust and security officer. All Raise hired Y Combinator's Domonique Fines as director of engagement and Alicia Burt, former chief of staff to Jack Dorsey at Square, as the organization's chief of staff.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

- Brown speaks out. Cyntoia Brown-Long—who spent 15 years in prison after she was convicted of the murder of a 43-year-old man while she was a teenage victim of sex trafficking—gave her first televised interview since being released. "There's nothing special about me. There's, I can't tell you how many Cyntoia Browns still in prison," she said. NBC News

- The new News. Together, anchor Norah O'Donnell and CBS News president Susan Zirinsky are retooling CBS Evening News for the streaming era. To stand out, O'Donnell is moving the broadcast to Washington, D.C.—and pushing reporters to keep breaking news after their stories air. Variety

- Recall report. A report from the US PIRG Education Fund and the Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety Foundation analyzed 2,429 vehicles sold at AutoNation dealerships across the country. Among those vehicles sold, one out of nine had defects, including safety recalls that hadn't been repaired; federal law governs the sales of new cars affected by recalls, but not those of used cars. AutoNation, headed by CEO Cheryl Miller, didn't respond to Vox's request for comment. Vox

- Costs of pollution. A new study from scientists at five Chinese universities finds a significant link between air pollution and the risk of miscarriage. The findings could add urgency to China's efforts to eliminate air pollution as the country also seeks to increase the national birthrate. New York Times

Today's Broadsheet was produced by Emma Hinchliffe. Share it with a friend. Looking for previous Broadsheets? Click here.