Monday, news of Marissa Mayer being named Yahoo’s newest CEO broke. Mayer had worked at Google for thirteen years, and will now be at the helm of a major tech company-one of the biggest male dominated sectors. Woo hoo! According to an Associated Press story, the organization Catalyst (which tracks women’s workplace advancement), says that only 4% of the top Fortune 500 companies are women. Even better.
But 37-year-old Mayer’s got even more on her plate. She’s six months pregnant! After announcing her new career choice via Twitter, she then told the world about her baby boy on the way, also through a tweet. How techy of her. Instantly, the question of “how can she do it?” came up. Could the new mother handle a company and a baby at the same time? Of course she can. Mayer was the first female engineer at Google, a Glamour Woman Of The Year and can bake a mean cupcake while working on a spreadsheet. Basically, she’s awesome. And, the board at Google knows it.
When Mayer told the board she was pregnant they were totally behind her. Apparently the people in Silicon Valley know that pregnancy doesn’t stop a woman from functioning normally. Mayer describes the board’s non-reaction as “evolved thinking,” to Fortune. They’re even moving the September board meeting to Sunnyvale, California to make it easier for Mayer who will be about eight months pregnant by then. 
Mayer seems to be just another possible answer on whether it’s easier for women to “have it all” these days.
Blogger’s Note: Despite all of Mayer’s fabulous qualities, belief in equal rights for both sexes and women’s capabilities… she doesn’t consider herself a feminist. How unfortunate (and surprising).
(Photos courtesy of Fastcompany.com and Dealbreaker.com)
