CATEGORIES
#Business & Economy #Careers #Financial ConfidenceOverview:
- The glass cliff puts women in leadership during crises.
- Tech can amplify the risks of crisis-first leadership.
- Leadership stereotypes can influence who gets the role.
- Women may inherit problems they did not create.
- Asking questions can help women assess leadership risks.
- Companies must create fairer paths to leadership.
Have you ever noticed how often a woman gets the CEO job right at the time when everything is on fire? This timing is not accidental. There is actually a term for it in leadership research that is called, “the glass cliff. “ Once it is recognised, then you learn to understand and spotting it in tech becomes almost natural.
But before looking at the risks women face in these positions, it is also worth understanding the transformative impact of women in leadership roles.
What Is the Glass Cliff, Exactly?
Just picture a company that has been quietly falling apart for months. The sales are down and a scandal just broke. The board is panicking, but somehow this is the exact moment a woman finally gets handed the top job. It makes for a great headline, sitting in that chair feels like a different story entirely, especially when the mess waiting for her was never hers to begin with. And if the company keeps sliding, she is usually the one holding the blame first. Every time, that is the glass cliff. A promotion dressed up as an opportunity, but really just a setup.
Where the Glass Cliff Shows Up in Tech
Leadership changes fast in this industry, with new CEOs stepping in every few months. Most people move on with the news without ever stopping to notice the pattern underneath it. But if you slow down for a second, though, it is hard to miss. Struggling companies already draw plenty of attention, and putting a woman in charge only sharpens that spotlight further. Reporters dig harder, critics get louder faster, and the same mistakes end up buried under harsher headlines than they would be otherwise.
Crisis-First Hiring
When was the last time a woman got the CEO role during a calm, boring quarter? It rarely happens and usually there is already a fire burning somewhere. It can be a failed launch, a data breach or users losing trust after a bad news cycle. She is not stepping into stability rather she is just stepping straight into cleanup duty.
Fewer Resources, Bigger Ask
There are immense examples where two leaders can take over the exact same size company and still get treated completely differently. In them, there would be one inheriting a full team and breathing room. The other gets budget cuts and a shrinking staff, with the same expectations to fix everything anyway. The women on the glass cliff land in that second group more often than not.
Why This Keeps Happening
A couple of quiet habits keep the cycle going because nothing from this one is random. Some boards genuinely believe women handle chaos better under pressure. It sounds like a compliment but it is not really the one. If you peel that back and there is often an ugly assumption sitting underneath it: if she fails, she is easier to replace. Nobody says that part out loud. It still shapes who gets picked.
Playing It Safe Until There is Nothing Left to Lose
When business is good, boards stick with what is already familiar. And familiar usually means a man who looks like the last guy in the role. Risk only becomes acceptable once every “safe” option has already failed. This is exactly the moment women tend to get the call, when nobody else wants the job anymore.
What This Actually Costs Women
This is not just a rough year on a resume. The damage tends to follow people. Women can end up being blamed for problems that existed long before they arrived, pushed out faster than male leaders in similar roles, or passed over for the next opportunity after a messy exit. They may also find themselves running on fumes from managing a crisis with almost no backup, while carrying a public failure into every future interview.
None of this makes leadership look appealing to the next woman watching from the sidelines. A failed turnaround often gets twisted into “proof” that women can not lead. Nobody stops to ask whether she was set up to lose from the very start. But understanding the risk does not mean women should step away from leadership opportunities altogether.
How Women Can Protect Themselves
None of this means avoiding leadership altogether. It just means going in with eyes wide open.
Ask the Uncomfortable Questions Early
Get real answers about the company’s actual finances before saying yes to anything. Ask directly about any recent controversies, how staff morale is really holding up, and what the board expects behind closed doors. A slightly awkward conversation now is worth having if it means avoiding a painful surprise a few months down the line.
Find People Who Will Not Sugarcoat Things
The crisis mode makes leadership feel lonelier than usual. This is usually when mentors and peers outside the company matter most, since they will notice things your own team is too close to catch. One blunt or honest conversation can do more for your thinking than weeks of internal meetings.
Get the Resources in Writing First
The negotiating power disappears the second someone signs the contract. You should push for a real budget, a capable team, and actual authority before accepting the role. If you skip that step, then even a brilliant leader ends up fighting with one hand tied behind her back.
What Companies Actually Need to Fix
Women should not have to carry this fix alone. There are multiple things companies can do to address it, starting with promoting women during calm periods too rather than only during emergencies. Resources should be given and allocated irrespective of who is leading the team while the timelines should reflect reality, rather than wishful thinking. Boards also need to be trained to notice their own blind spots. Just as importantly, they should back their leaders publicly instead of rushing to assign blame, recognizing the importance of women in leadership along the way.
Get these changes right, and companies end up with stronger leadership across the board. Women get a fair shot, not someone else’s disaster with their name on it.
Conclusion
Just knowing the glass cliff exists does not make it go away on its own. Catching the warning signs early at least gives women a fair chance to weigh the risk with open eyes. But the bigger responsibility still sits with companies, not with the women walking into these situations.
Fix both sides, and a crisis role can finally turn into a real opportunity.
