Yahoo’s new CEO Mayer to work through maternity leave
(Associated Press)
Most expectant mothers who hold down a 9-to-5er welcome maternity leave as a period of recuperation and bonding with the new arrival.
This might be a challenge, however, for Marissa Mayer, a former Google executive and now the new chief executive officer of Yahoo. After the Monday announcement that she will take over at Yahoo, Mayer disclosed that she and her husband, investor and entrepreneur Zack Bogue, are expecting a child in October.
Mayer, however, plans to do something many new moms on leave probably don’t even think about, or do they?
“My maternity leave will be a few weeks long, and I’ll work throughout it,” Mayer told the Yahoo board of trustees while interviewing for the job, according to NBCnews.com. In a tweet, she said she was expecting a baby boy.
Mayer, a 37-year-old expert in artificial intelligence, was a Google vice president in charge of Google Maps, Google Earth and Street View. According to CNN.com, she is responsible for the “minimalist home page” that greets Google searchers and was the first female engineer Google had ever hired when she joined the company 13 years ago.
She’ll have her work cut out for her at Yahoo, which might explain why she’s toiling through her maternity. Mayer, who The Wall Street Journal says has a “limited management track record”, will be the financially struggling company’s fifth CEO in five years. Yahoo also announced in April that it was cutting 14 percent of its 14,100 workforce, and Mayer comes in the midst of the downsizing.
Emory University management consultant Kevin Coyne told the Journal, “It’s an incredible challenge. If she succeeds, it will be a landmark case for women everywhere.”
Some might say she’s setting an unreasonable bar for women lower on the Yahoo career ladder who might feel pressured to work while on maternity leave.
Still others might applaud Mayer’s ability to juggle Yahoo’s myriad demands and the challenges of a newborn.
What do you think?
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68 comments Add your comment
cjohnson
July 18th, 2012
10:03 am
i have a feeling she will not work as much as she thinks she will – nanny’s or not. i am self employed and work from my house primarily on the computer with a husband who has a demanding job. i had a 4 yr old and then my second child was born on a Friday night. I had been working on projects Friday during the day and was back on the computer on Monday. Now, I wasn’t handling the same amount of work but I often breast fed while at the computer and my older child snacked, ate, watched educational TV, played, etc. and learned how to work on my old computer just a few feet away from my work desk. They are both teens now.
VoiceOfReason
July 18th, 2012
10:10 am
At Yahoo the trend of poor decisions continues.
sherman
July 18th, 2012
10:20 am
the first three months are all sleep eat anyway, I have always thought that newborns should be in the office. after three months, send them home.
art
July 18th, 2012
10:29 am
A child is a choice. A person must decide to give up something,I get tired of single moms crying about having to work and wanting benifits and pity. Get with the program.If the company can do without you for six mos they do not need you ever.
snoopy
July 18th, 2012
10:46 am
Wait till the kid is a teenager. She’ll probably regret it then.
Dan
July 18th, 2012
10:49 am
She needs to stay home and raise this child…..oh…I forgot, she can continue to work….she’ll have nurses and maids to take care of HER responsibilities ! What was I thinking … SMHO
TB
July 18th, 2012
10:52 am
To each his (or her) own…I don’t understand why anyone thinks this woman’s decision is going make other women, lower on the ladder at Yahoo, feel pressure to work through their own maternity leaves. That’s insane. She is stepping into a big role – which I’m surprised she was picked for, given the fact that she’s having a baby soon. Maternity leave must have been on someone’s mind. Anyway, she’s the CEO. More then likely she’ll be able to get all the vacation she needs to be the mother she wants to be.
Kimmy
July 18th, 2012
10:58 am
I assume she will be working from and has hired help. To be honest most CEO, CFO, VP, SVP, ETC all work almost 24hrs per day. They are never really out of the office and are always reachable via lap tops and blackberries. She just made the announcement. Good luck to her! Women/Mother’s are the hardest working people I know.
ya mam
July 18th, 2012
11:00 am
It drives me insane when people insinuate that those moms who work outside the home aren’t “raising their own children”. That’s just stupid. You can do both. It’s called work/life balance. I’d go nuts staying home with kids all day. I love my kids more than anything and treasure the time I have with them. I’m not annoyed by the time “hubby” gets home from work and needing to drink to get through the rest of the day. I’m happy to see my children and they are happy to see me. My son is one of the most well adjusted, polite, well behaved kids I know and people comment this to me all the time. And he goes to daycare, imagine that. This woman will have help, no doubt. I’m sure she can handle it, no need for any of you to worry about how SHE chooses to handle HER family.
Casual Observer
July 18th, 2012
11:02 am
I think what this boils down to for a lot of people is this setting a standard in the workplace for all that maternity leave should go away like just about all other benefits have. Just like I read in an article yesterday about vacations. We are a country that lives to work while most others work to live. Next thing we’ll hear is instead of spending you last moments of life with your loved ones, you’ll be trying to get that report done…..
Pamela
July 18th, 2012
11:21 am
JUST PICK ONE OR THE OTHER…… ONE WILL SUFFER IN THE LONG RUN !!
Beck
July 18th, 2012
12:11 pm
Dragonfly Lady –
I mean this in the most gentle way possible. I think you may be being overly sensitive due to the heart-breaking situation you are in. You are obviously one of the people who would make a wonderful parent. There are many people out there who would, but who physically are not able. Instead, you help other people make their children’s lives better and more enriched and I’m sure both the parents and children appreciate it for you.
I think the poster was referring to people like me who do not have children because they do not want them. I work with them, but do not have the desire nor the patience to raise them, so I am careful not to have a child. To me, the saddest situation of all is those who have them, but who do not make the necessary sacrifices (time, love, financial, etc.) to raise them well.
I’m sure you would make a wonderful parent and am truly sorry for the sense of loss that you feel.
SEE
July 18th, 2012
12:16 pm
Well, my husband lost his job, but fortunately I managed to get a job at about the same salary. Not long afterwards, we discovered I was pregnant. I was terrified about losing my job because of the pregnancy, but there was no way I was going to kill my unborn baby. I told my boss as soon as possible, laying out a plan of how I would juggle leave time with making sure my responsibilities were met. I took 4 weeks off, and worked part-time another week. I was back full-time by week 6. Baby’s fine, family’s fine, job’s fine. It all worked out. Don’t try to second guess this woman. You don’t know what her situation is, but she has a right to try to earn her living and have a baby. I wish her the best.
Kat
July 18th, 2012
12:38 pm
Since she told them that she was pregnant during her job interview, she probably also got a nice little setup for working when her baby arrives – in other words, some perks that other women may not get. Good for her!
Elise
July 18th, 2012
12:38 pm
I don’t think this is a “defining” case for woman. This is a choice that this particular woman made for her personal circumstance. Not every woman wants to spend a year bonding with their child. I know plenty of women in Canada and the UK who are HAPPY to go back to work, and would gladly go back sooner. Let’s not say this is setting a “precedence” (it’s a PRECEDENT) for anyone. It’s one woman making a choice for her life. Period.
Lindsey
July 18th, 2012
1:26 pm
Wow, I can’t believe some of the comments here. I think it is no one’s business except Marissa and her husband about when she goes back to work. The comment “Leave baby making and child rearing to those that understand how special and important children are” blows me away. It does not matter if you are a stay at home mom or working mom, both are hard. Mothers should be supporting one another, not judging each other. Some women don’t have the option to stay home. My husband and I are expecting our first in October, I am beyond thrilled. He is also starting his new full time teaching job which I am so proud of him for. But a teacher’s salary is not enough for our family to live on, so I am going back to work. I knew before we even conceived this is what I would do and I am ok with that. I grew up in day cares while both my parents worked and look back on my childhood with a smile. I just think rude comments don’t help anyone, what kind of example if that for your kids?
alphadog
July 18th, 2012
1:30 pm
I was a road warrior, traveling 5 days-a-week consultant (male) when my middle child was born 18 years ago. I haven’t caught up on bonding with her yet.
John
July 18th, 2012
1:33 pm
I will say it so that all of you thinking it don’t have to. The 2 income family, mom’s going directly into the labor force, have attributed to the death of the family unit. Of course, the family unit has been falling apart for a long time. However, the men of this country are not what they used to be because they are now fighting women for head of household jobs. I am not saying this is good or that this is bad. Just something to think about. I will say that I am not too sure we are better off as a country in the long run when both parents work. Our priorities seem a bit out of whack and we are all too tired to enjoy each other for the differences we bring to the table.