1. What advancement barriers did Lisa encounter?

2. What should the firm's top executives, including Michael, have done differently to retain Lisa?

3. What type of organizational policies and opportunities might have benefited Lisa and Pamela?

4. What could the organization do to raise the gender consciousness of Michael and Lisa's male colleagues?

Lisa Weber is an intelligent and determined senior portfolio manager at a Wall Street firm. Clients give her the highest commendations for performance; she has brought in the largest number of new clients at her firm; and other employees regularly turn to Lisa privately for advice and counsel on market performance. The CEO, Michael, does not recognize Lisa's strengths and speaks down to her.

Lisa yearns to make partner and was particularly frustrated when a male peer, who does not perform as well as Lisa, was recently promoted. Lisa approached her boss about this and asked about the path to partnership. He asked her what would happen if she made a "huge mistake" as partner and stated "There's never been a female partner in the 103 years of the firm."

Lisa's boss clearly has prejudice and gender bias. Other than sue for damages, the larger question becomes: What can Lisa do about her situation? Students are asked to explore this, and other components of gender bias, in this glass ceiling case study.