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The proportion of women holding executive jobs is rising slowly but steadily. What does that mean for the men and women working beneath them? How can a female boss best utilize her feminine traits in the workplace?

Religious women entering the workplace, beware: it’s likely your 9-to-5 environment is not quite an equal-opportunity arena. You may be paid less than male coworkers, even as you’re valued for good manners and relied upon for important tasks. And, are you enough of a self-promoter to compete with men who want the job at all costs?

We’re all heard about the challenges of the mother who enters the workplace. But what is it like to have your own personal v’nahafoch hu, to suddenly leave the workplace and become a stay-at-home mother? Four women share their personal stories — and their first-hand advice.

Convention, and Conviction,Chaya Landau is 28 years old. She is also CEO of a real estate development company in Zurich, overseeing large-scale building projects from start to finish and negotiating million-franc deals regularly. A petite mother of five from a community where women rarely go out to work, her situation is intriguing. How did she come to obtain this unusual, demanding position, and how does she feel about it? Chaya shares her eye-opening and inspiring story.