"If one has misdiagnosed a problem, then one is unlikely to prescribe an effective cure. This is the situation regarding the scarcity of women in top leadership. Because people with the best of intentions have misread the symptoms, the solutions that managers are investing in are not making enough of a difference."

So begins Harvard Business Review's sage critique of The Labyrinth of Leadership, by Alice H. Eagly and Linda L. Carli, a watershed event in the history of publishing in terms of analyzing the trends of women in the workforce.

As the article points out, times have changed. The glass ceiling metaphor is now more wrong now than right. For one thing, it describes an absolute barrier at a specific high level in organizations. At the same time, the metaphor implies that women and men have equal access to entry- and midlevel positions. The article goes on to illustrate that they do not. The image of a transparent obstruction also suggests that women are being misled about their opportunities, because the impediment is not easy for them to see from a distance. Worst of all, by depicting a single, unvarying obstacle, the glass ceiling fails to incorporate the complexity and variety of challenges that women can face in their leadership journeys. In truth, women are not turned away only as they reach the penultimate stage of a distinguished career. They disappear in various numbers at many points leading up to that stage.

Metaphors matter because they are part of the storytelling that can compel change. Believing in the existence of a glass ceiling, people emphasize certain kinds of interventions: top-to-top networking, mentoring to increase board memberships, requirements for diverse candidates in high-profile succession horse races, litigation aimed at punishing discrimination in the C-suite. None of these is counterproductive; all have a role to play. The danger arises when they draw attention and resources away from other kinds of interventions that might attack the problem more potently. If we want to make better progress, it’s time to rename the challenge.

"Glass ceiling" should become an obsolete term. Thanks to books like The Labyrinth of Leadership, we can finally shatter the myth!