Chesapeake Energy CEO Aubrey McClendon Illustrates the Lie of Former GE Head Jack Welch Who Claimed That Women Do Not Get Promotions Because Unlike Men They are Not Dedicated to Their Work

The Real Question - Why Is Mr. McClendon a CEO of Anything – And There Must be a Million Women Who Could Do a Better Job

Last week the former head of GE, Jack Welch made extensive comments on the role of women in executive positions with companies.  The gist of his comments was that women had to perform in order to obtain high level business jobs, and that they had to absolutely dedicate themselves to the job, no time for any other fluffy stuff.

Now comes the story of Aubrey McClendon.  Mr. McClendon is the CEO of Chesapeake Energy and it turns out maybe one does not have to spend very much time or be highly dedicated to the job in order to be the CEO.

 "My primary job as CEO has been, and always will be, to build long-term value along with attractive short-term returns for the company and all its stakeholders," he said on a call with energy analysts. "That is and has been my primary focus for the past 20 years."

But over the years, Mr. McClendon has helped run a hedge fund and two venture-capital firms; battled a township in Michigan over zoning for a planned lakeside development; amassed a large tree farm; and helped bring Oklahoma City its first major-league sports team, the NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder, in which he holds a 19% stake.

He has also acquired ownership stakes in a TV station, several restaurants, a cattle ranch and a cancer-treatment center.

Mr. McClendon seems to have a soft spot for drinks. He acquired an early stake in Jamba Juice Co., built one of the country's largest wine collections and opened a roadside attraction on Route 66 called Pops outside Oklahoma City that sells 500 different varieties of soda.

But maybe there is a good explanation here.  Maybe the explanation is that men don’t have to dedicate themselves fully to the job in order to be a CEO, that they are more than free to do whatever they want and engage in whatever other activities appeal to them.  Maybe it is only women that have to sacrifice their lives for the company in order to succeed to the top positions.  Yeah, that would explain things.