Glass Ceiling Contemporary Management Research
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Transcript of Glass Ceiling Contemporary Management Research
Established by the German-British Chamber of Industry & Commerce The ECBM reserves the right to change this information at any time.
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Coursework Front Sheet
Module Title: Contemporary Management
Research
Date: 10th May 2015
Word Count: 3666
Coursework Title: The Glass Ceiling Student: Anastasia Pahl
Table of contents
1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 2
2. Glass Ceiling Definition and Discussion ............................................................ 2
3. Experienced Issues of Glass Ceiling ................................................................... 3
4. Measures ............................................................................................................. 8
5. Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 12
6. Bibliography ...................................................................................................... 14
1. Introduction
Since the 1970s, there has been a growing number of women in the labour force.
A study by Powell and Graves (Powell & Graves, 2003) indicates that the
proportion of women in the managerial ranks has increased in almost all
countries. Women are demanding greater equality in the work environment. One
of the main factors that needs to be considered in order to achieve equality in the
work environment is gender differences. Gender differences and the mutual
perceptions between men and women may vary across countries and their diverse
cultures. Furthermore, contributing aspects such as education, government
policies, media images, and opinion leaders can re-alter/influence gender
differences and levels. (Domvski, Škerlavaj, & Man, 2010)
In this essay I will first show which impact glass ceiling still has on our global
economy, focussing mainly on gender discrimination. Furthermore, I will
compare different cultures, such as the Asian, African, European and American,
explaining the issues those markets are facing. Finally I will discuss different
measures that already have been taken to prevent glass ceiling.
2. Glass Ceiling Definition and Discussion
Definition: The glass ceiling, a phrase first introduced in the 1980s, is a metaphor
for the invisible and artificial barriers that block women and minorities from
advancing up the corporate ladder to management and executive positions. In
1991 the US Congress found that, despite a dramatically growing presence in the
workplace, women and minorities remained underrepresented in management
positions in business and that artificial barriers were inhibiting their advancement.
(Johns, 2013)
Traditionally, the glass ceiling was a concept applied to women and some
minorities. It was very hard, if not impossible, for them to reach upper
management positions, no matter how qualified or experienced.
Today, there are many more women and minorities in powerful positions.
However, the glass ceiling is still very real. And it's not always limited to gender
or race. (Mind Tools, 2015) Women and minorities make up two-thirds of the
population and 57% of the workforce yet account for only 3% of senior
management positions at Fortune 1000 industrial corporations, according to a
report released by the bipartisan Federal Glass Ceiling Commission. (Federal
Glass Ceiling Commission, 1995) The findings suggest that although some
progress has been made in recent years, proactive efforts are still needed to
address the invisible but impenetrable barrier that continues to deprive women
and minorities of access to the highest levels of the business world regardless of
their accomplishments or merit. (Civil Rights Monitor, 1995)
So how general is the phenomenon of females rising to the top? Despite the
progress that has been made, it sometimes seems like only superwomen break
through the glass ceiling. In some sectors of the economy, such as manufacturing
and finance, male-dominated executive suites are still very much the norm.
(Cassidy, 2014) Just as the overall labour market remains sharply segregated by
sex, women executives are concentrated into certain types of jobs - mostly staff
and support jobs - that offer little opportunity for getting to the top. A 1986 Wall
Street Journal survey found that the highest ranking of women in most industries
are in non-operating areas such as personnel, public relations, or, occasionally,
finance specialties that seldom lead to the most powerful top-management posts.
(Feminist Majority Foundation, 2014)
3. Experienced Issues of Glass Ceiling
When you think about women having problems to become a top officer in a
management field, it is not all about their work-life balance. While economic
research and previous survey findings have shown that career interruptions related
to motherhood may make it harder for women to advance in their careers and
compete for top executive jobs, relatively few adults in the new Pew Research
survey point to this as a key barrier for women seeking leadership roles. Only
about one-in-five say women’s family responsibilities are a major reason there are
not more females in top leadership positions in business and politics. (Pew
Research Center, 2015) The Pew study shows that attitudes are slowly changing
but that hurdles to parity and fairness still exist. According to the survey, women
are far more likely than men to see gender discrimination in today’s society.
Additionally women and men are seen as equally good business leaders, but
gender stereotypes still persist. (Watson, 2015)
The report entitled "Good For Business: Making Full Use of the Nation's Human
Capital" (Federal Glass Ceiling Commission, 1995) is the result of three years of
study that included a consortium of consultants, commission hearings, studies,
interviews, focus groups, panel discussions, and review of public and private
research. The report identified three levels of barriers that need to be eliminated to
allow women and minorities to gain equal access to executive suites. They are
societal barriers, which may be outside the direct control of business, internal
structural barriers that are within the direct control of business, and governmental
barriers. (Civil Rights Monitor, 1995)
The two societal barriers noted include the ‘supply barrier’ and the ‘difference
barrier’. The supply barrier refers to the lack of qualified women and minorities
because of inequities in the nation’s educational system. The report notes that
although corporations cannot lead a movement to reform the nation’s schools,
they can be strong advocates for excellent schools by participating in initiatives
such as school-to-work and internships as well as providing scholarships. (Civil
Rights Monitor, 1995)
Entry to equal opportunities in leadership begins with access to education and the
acquisition of the right qualifications. The biggest reported threat posed to the
advancement of women to positions of executive leadership in South Africa is a
lack of access to quality high school and tertiary education. (Davidson & Burke,
2011)
The difference barrier refers to the stereotypes, prejudices, and biases that
individuals harbour about cultural, gender, or racial differences. The report states
that of all the barriers to corporate advancement identified, it is prejudice that tops
the list. (Civil Rights Monitor, 1995)
Faced with women´s under-representation in leadership, many reach for the
explanation that women willingly choose to hold themselves back, ignoring
structural barriers to women´s advancement. A recent report found that women
hold only 23% of senior-management roles in Singapore, the lowest percentage in
Asia. Only 7.9% of directors of Singapore exchange-listed companies are women,
leaving them behind their neighbours Malaysia, Indonesia and comparable
economies as Hong Kong. In a recent survey by Robert Half, 71% of human
resource managers in medium-sized firms in Singapore cited “societal perceptions
of women” as holding women back. 43% at large firms perceived a “lack of
promotional opportunities for women”. (Robert Half, 2009) (Tan, 2014)
Similarly, an Opportunity Now UK survey found that a third of their women
respondents believed they were discriminated against at the point of promotion.
The obstacles were greater for older women and those from ethnic minorities –
49% of women from ethnic minorities cited direct discrimination. More than half
the 1000 women surveyed thought they had to put their career before family to
win promotion in their organization. (Davidson & Burke, 2011)
In an Aware survey of 1,322 people, 58% of male respondents thought that
women should take care of household chores and caregiving, compared to 47% of
female respondents. A woman who does not desire this responsibility may have
little alternative if her male partner is uncooperative, especially if general societal
expectations support him in his position. (Tan, 2014)
The internal business barriers concern the difference between what corporate
leadership says it wants to happen and what is actually happening. The underlying
cause of this discrepancy stems from the perception of many white males that they
are losing the corporate game, control and opportunity. Many middle- and upper-
level white male managers view the inclusion of minorities and women in
management as a direct threat to their own chances for advancement. Internal
structural barriers, such as recruitment policies and the corporate climate, further
contribute to the persistence of the glass ceiling. The report states that many
executives hire only people who are most like themselves culturally and ethnically
and are not willing as they see it "to risk" hiring minorities unless their clients
demand increases in minority hiring. (Civil Rights Monitor, 1995) (Cotter,
Hermsen, Ovadia, & Vanneman, 2001)
The entire concept of an employee with no need for work-life balance rides on the
hidden assumption that the employee can offload domestic responsibilities onto
someone else – an arrangement usually available only to men, at the expense of
women. These barriers to economic participation have detrimental consequences
on women’s welfare in Singapore and worldwide. According to the Ministry of
Manpower, 43% of women who are economically inactive cite domestic
responsibilities as the main reason; the figure is 1.8% for men.
As a result, women in general retire with significantly less CPF savings than men,
leading to greater dependence on others to meet their daily and health-care
expenses. (Tan, 2014)
Government barriers that affect the glass ceiling include the lack of vigorous and
consistent monitoring and law enforcement; weaknesses in the collection and
disaggregation of employment-related data; and inadequate reporting and
dissemination of information relevant to glass ceiling issues. Research presented
to the Commission clearly demonstrates the weakness of relying on voluntary
measures to address employment discrimination. (Civil Rights Monitor, 1995)
The US approach to federal paid parental leave is in stark contrast to peer country
members in the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development
(OECD), where the average length of job-projected leave for new parents is
eighteen weeks, compared to the United States’ twelve weeks. Beginning in
January 2011, the United States was the only OECD nation with no required paid
parental leave. (Johns, 2013)
While the work environment in South Africa is highly regulated by legislation,
leading to greater equity in the workplace, most corporate organizations claim to
have eliminated discrimination by changing their educational parity and social
attitudes towards women (Davidson & Burke, 2011)
According to a survey by the White House Project (The White House Project,
2009), fully 73% of employees in the US non-profit sector are women. Yet, by all
accounts, women have not yet reached parity in terms of leadership positions or
pay. (Watson, 2015) Women want to work in the non-profit sector and are
successful in doing so. They are willing to put in the hard work and make
sacrifices to support a cause. Why are these women, who have the passion and
drive to work for non-profit’s, not receiving the same pay as their male
counterparts?
They may have the same skills and qualifications as males but female CEOs only
earn about 66% of male salaries. This is only the case for 45% of chief executive
within the sector. However, women are more likely to become CEOs of smaller
non-profits than larger ones. (Mondo, 2012)
”The social sector has a long way to go to meet gender equity in executive
compensation,” said Guidestar research chief Chuck McLean last fall, when the
organization released its annual report on non-profit compensation. Guidestar
found that women who are non-profit chief executives made 11% less on average
at organizations with budgets of $250,000 and 23% less at organizations with
budgets between $25 million and $50 million. Further, the raw numbers are also
troubling: when budgets are small, women make up the majority of executive
directors and CEOs. As the budgets increase, the number of women in charge
decreases; just 17% of non-profit’s with budgets of more than $50 million had
female leaders. (Watson, 2015)
However, the public does not see major differences between men and women on
key business leadership qualities. Where they do see gaps, women have a clear
advantage over men on honesty and ethics, providing fair pay and benefits, and
offering mentorship to young employees. Men have an edge when it comes to
being willing to take risks and negotiating profitable deals. (Watson, 2015)
4. Measures
There are several initiatives, programs and surveys that have been established and
analyzed by companies and governments over the last years to support women not
only to become more successful in the business world but also to make their lives
easier.
While there is no doubt that unconscious bias, and even outright misogyny, still
exist in workplaces today, the bigger barrier holding women back from growing
their influence is sometimes not a “glass ceiling” but a “glass cage” of their own
making. This cage is held together by the misgivings they have about their ability
to succeed and handle the demands of leadership without sacrificing their other
aspirations outside the workplace. (Warrell, 2013) Lao Tsu wrote, “People are
capable of more than they think.” Women have to think bigger before they can be
bigger. Too often though women set their sights too low, aiming only for what
they assess they have got a solid chance at achieving, rather than what truly
excites them. Likewise, the goals that inspire are usually one’s people are innately
predisposed to accomplish. While unleashing a new level of ambition can be
daunting, it can also set someone on a whole new trajectory that, over time,
reveals new possibilities and hidden strengths and opportunities that would never
otherwise be seen.
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher once said, ‘You can’t lead from the
crowd.’ Women have to see themselves as leader before anyone else will.
Moreover they have to be willing to build their own unique brand of leadership,
even if at times that has them standing apart from the crowd. (Warrell, 2013)
Government has many tools at its disposal to addresses current barriers in the
workplace that hold women back. The government can act as a catalyst for
promoting gender equality perspectives and practices by heightening awareness of
gender inequality, the benefits of gender equality, and the adverse impacts of
gender inequity on women, children, families, communities, the business sector,
and the nation as a whole. Governmental policy and legislation can dismantle
discriminatory practices and artificial barriers, and programs and projects can
further the understanding of the best interventions for breaking down barriers. In
addition, monitoring and enforcement of existing legislation against gender
discrimination must be real in order to break down barriers that hold women back.
(Johns, 2013) (Federal Glass Ceiling Commission, 1995)
Non-profit organizations are not as intimidating as their for-profit counterparts.
There is a more pleasant work environment and people may enjoy going to work
more. The non-profit sector also allows for greater flexibility of work hours and
more part-time availability. It appeals to women’s feelings and emotions while
allowing them more time to fit into their schedules.
The non-profit sector needs to change and diversify itself. More women need to
be represented in the top leadership positions of non-profit organizations and
more men need to get involved. Women need to be recognized for their talents
and hard work in order to obtain these top leadership positions. The world is
changing and women continue to play an active role in non-profit organizations.
The non-profit sector also needs to reduce the salary gap.
Women need to become better negotiators, take credit for their success and
demand a better salary. The non-profit sector continues to grow and with the
combined efforts of men and women, it can be stronger than ever. (Mondo, 2012)
Asia has a collectivists culture; conversation around families loom larger than in
the West. When it comes to choices women have to make, they also have to think
about how they approach promotions and long-term career prospects. Extended
families and the diameter of that circle of an Asian family is also much larger than
in the West. It is not just about child care anymore, but also elder care issues that
apply to these regions. Therefore organizations have to play their part as well as
women have to. However, women should try to stay authentically. As soon as
they start to lean themselves against men aggressively, they may adopt a wrong
leadership style, that is not accepted by their culture. (BBC, 2013) Women are
associated with “feminine” characteristics like caring, nurturing and sharing.
Gender role stereotypes have a major impact not only on selection but also on
promotion and evaluation of managerial performance. (Davidson & Burke, 2011)
Therefore different leadership styles may not always mash well with a region as it
brings difference to authority. (BBC, 2013)
Women moving millions is composed of women and a few men whose mission is
to strengthen the women’s movement by inviting women into their power, raising
their voices through their resources, and strengthening and extending their vision
through their values and actions. The American organization believes that women
and girls are the best investment towards creating healthy societies, economic
growth, and global stabilization. Women Moving Millions is committed to funding
systemic change and building a peaceful and equitable world. (Women Moving
Millions, 2015)
Similarly, AWARE is Singapore’s leading non-profit gender equality advocacy
group, dedicated to removing gender-based barriers.
It provides a feminist perspective in the national dialogue by effectively
advocating against laws, public policies and mind-sets that discriminate against
women. Furthermore the AWARE Training Institute (ATI) develops and provides
training to empower women to achieve independence. ATI also provides
educational programs to organizations and the public on issues that affect women.
(Aware, 2015)
In 2007, Gap Inc. created PACE http://www.bewhatspossible.com/pace , the
Personal Advancement & Career Enhancement program, which teaches women
both life skills and technical skills over an 8-10 month period. Participants learn
communication strategies, problem solving, decision- making, financial literacy
and gender equality, as well as specific skill sets that help to improve their career
prospects at the factories where they work. Since its inception, PACE has
educated more than 25,000 female garment workers. Women workers in
Cambodia who went through the program were promoted three times faster than
peers at the same factory who did not participate; 49% of participants reported
higher levels of self-esteem and confidence. In India the number of participants
who said they were able to save more money increased by 69%. (Women Moving
Millions, 2015)
Commissioned by Dell, the Gender-GEDI (Global Entrepreneurship and
Development Instute; Dell, 2013) is the world’s only diagnostic tool that
comprehensively measures high potential female entrepreneurship by analyzing
entrepreneurial ecosystems, business environments and individual aspirations
across 30 developed and developing economies spanning multiple regions,
providing a systematic approach that allows cross-country comparison,
benchmarking, and identifies data gaps. The goal of the research is not to provide
a headcount of female entrepreneurs worldwide, rather it is future- oriented and
designed to be a tool to guide leaders, policymakers and law- makers in
identifying country-wide strengths and weaknesses and developing strategies to
create more favorable conditions in their countries to enable businesses founded
by women to thrive. (Women Moving Millions, 2015)
Investing in women and girls is one of the highest return opportunities available in
the developing world, as a wide range of economic research shows. (Goldman
Sachs, 2014) Goldman’s own work has demonstrated that bringing more women
into the labor force can significantly boost per capita income and GDP growth.
Their research has also shown that women’s higher propensity to use their
earnings and increased bargaining power to buy goods and services that improve
family welfare can create a virtuous cycle: female spending supports the
development of human capital, which fuels economic growth in the years ahead.
Given these significant benefits, they look at the role of women-owned small- and
medium- sized enterprises (SMEs) in raising labor force participation and
boosting economic growth in emerging markets. (Women Moving Millions, 2015)
Intel CEO Brian Krzanich laid out the company’s plan to change the future of
technology. Over the next five years, Intel plans to invest $300 million in
something called the "diversity in technology initiative," which will aim to bring
the company’s workforce to full representation by 2020. Just 24% of Intel’s
workforce is female. The CEO said that it is not just good enough to say Intel
values diversity and then has its workplaces and industry not reflect the full
availability and talent pool of women and underrepresented minorities. Intel will
home in on high-skills minorities who will graduate in the next half decade, like
high school AP students and collegians headed toward engineering. By focusing
on the imminent college graduates, Intel could change its demographics of its
workforce fairly quickly.
However, Intel’s short timeline runs the risk of encouraging the hasty adoption of
strategies that lack sustainable infrastructure. Female graduates who come to a
tech-industry like Intel without a full computer-science background need strong
advisers and training programs. (McCorvey, 2015)
Comprehensive, organization-specific programs that address breaking down
structural, organizational, and cultural barriers are essential. This includes setting
voluntary targets for female representation on boards, executive committees, and
senior management and engaging in active outreach and recruitment of women.
To overcome structural barriers, employers need to establish flexible work
arrangements and work-life balance policies, and create effective pipelines that
identify, develop, and promote women. Creation of mentoring programs within
organizations is an important avenue for helping women move up the career
ladder. Such programs should identify successful leaders of both sexes to serve as
mentors to raise women's aspirations and to identify goals and pathways that
move their careers forward. (Johns, 2013) (McKinsey & Company, 2012)
Intel should use some of the funding to create mentorship programs for those who
come from underrepresented backgrounds or are recruited through atypical
channels. (Federal Glass Ceiling Commission, 1995) (McCorvey, 2015)
5. Conclusion
The last decade has witnessed a growing awareness of the value women bring to
the workplace, the impact they make on organizational bottom line, and the
contribution to the economy at large. It has driven policy makers and industry
leaders to support women’s engagement in the workforce, and ascension into
positions of greater influence. (Warrell, 2013) Companies of the western countries
have already started to realize that they need to scope the jobs, they are offering,
to women. They have to concentrate on women´s desires as individuals. (BBC,
2013)
It is essential for our world to change in a direction where glass ceiling is no
longer an issue. However, there is still a long way to go until this problem can be
considered as solved.
6. Bibliography
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