Gender Balance in Leadership - Coursework Example

GENDER INEQUALITY MANAGEMENT Name: Course Instructor’s name Institution Date The notion that Gender roles are natural has been challenged by feminists (Rao, 1999). In essence, gender roles are classifications that are socially constructed under the influence of overarching patriarchy within the families, communities and the society. Sinclair asserts that t is thus very crucial that these classifications based on patriarchy are defied and deconstructed (2005). Whereas males are thought as powerful, superior and as the representation on the society ‘norm’ the females are considered secondary, autonomy, inferior and powerless. The socialization power underlying this system cannot be overlooked. Actually patriarchy and sexism is so deeply engrained in the consciousness of the society that they are hardly visible. The males have woven the social fabric in support of their male counterparts. In many bureaucratic organizations, corporate or governmental, most leadership positions are reserved for men. On the other hand, supportive positions that are important in keeping the males in power are concentrated by females. Therefore, the privileges, the power and prestige that come with the positions of power generally depend on the subordinate roles played by females. This power ordering therefore has crucial impacts on women leadership (Acker, 1992). Over the years women have been marginalized in most societies. The management of gender inequality has therefore been a major concern to most organizations. First, gender equality is a human right. Every girl and woman is entitled to live in security and in dignity. Second gender equality is in itself a development goal (Gaventa et al, 2001). In many countries, women have limited access to employment and educational opportunities as compared to men. In addition women’s earnings are generally less as compared to men’s and women’s chances to advancement are limited due to endurance of social restrictions and deprivation of financial access. In some developing countries women are still restricted from voting, property ownership and are only allowed to move outside their home in the company of a male family member (Rao, 1999). Consequently, this constitutes a significant constraint on human rights as well as sustainable development. Women empowerment and participation in social and economic development is fundamental in the building of stronger economies. Although much has been done to mitigate gender inequality worldwide, it is true that there is no region in the world where men and women are equal in economic social and rights. In any organization, gender equality perspective is important in individual projects as well as the internal structures of the organization. Additionally, every individual’s personal attitude in the organization towards gender equality has influential impacts on the organization’s sustainable development. A positive gender equality attitude is very crucial in the development of any organization. It is notable that in the number of women in position of leadership and decision making is also not equal to that of men globally (Kabeer, 1994). Consequently, management of gender inequality within an organization can be an impediment to the reduction of inequality in the individual projects. Both women and men can be allowed to take part in the projects’ activities but the number of women in decision making sectors is limited or when the final decisions are made their decisions are ignored. According to Wajcman ( 1998),this type of inequality is common in many organizations. Proper management of gender inequality should therefore clarify the decision making process and the importance of gender within the organization’s activities should be well defined. It is important to note that gender equality does not only regard the number of women and men present in and organization but it also concerns the roles played by the different parties within the organization. In most organizations, a widespread commitment to managing of gender inequality is not evident in daily activities. Gender matters are no treated as the responsibility of everybody but are regarded as a separate area of responsibility. On the other hand, practical experience reveals that most organization appoint a woman to be in charge of its gender affairs whereas others do not appoint anybody to be responsible for the gender issues. However, the importance of mainstreaming gender sensitive thinking in the activities of the organization cannot be ignored (Word Bank). The internalization of gender sensitive thinking calls for expertise knowledge so it is also important to appoint someone with special skills to man the gender mainstreaming department. It is, therefore, justifiable for any organization to appoint a gender specialist or a team of experts. Correspondingly, it should be the responsibility of all organization members to promote gender equality through the activities that they take part in. it is the responsibility of organization leaders give greater emphasis and priority to gender mainstreaming. It is the roe of the leaders to show in both their words and actions that promotion of gender equality is a matter of deed and not just actions Rao (1999). In Gaventa et al (2001), the encroachment of women into position of leadership has been a key concern for many corporate and governmental organizations. For instance the council of Europe suggests that the national assembly membership should comprise of forty percent of each sex. At the same time, the European Union has set similar targets. Gender equality is important since it is believed to result in remarkable development in various economic sectors. According to report commissioned under the European Union Swedish president, a 27% GPD growth is likely to be realized if real gender equality was attained in the EU. Global studies have shown that those organizations that have gender balance in decision making positions are likely to register better performance than those that do not. Some of the benefits of gender balance are enhanced performance and governance, superior corporate image, higher investment returns, better labor productivity, high chance of drawing and retention of the exceptional talent, increased innovation in the workplace and an employee turnover reduction. Additionally, women are responsible for an important consumer segment worldwide. Household purchasing decisions are mostly made by women and not men. It is thus significant that senior managerial positions in companies reflect their consumer base (World Bank, 2001). Diverse and high skilled personnel are important in sustainable growth of any economy. In some parts of the world such European Union it has been proved that women are as highly educated and skilled as their male counterparts thus capable of providing the much needed labor (Rao, 1999). Gender imbalance in leadership positions can be associated to number o f factors. The concept of the glass ceiling is one of the barriers of advancement of women into leadership positions. This term is used to refer to invisible obstruction that averts s the chances of women climbing up the corporate ladder. One of the glass ceiling causes is occupational segregation. The position of leadership and the labor market are segregated by gender. Another barrier to the rise of women into positions of leadership is the issue of sex discrimination. Most people hold negative attitudes towards women’s potentiality as leaders. This has be a greater hindrance to the achievement of gender equality in leadership. Though there is sufficient evidence that these stereotypes are baseless, they still persist. Another serious problem that faces women in bureaucracy is sexual harassment. Some employers use sex abuse as a means of power. The resultant is demoralization and intimidation of women which triggers silence among them. Lack of mentors has also been named as one the serious barriers to the development of women ( Sinclair, 2001). Change therefore seems to be very crucial in curbing gender inequality in organizations. Organization members need to be aware of the prevailing gender differences. Consequently it is very crucial for organization executives to appreciate the need for gender balance before any attempt towards the implementation of any gender related changes. For example in most organizations, few women will openly lobby or ask over for power. Most managers interpret this as lack of ambition which is not the case. Most women make an assumption that the manager will take note of their incomparable performance reward the by offering a promotion. Moreover, few organizations take note of the differences in the career lifecycle of men and women. Most managers consider the age o f 30-35 as the appropriate one for potential leaders. Unwittingly, this policy eradicates women from the pipeline of talent since at this age most women have children at this age. Most women focus on their careers in their forties and this is rather late ( Kabeer, 1994). Experts believe that communication pay a role in the imbalance of gender. Infection and vocal pitch pauses, silence and the speaking speed are significant in the projection of influence and power. Research has revealed the existence of a correlation between testosterone, power associated hormone, levels and high pitched voices. This gives men an advantage over women when it comes to leadership. The vocal quality is among the defining leadership factors. Change resistance as well as the cost is among other factors that influence gender equality in leadership positions. Most companies are reluctant to adapt change in gender matters due the incurred costs (Sinclair,2001). According to Acker (2001), despite the barriers to gender equality and the challenges of change adoption, superior gender balance in organizations is often predicted by professionals. For instance it possible for women to train their voices in an attempt to address any challenges that come with the voices. Enhanced gender inequality corporate awareness can also be of great importance. Similarly, cooperate transparency is of greater significance. Change will, therefore, need a shift in the manner in which the way leadership is perceived by companies. Correspondingly, leadership should not be only restricted to executive positions, but to various responsibilities and functions such as technology, finance as well as strategy. Conversely, realizing change can be quite challenging and impossible in some situations. Leaders in top positions have an important role to play as far as the realization of cooperate change is concerned. It is through the support of top management that successful leadership change program can be achieved (Rao, 1999) In conclusion, gender balance in leadership is very crucial to development of any organization though rather challenging and complicated. In Acker (1992) the involvement of women in top managerial positions has taken a slow rate of evolvement due to the change size needed in order to develop gender diversity and alter the leadership behavior at the same time. Undoubtedly, this is compared to size of gains that could result from a leadership with ultimate gender balance. A competitive edge is most likely to result from leadership diversity and women leadership. The issue of gender equality in organizations can be a lever of differentiation in the marketplace. Creating gender equality can be quite difficult, beneficial to existing performance and critical to future achievement at the same time. Therefore organizations that manage to cultivate valuable leadership sustained by gender equality practices have higher chances of gaining a competitive advantage which their counterparts will take long to outdo. This is because the blockade lies n the mindset and culture. Presently in the corporate world taking a go ahead in gender diversity is a strategic decision (World Bank). References Acker, J. (1992) Hierarchies, Jobs, Bodies: A Theory of Gendered Organization, Gender and Society, 4(2): 139-158 Gaventa, et al. (2001) Bringing citizen voice and client focus into service delivery’, IDS Working paper138, Brighton:IDS. Kabeer, N. (1994) Reversed Realities: Gender hierarchies in development thought, London: Verso Rao, A., Stuart, R & Kelleher (1999) Gender at Work, West Hartford, Conn. USA: Kumarian Press. Sinclair, A. (2005) Doing Leadership Differently, Melbourne: Melbourne University Press Wajcman, J. (1998) Managing Like a Man: Women and Men in Corporate Management, Cambridge: Polity Press Wor ld Bank. (2001) Endangering Development through Gender Equity in Rights Resources and Voice, Washington: World Bank Read More