Those who broke the glass ceiling and rise: A qualitative research about women managers.

Abstract

Women are more disadvantaged than men in terms of participation in the workforce, equal pay for the same job, and representation in managerial positions worldwide. It is questionable how societies that cannot fully offer economic, social, and political rights to half of their population will develop. As seen in many countries, in Turkey, the number of female managers is less than men. Therefore, identifying the factors that prevent women from becoming managers and creating policies to eliminate these obstacles is essential. Thus, it may be possible to achieve gender equality at the management level. In this study, semi-structured interviews were done among 22 female managers reached with convenience sampling to learn about their career narratives and their experiences in the process leading to management. Study findings were interpreted with the descriptive analysis method. On the way to management, it was observed that the participants emphasized similar characteristics such as working devotedly and giving importance to self-improvement. Besides, it was seen that various factors make it easier to become a manager, such as support from superiors and the opportunities provided by the institution. Also, several factors that make it difficult for women to become managers, such as work-family conflict, and pressures from men, have been identified. It is understood that the participants had different views on gender equality in the workplace. On the other hand, some participants had further career goals for the future, while others planned to focus on their personal development. Findings were discussed in the context of gender. It is believed that qualitative research, in which women describe the path to becoming managers, will create a rich data source in terms of identifying the difficulties and conveniences encountered in this way. The expectation is that such research can provide a roadmap for young women with career goals and contribute to forming gender equality policies.