Insight from the academics: Important strategies for women s leadership learning

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Terence Shepherd
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1 Insight from the academics: Important strategies for women s leadership learning Background In their academic paper, Women s leadership learning: A reflexive review of representations and leadership teaching, Dr. Carole Elliott, Durham University Business School and Dr. Valerie Stead, Lancaster University Management School, share their work on the subject of women s leadership and how women learn to become leaders. Carried out over almost a decade, with a number of published academic articles and a book on this subject, they continue to be fascinated by women leaders experiences and stories about their rise to senior level positions. They highlight strategies needed for women s leadership learning such as countering gendering stereotypes accessing networks unearthing systemic barriers to women s advancement creating alternative ways to advance In the following article they take a brief look at the skills women leaders employ to develop and act on these strategies and examine some of the internal processes that might be needed to support that learning.

2 Women s Leadership Learning (by Dr. Carole Elliott and Dr. Valerie Stead) In 2013, we published a paper called Women s leadership learning: A reflexive review of representations and leadership teaching 1 where we identified the role of disruption as an organising influence on women s leadership learning. We also made recommendations regarding how we might draw on these insights for leadership learning and development interventions. Our research reveals how leadership learning is an experiential process, and we developed a typology (see below) that is intended to summarise the body of research literature that focuses on women s experiences of leadership learning. Our research on women s leadership is motivated by our desire to challenge taken- for- granted assumptions about what it means to be a leader. We are also engaged in a continuous cycle of critical reflection about our own teaching practice. We therefore apply a critical eye to learning and development interventions designed for women leaders, and those aspiring to leadership positions. For this reason our 2013 paper studies how typologies such as the ones below, or other models of leadership, can potentially reinforce stereotypes about women leaders and how they perform as leaders. Our research considers how educators and learning and development practitioners might forefront disrupting as a process in leadership learning interventions by re- positioning instruments, such as the typology, to problematise and deconstruct leadership learning. We conclude by proposing a reflexive process in the classroom that takes the form of a critical dialogue to enable educators and participants to deconstruct their experience. Table 1: Typology of Strategies Important to Women s Leadership Learning Common Strategies Self- positioning Developing social capital Disrupting Strategy description Envisaging, presenting and promoting oneself as a leader in relation to others, an organisation and to a broader external audience. Accessing and influencing through membership of formal and informal networks (draws on Eagly and Carli s definition, 2007) Disrupting existing norms and practices and creating alternatives. Importance of the strategies for women leaders Countering gender stereotypes: a persistence of gender stereotypes concerning women in business (Rees and Miazhevich, 2005: 420) Women usually have less of it (Eagly and Carli, 2007: 139) As a means of self- promotion (Sherman, Access to influential leadership networks (Kumra and Exposing the gendered nature of the workplace and how women are viewed differently to men (Lord and Preston, Unearthing systemic barriers to women s advancement 1 Stead, V. and Elliott, C. (2013) Women s leadership learning: A reflexive review of representations and leadership teaching, Management Learning 44(4):

3 Belonging to the leadership community, influencing and shaping power relationships. (Parker, Vinnicombe, 2008) (Meyerson and Fletcher, 2000) Advancing leadership careers against a background of persistent discrimination in the workplace (Stead and Elliott, 2009) Challenges presented by the strategies for women leaders Cultural conditioning: women socialized to have a community rather than self- centered focus. Self- promoting behaviours perceived as unfeminine, pushy, domineering and aggressive (Kumra and Vinnicombe, 2008: 71) Women experiencing exclusion due to floating stereotypes. Leadership viewed as men s knowledge (Sinclair, 2007: 469) and women seen as other (Ford, 2006) Women not taken as seriously as men (Yedida and Bickel, 2001) Women less adept than men at networking as a political strategy for career advancement (Roan and Rooney, 2006) Lack of female role models, appropriate mentors and sponsors from influential networks, (Sherman, 2005; Yedida and Bickel, 2001); it does help if you actually know somebody (Kumra and Vinnicombe, 2008: 70) Particular barriers for women in developing social capital, including men s dominance of social networks- this old boy s network, it is still there... (Stead and Elliott, 2009); women viewed as outsiders and excluded from male dominated networks (Bryans and Mavin, 2003) Disrupting and/or developing alternatives can be risky in that they challenge the status quo and traditional perceptions of women (Mathieu, 2009; Swan, Can reinforce women s positioning as at odds with the mainstream (Meyerson, 2001) Disrupting can reflect negatively on the individual (Mathieu, 2009) Illustrative examples of ways in which women leaders seek to employ these strategies Preparation Knowing and developing strengths (Madsen, 2008) Gaining qualifications to develop credibility (Simpson, 2000) Taking public ownership of leadership identity Claiming one s own ideas (Stead and Elliott, 2009; Yedida and Bickel, Fitting in Taking on male characteristics/behaviours to fit in (Bryans and Mavin, 2003) Finding mentors and/or sponsors To develop confidence and gain access to networks (Madsen, 2008; Sherman, Seeking networks outside the organisation (Stead and Elliott, 2009) Accessing near and far role Naming and training Naming and exposing organisational practices as gendered (Lord and Preston, Training others to recognise the gendered nature of the environment (Lord and Preston, 2005: 775) Taking on the role of tempered radical Showing commitment to the organisation while advancing a social agenda for change an ongoing

4 2001) Finding fit with a prevailing model of success (Kumra and Vinnicombe, 2008) Drawing on a range of masculine and feminine behaviours. - A conscious and knowing use of different selves (Ford, 2010) models. Near role models including family, colleagues, managers, leaders in own or other familiar organisations. (Elliott and Stead, 2008) Far role models including prominent women in the press and media unknown to the leader (Rees and Miazhevich, Developing/using women only networks For support to deal with gender bias in organisations (Mavin and Bryans, 2002) swimming against the tide (Meyerson, 2001: xiii) Disrupting established patterns of behaviour Performing femininity and masculinity in a leadership role (Swan, ; using flirtatious banter typically associated with men (Hartmann, 1999); resisting conformity to stereotypical female roles (Mathieu, 2009) Developing different routes Circumnavigating existing resources; creating an alternative way to advance where the existing path is blocked to women leaders or to women leaders agendas (Stead and Elliott, 2009) Critically Reflecting: A meta- skill underpinning women s learning of leadership A questioning observation of, and reflection on, the impact and consequences of leadership practices in relation to women leaders own work contexts. Women leaders employ this skill in: 1. moving from awareness to action (Swan, 2. recognising and making sense of power and gender relations (Sinclair, 2000, 2007) 3. individual and collective aid to share reflections and develop strategies (Mavin and Bryans, 2002)

5 Conclusion It has already been noted that the authors have highlighted strategies needed for women s leadership learning such as countering gendering stereotypes, accessing networks, unearthing systemic barriers to women s advancement and creating alternative ways to advance. People In Aid supports the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS). Dr Elliott s summary of the paper Women s Leadership Learning addresses a perspective relating to part of CHS Commitment 8: Staff are supported to do their job effectively, by examining a number of aspects of how women leaders learn most effectively. The paper therefore challenges readers on how they need to be supported for that learning process to be most effective. People in Aid encourages aid practitioners, especially managers with the responsibility for effective learning and development and organisational development, to read the full paper. Feedback is invited in order that further reflection and study can take place to challenge current assumptions and make recommendations to ensure leadership development is appropriate to address future complex poverty, disaster and conflict affected situations.

JOB AND PERSON SPECIFICATION. It has an annual budget of approximately 50 million and currently a staff of approximately 300.

JOB AND PERSON SPECIFICATION. It has an annual budget of approximately 50 million and currently a staff of approximately 300. JOB AND PERSON SPECIFICATION Job Title: Division Grade: HR Adviser - HR Operations Section G Reports To: Head of HR Operations General Information The Commonwealth Secretariat is the principal intergovernmental