Factors Impacting Women's Career Development in the Workplace

Dissertation
Proposal
(What factors impact on women’s career developmental
progress in the workplace?)
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Executive Summary
Main purpose of preparing this dissertation is to analysis number of positive and negative
factors that have direct impact on career developmental progress of women in the workplace. In
order to achieve this purpose, some activities have been completed by researcher. Introduction is
a first activity and in order to done this activity research make some research objectives and
questions. It has been supported researcher in completion of research purpose and aim in
effective manner. literature review another activity that was completed by using number of
secondary sources which are articles, magazines, books, journals, publication research and many
other sources relevant to the study. All these are useful sources because they helped researcher in
collecting of detailed and in-depth data regarding the significance of developing women career at
workplace, contribution of positive factors towards career development progress of women,
negative effect of factors on women’s career development and several ways for eliminating
negative impact of factors over women’s career development progress. Research methodology is
another activity which is based on primary data collection. For gathering primary information or
data, interview has been applied for the reason that provides qualitative data. Conclusion and
recommendation is last part of the dissertation that proof, research aim and objectives are
achieved effectively.
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Contents
Executive Summary.........................................................................................................................2
Introduction......................................................................................................................................5
Overview of the topic..................................................................................................................5
Research Question:......................................................................................................................5
Research sub-questions................................................................................................................5
Research aim................................................................................................................................5
Research Objectives.....................................................................................................................6
Importance of research question in practical and theoretical level..............................................6
Structure of the dissertation:........................................................................................................6
Literature Review.............................................................................................................................8
Definitions of the variable present within research model..........................................................8
Relationship between variables...................................................................................................8
Literature review of research sub-questions................................................................................8
Significance of developing women career at workplace?.......................................................8
Factors have positive contribution towards career development progress of women at
workplace of ASDA?.............................................................................................................10
Several factors that have negative effect on women’s career development progress at
workplace of ASDA?.............................................................................................................11
Several ways by which ASDA can easily minimised negative impact of factors over
women’s career development progress?................................................................................13
Planned research Method...............................................................................................................15
Types of study............................................................................................................................15
Data Collection:.........................................................................................................................15
Research philosophy:.................................................................................................................16
Data analysis approach:.............................................................................................................16
Research design:........................................................................................................................16
Time horizon:.............................................................................................................................17
Sampling....................................................................................................................................18
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Research Instrument..................................................................................................................18
Reliability and validity of the research:.....................................................................................19
Ethical consideration:................................................................................................................19
Research Limitations:................................................................................................................20
Results and discussion...................................................................................................................21
Conclusion and Recommendations................................................................................................28
Reflection and alternative methodology........................................................................................30
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................33
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Introduction
Overview of the topic
Career development introduces to the lifelong process of managing work, leisure, learning
and transitions in order to turn toward a personally determined as developing preferred future
(Bozer and Jones, 2018). Along with this, there are number of factors that have impact on
women’s career development progress in the workplace. ASDA is a chosen workplace or British
supermarket retailer. It was founded in 1949 by Peter and Fred Asquith and headquartered in
Leeds, West Yorkshire. At this workplace, numbers of women employees are working. Along
with this, there are number of factors that have negative impact on career developmental
progress of women at workplace including, age, gender, employment level, childcare
responsibility, lack of formal training etc. These are main factors that have negative effect on
women’s career development progress in the workplace. There are some positive factors that
positively impact on career development progress of women employees at workplace such as
motivation, recognition and reward, education, training and many others. Therefore, there are
positive and negative factors that impact on women’s career developmental progress at
workplace.
Research Question:
(1). What factors impact on women’s career developmental progress in the workplace?
Research sub-questions
(I) What is the significance of developing women career at workplace?
(II) Which factors have positive contribution towards career development progress of women at
workplace of ASDA?
(III) What are the several factors that have negative effect on women’s career development
progress at workplace of ASDA?
(IV) What are the several ways by which ASDA can easily minimised negative impact of factors
over women’s career development progress?
Research aim
Main aim of this dissertation is to identify several factors that have direct impact on career
development progress of women in the workplace. A study of ASDA.
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Research Objectives
To determine the importance of women career development at workplace.
To determine the factors those have positive contribution towards women’s career development
progress at workplace of ASDA.
To analysis factors that negatively impact on career development progress of women at
workplace of ASDA.
To find out several ways by which negative impact of factors over women’s career development
progress can be minimised by ASDA.
Importance of research question in practical and theoretical level
It is important to identify different factors that support women’s in development of its career
progress at workplace. This research question is practical as well as theoretical important. In
practical manner, it will help in identification of women’s opinion about the different factors that
have impact on their career progress in the existing workplace. In theoretical manner, it will help
in increasing knowledge about the different factors that impact over women’s career progress. If
this dissertation is publish, it will help an individual, organisation and overall society by
improving their understanding regarding the importance of developing women’s career progress
at workplace (Douglas and et. al., 2018).
Structure of the dissertation:
This is an important part of the dissertation that will support reader in identification of
information about the each chapter. In order to complete dissertation, number of activities or
chapters will be followed by researcher. These chapters apart from their purpose or importance
will be explained as below:
Introduction: First part of preparing dissertation is Introduction. This is a significant chapter
because it includes research aim, objectives and questions. This activity of the dissertation helps
researcher in identification of importance of research topic in practical as well as academic
manner. Main purpose of this chapter is to support reader by providing information regarding the
aims and objectives of study.
Literature review: This is second and main part of dissertation which will support in
collecting of secondary information from large number of sources which are books, magazines,
articles, journals, publication research etc. All these are main sources that will be used for
literature review in collecting detailed and in-depth data regarding the current study. Main
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purpose of literature review is to identify inconsequence and gaps in previous studies. By
identifying literature gap, researcher will use to make research questions in fulfilling those gaps
in effective and systematic manner.
Research methodology: This is another part of dissertation that has their own importance in
the report. Research methodology is a process that used by investigator for accumulating and
analysing information about the study in qualitative or quantitative manner. Current study is
completely based on qualitative study and for collecting and analysing this type of information
number of methods will be applied. These methods are interpretivisim philosophy, inductive
approach, interview method, descriptive analysis and many others. All these are effective
methods in gathering and analysing of valid information regarding the factors that have impact
on women’s career developmental progress in the workplace.
Results and discussion: This part of the dissertation is based on data collection method
which is Interview. This type of methodology support researcher in gaining of valid results
within lesser time duration. This section covers number of questions which will be beneficial in
identification of women’s opinion about their career progress at workplace.
Conclusion and recommendation: This is most important chapter because it includes entire
summary of the dissertation and support researcher in achievement of research aim and
objectives through research questions.
Reflection and alternative research methodology: This section of research includes
individual experience about doing this research. Reflection also based on effectiveness of
research method. Along with this, there is some recommendation that have to provide to the
researcher in used of alternative research methodology.
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Literature Review
Definitions of the variable present within research model
Within the research model, there are two variables which are depended and independent.
According to the research questions, women’s career developmental progress in the workplace is
dependent variables and factors are independent variables. For example: career developmental
progress of women at workplace is dependent on different factors.
Relationship between variables
Dependent and independent variable has strong relationship because in absence of any
variable, researcher cannot conduct dissertation in effective manner. Within a study, if researcher
not has information about the factors then they are not able to identify carer development
progress of women in the workplace. Therefore, in conducting dissertation successfully both
variables are important for the researcher (Fletcher, Alfes and Robinson, 2018).
Literature review of research sub-questions
Significance of developing women career at workplace?
According to the Gati Levin and Landman-Tal, (2019), development of women career at
workplace is important for an organisation because they plays significant role in improvement of
business growth and success at marketplace. At the present time, men and women are not
presented in an equal manner in the global work force. Despite the fact that women represent
more than half of the population across the world, it is seen that women are underrepresented
within the labour force working at small to big companies. Initiatives are being taken by many
countries as well as companies to reduce the gap between rate of women and men working
within the premise of an organisation. However, there are still many nations as well as
corporations that are lacking behind in taking efforts to do the same. Women are prevented from
pursuing career options or seeking employment owing to a number of reasons such as taking due
care of children and families, discriminatory policy and practice of some companies, cultural as
well as social beliefs in some nations and so on. However, it is important that with time, people
and their mindsets enhance to promote women to pursue and develop their careers at workplace.
This is important so as to ensure that each and every individual pertaining to the population of
any particular nation or world get equal empowerment opportunities. With the help of such
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