Role of Women Leadership in Business Management and Barriers to their Managerial Positions

"Role of Women Leadership in Business management and Barriers to their
Managerial Positions"?

Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction..............................................................................................................4
1.1. Background..................................................................................................................4
1.2. Statement of the Problem............................................................................................5
1.3. Research Objectives....................................................................................................5
1.4. Research Questions and Hypothesis............................................................................6
1.5. Significance of the Research.......................................................................................6
1.6. Structure of Report......................................................................................................6
Chapter 2: Literature Review.....................................................................................................8
2.1. Different Roles of Women Entrepreneurs to Business Management..........................8
2.2. Leadership Strategies Implemented by Women Leaders............................................9
2.3. Women Leadership Styles and Its Effects on Business Structure.............................10
2.4. Women Leadership Barriers......................................................................................10
Chapter 3: Research Design and Methodology........................................................................12
Conceptual Framework........................................................................................................12
Research Philosophy............................................................................................................13
Research Approach..............................................................................................................13
Research Strategy.................................................................................................................14
Data Collection.....................................................................................................................14
Sampling..............................................................................................................................14
Data Analysis.......................................................................................................................15
Methods of Analysis of data............................................................................................15
Design and Validation......................................................................................................15
Chapter 4: Results, Findings and Discussion...........................................................................18
Thematic Analysis................................................................................................................18
Themes and justification......................................................................................................19
Chapter 5: Conclusion and Recommendations........................................................................22

Reference List..........................................................................................................................23
Appendices...............................................................................................................................26

Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1. Background
Business Management is an important aspect of a business organization. It is helpful
to obtain a competitive advantage by the strategic implementation for different
variables including sociocultural, political, legal, economic and technological factors1.
Leadership is an effective aspect to handle business and its management activities.
Furthermore, leadership focuses improving economic value, revenue, as well as
competing demands for internal and external organizational stakeholders2. However,
women are also active participants in entrepreneurship and corporate business. Their
role in leadership, management, and other departments could be undertaken. As in
2019, approximately 29% of senior management roles were appointed to women
candidates whereas 87% of global business has one woman in management3. It shows
that women are building roles in the operations and management of senior authority
figures.
However, women in such dominating positions bring some positive outlook for
business sustainability. Several studies have explored different positive advantages of
women entrepreneurs. One of the major advantages could be seen for the emotional
intelligence quotient as a leader. Some of the competencies in women leader includes
emotional self-awareness, conflict management, teamwork, communication and
empathy towards others 4. Additionally, gender equality is predominantly another
positive outlook inside business management. For example, hiring more women staff
to reduce the gender gap among the organization. Furthermore, women could actively
increase the economy due to be working with individuals with equal expenditure.
Henceforth, all types of approaches could see in the studies accomplished. The
women in the role of leadership inside businesses could have a positive impact on
gaining competitive advantage and improving work processes.
1 T Wheelen & J Hunger, Strategic management and business policy, in, Upper Saddle River, N.J., Prentice Hall, 2010.
2 The emerging logic of responsible management: Institutional pluralism, leadership, and strategizing In The Research Handbook of
Responsible Management, in, N Radoynovska, W Ocasio & O Laasch (ed), 1st ed., Chelthenham, 2020.
3 "Female Business Leaders: Global Statistics", in Catalyst, 2019, <https://www.catalyst.org/research/women-in-management/> [accessed
27 February 2020].
4 N Dasgupta, "People Matters - Interstitial Site — People Matters", in People matters.in, , 2018,
<https://www.peoplematters.in/article/leadership/female-leadership-advantages-challenges-and-opportunities-19161> [accessed 27 February
2020].

On the contrary, with powerful positions comes different sorts of challenges for
women leaders. The biggest concern here is that lack of resource pool for women
candidates will hamper business management inside companies. It should be noted
down that 60 percent senior management and leadership positions are occupied by
male counterparts5. Therefore, the challenge is a lack of resource pool for women
employees due to different personal, professional life balance. Thus, in previous
studies, authors have highlighted different barriers of women participants due to some
of the cultural and social factors. One research focuses on how company culture and
domain also bring gender inequality for the female workers6. Another study concludes
that social challenge also keeps distance between women leaders due to exclusion
from social activities conducted for office7. Therefore, even though roles are designed
from women's barriers to make sure to influence managerial positions inside the
business hierarchy.
1.2. Statement of the Problem
According to Global women in business and management reports, approximately 40
percent female gender is accepted and acknowledged as an active part of businesses.
However, what about 60 percent of women who are still considered an outcast from
the gender equality concept inside business and management. Therefore, currently,
industries are only focusing on getting back into competition. But women also play an
equal part in contributing management positions. Even if they are given senior
management roles, several challenges stop them from conducting effective leadership.
Thus, the problem here is to gather the impact of women's leadership inside the
business as well as proposing different barriers that stop their success growth rate.
1.3. Research Objectives
The objectives of this research are to analyze different types of leadership roles for
women employees. Additionally, understand how leadership style could impact
business management processes. At the same time, some barriers do stop women
5 Bureau for Employers' Activities (ACT/EMP), Women in Business and Management: The business case for change, in, The Business Case
For Change, International Labor Organisation, 2019, pp. 1-149, <https://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/WCMS_700953/lang--en/
index.htm> [accessed 27 February 2020].
6 R Vázquez-Carrasco, M López-Pérez & E Centeno, "A qualitative approach to the challenges for women in management: are they starting
in the 21st century?", in Quality & Quantity, vol. 46, 2011, 1337-1357.
7 B HARRIS, "WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP: A QUALITATIVE REVIEW OF CHALLENGES, EXPERIENCES, AND STRATEGIES IN
ADDRESSING GENDER BIAS", in, unpublished Masters of Public Health, UT School of Public Health, 2019.

leaders to grow and become successful. Hence, some constraints will also be
identified for women leaders that are supposed threats to their managerial positions.
1.4. Research Questions and Hypothesis
The research study is based on the hypothesis which states that "women leadership is
important for business growth; however hampered due to different challenges." This
study will support the theoretical hypothesis by answering the following research
questions offered below:
 Q1: Explain the different roles of women entrepreneurs in the business
management hierarchy?
 Q2: What are the different kinds of Leadership strategies implemented by
Women Leaders?
 Q3: How women leadership styles affect the business structure and
management for positive outlook?
 Q4: Discuss some of the barriers faced for women leadership in context with
business management?
 Q5: What are the negative impacts of the challenges on women and their job
opportunities, and success rate?
1.5. Significance of the Research
This research will offer the importance of Women Leadership inside the business
management of organizations. Furthermore, it is critical to analyze how their
leadership approach will transform business in a positive direction. There are several
issues in women's leadership for corporate businesses. Hence, another significance
will be the identification of such issues and their impact on senior management
positions of women. With this proposed research, it will easy to offer solutions for
dealing with corporate issues in context to women entrepreneurs and their
management effectively. Furthermore, company policymakers could also make some
great changes in offering justice to women entrepreneurs and their leadership
positions after assessing some important issues.
1.6. Structure of the Report
The structure of the report is in the following categories.

Chapter 1: Introduction - This is the first chapter of the study in which topic
background, objectives, research questions, hypothesis, and significance of the
research are formulated.
Chapter 2: Literature Review – The LR will explore the topic and existing literature
for the proposed topic.
Chapter 3: Design Methodology – This section will implement a design method for
analyzing a topic with qualitative research.
Chapter 4: Findings and Analysis - The findings after qualitative research techniques
will be explained in this section.
Chapter 5: Conclusion – The outcomes of the research study will be proposed here.

Chapter 2: Literature Review
2.1. Different Roles of Women Entrepreneurs to Business Management
Women are a vital part of any organization and its business management operations.
However, different kinds of roles are assigned to them in the business hierarchy,
even if it is in junior to senior roles. Currently, different roles for women
entrepreneurs exist in context with business management effectively.
Also, some of the studies have shown the role of women directors in the board
appointments. The studies define that women’s role as director has offered
compassion due to their different ideology for approach as compared with men
whose are based on ethical issues 8. However, literature has also established that
theoretically, the incorporation in the board of directors for women could be seen.
Again, as a board member, women entrepreneurs are offered important source for
giving insights on strategic inputs for workflow rather than financial departments
due to their ideologies9. Therefore, women's role in business management as per
existing literature is offered as the board of director position.
Another important role of women in business management could be seen especially
as top management, including managers as well as chief executive officers. In the
United States since 2008, 39 percent women worked in management and 51 percent
worked as workers, professionals, and high payment management jobs however
women senior managers were found in extremely lower rate 10. On the contrary, in
India according to report Women CEOs of the Fortune 1000, 15 CEO’s roles are
played by women entrepreneurs in company including Indra K. Nooyi for PespiCo,
Inc 11. Therefore, another role for women entrepreneurs includes managers and CEO
positions. Whereas, some common roles of women include human resources,
finance, management, and involvement at the bottom of the hierarchy, including
8 S Nielsen & M Huse, "Women directors' contribution to board decision-making and strategic involvement: The role of equality
perception", in European Management Review, vol. 7, 2010, 16-29.
9 S Nielsen & M Huse, "The Contribution of Women on Boards of Directors: Going beyond the Surface", in Corporate Governance: An
International Review, vol. 18, 2010, 136-148.
10 V Mani, "Work-Life Balance and Women Professionals", in Global Journal of Management and Business Research Interdisciplinary,
vol. 13, 2013, 1-8.
11 N Lockwood, et al., "Perspectives on women in management in India.", in Society for Human Resource Management, 2009, 1-12.