JÖNKÖPING UNIVERSITY
Female Career Development
- The importance of networking
Bachelor Thesis within Business Administration Author: Emilie Helmer
Therese Hjälmner Fanny Stener Tutor: Börje Boers
There are a number of people who have contributed to this bachelor thesis whom we would like to express our appreciation to. The first one to acknowledge is our tutor, Börje Boers, who has provided us with support and guidance throughout the work. Thank you. Secondly, we would like to express our gratefulness to the five inspiring women who have taken their time and shared their individual life experiences with us. They have all provided this study with some very fruitful insights of what to expect throughout one’s career devel-opment.
Lena Apler,CEO, Collector AB
Charlotta Oom,Market Manager, Collector AB
Eva Halvarsson,CEO, Andra AP-fonden
Anne A Rosengren,CEO, Catella Corporate Finance
Susanne Jacobsson,Vice President of HR and Communications, Perstorp AB
At last, we would like to give a special thanks to all opposing groups for the valuable feed-back they have provided us with throughout the progress of the thesis.
Title: Female Career Development – The importance of networking Authors: Emilie Helmer
Therese Hjälmner Fanny Stener Tutor: Börje Boers
Date: Jönköping, January 2009
Subject terms: Professional networking, glass ceiling, women in business, female leadership
Abstract
Past research reveals that fewer women than men possess top management positions and statistics imply that in Sweden only 24 percent of all board members are women (European Commission, 2008). Gender differences are even more obvious in the private sector and this is the reality facing today’s graduates, regardless of the fact that the number of female and males taking a business degree in Sweden is approximately the same (SCB, 2006). The purpose of this study is to examine if networking can influence women’s career development. Networking and social capital is argued to be a vital tool for career development (Yukl, 2006), and former studies present information that men and women take advantage of their networks rather differently (Burke, Rothstein and Bristor, 1995). However, as the researchers approached the subject, supplementary factors for advancing up the corporate ladder were identified. Theories regarding female leadership, female career progression and the glass ceiling are therefore taken into consideration as vital factors for career development. In order to carry out this study a qualitative approach was chosen, and five business women were interviewed, all considered proficient of the subject.
The main conclusion derived from the interviews demonstrates that formal networks were less important than informal networks in order to overcome career obstacles and advance professionally. The networks that were considered most beneficial for the interviewees were the ones that evolved naturally and were reciprocal. Moreover, pure female networks were not considered as valuable as mixed networks since men more often possess access to important information than women. Having a mentor was considered vital at top positions since it provides support and further enhances information sharing. However, the results led to conclude that an additional key success factor for female career development was connected to leadership style; and having a transformational leadership style with transactional characteristics was concluded as most beneficial. Furthermore, the interviewees highlighted the importance of possessing the right personal traits and also to share the responsibilities for home and family life with one’s partner.
This study is assumed to be interesting for women in their career with ambitions to reach the top of the corporate ladder. It is also assumed to be interesting for network organisations to use as a benchmark tool.
Titel: Female Career Development – The importance of networking Författare: Emilie Helmer
Therese Hjälmner Fanny Stener Handledare: Börje Boers
Datum: Jönköping, januari 2008
Ämnesord: Professional networking, glass ceiling, women in business, female leadership
Sammanfattning
Forskning visar att färre kvinnor än män innehar VD positioner inom svenskt näringsliv. Statistik pekar dessutom på att endast 24 procent kvinnor är representerade i företagsstyrelser i Sverige (European Commission, 2008). Den ojämna fördelningen mellan könen är mer påtaglig inom den privata sektorn, och detta trots att andelen män respektive kvinnor som tar ut examen vid Sveriges universitet är relativt lika (SCB, 2006).
Syftet med uppsatsen är att genom kvalitativa intervjuer undersöka huruvida nätverkande kan främja fler kvinnor att rekryteras till högre poster inom svenskt näringsliv. Tidigare studier antyder att män och kvinnor använder sig av sina nätverk på olika sätt. Det sägs att män generellt sett utnyttjar sina nätverk i rent professionellt syfte medan kvinnor primärt nätverkar för det sociala utbyte som det genererar (Burke, Rothstein and Bristor, 1995). Andra faktorer som anses påverka kvinnors utveckling i karriären har identifierats under resans gång och inkluderats i studien. Bland annat har teorier relaterande kvinnligt ledarskap, kvinnlig karriärsutveckling och glastaket tillämpats och analyserats tillsammans med resultaten från den empiriska studien. För att svara på studiens syfte och styrka analys och slutsats har fem högt uppsatta kvinnor inom svenskt näringsliv intervjuats.
Huvudslutsatsen är att formella nätverk inte har lika stort inflytande som informella nätverk vad gäller att överkomma hinder unders ens karriär och att avancera professionellt. De nätverk som hade störst betydelse för de intervjuade kvinnorna var de som hade uppkommit naturligt och var av ömsesidig karaktär. De intervjuade kvinnorna underströk dessutom betydelsen av att ha en mentor då man innehar en hög position, eftersom dessa ofta kan bidra med stöd, öka informationsflödet och dela med sig av egna erfarenheter. Ytterligare en slutsats var att nätverk, där enbart kvinnor var aktiva, inte ansågs lika viktiga som nätverk där både kvinnor och män var delaktiga. Det framgick även vid intervjuerna att en viktig aspekt för att kunna avancera är förknippad med ens ledarskapstil. Att besitta en transformell ledarskapstil med influenser av transaktionella drag, ansågs vara mest framgångsrik enligt de intervjuade kvinnorna.
Den här studien antas intressant för kvinnor i karriären, med ambitionen att utvecklas och avancera karriärsmässigt. Den anses dessutom intressant för organiserade nätverk, som kan använda studien som en inspirationskälla för ytterligare utveckling och förbättring.
1 Introduction ... 1
1.1 Background ...1 1.2 Problem discussion ...2 1.3 Purpose ...32 Frame of reference... 4
2.1 Women in business ...4 2.1.1 Female leadership ...42.2 Female career development...5
2.2.1 Obstacles to female career development ...6
2.2.2 The glass ceiling...7
2.2.3 How to overcome female career obstacles...8
2.3 Networking ...9
2.3.1 Networks ...9
2.3.2 The importance of networking ...10
2.3.3 Female networks ...11
2.3.4 Differences between how men and women network ...12
2.4 Research questions...13
3 Research approach and Method ... 14
3.1 Research approach ...14
3.1.1 Inductive vs deductive approach ...14
3.2 Method ...15
3.2.1 Qualitative interviewing...15
3.2.2 Data collection...16
3.2.3 Delimitations...17
3.2.4 Choice of interviewees and interview setting...18
3.2.5 Data analysis...18
3.3 Soundness of the study ...20
3.3.1 Reliability ...20
3.3.2 Validity...21
4 Results & Analysis... 22
4.1 Women in business ...22
4.1.1 Work experience...23
4.1.2 Female leadership ...24
4.2 Female career development...26
4.2.1 Obstacles to female career development ...28
4.2.2 The glass ceiling...30
4.2.3 How to overcome female career obstacles...31
4.3 Networking ...33
4.3.1 Networks and network participation...33
4.3.2 The importance of networking ...36
4.3.3 Female networks ...38
4.3.4 Differences between how men and women network ...39
5 End Remarks ... 41
5.3 Recommendation for further studies...42
References ... 43
Appendices ... 46
Appendix 1 - Intervjumall...46
Appendix 2 - Interview template (english version)...47
Appendix 3 - Summary of interview with Lena Apler ...48
Appendix 4 - Summary of interview with Charlotta Oom ...50
Appendix 5 - Summary of interview with Eva Halvarsson ...52
Appendix 6 - Summary of interview with Anne A Rosengren ...55
Appendix 7 - Summary of interview with Susanne Jacobsson ...57
Table of figures
Figure 2.1 The glass ceiling ...71
Introduction
This chapter will with a funnel approach guide the reader to the main purpose of the study. Beginning with the study’s background the reader will get an in-depth discussion about the main problem, this in order to recognise the relevance and importance of the research questions. The introduction reveals the inspiration be-hind the study.
1.1
Background
Today women account for more than half of university graduates in Europe (SCB, 2008). However, their success is not translated to the workplace. It remains a significant gender imbalance in positions of responsibility such that nearly nine out of 10 members of the Board of Directors of large companies are men. Women represent over 44 percent of all workers across Europe, although they are under represented in large organisations where men account for nearly 90 percent of the board members of leading companies (European Commission, 2008).
Women are still missing out at the top of the business world, and statistics reveal that management boards of the largest companies listed on the national stock exchange of EU member states include just one female representative for every ninth man (European Commission, 2008). The Scandinavian countries are in the forefront of having female representatives in corporate boards, where Norway has by far the highest representation of more than 34 percent. Sweden comes second, with 24 percent of women in corporate boards. Even in the countries where there is a comparatively high representation of women in corporate boards, it is however extremely rare for them to make it to the very top (European Commission, 2008).
In Sweden the number of females and males taking a business degree is approximately the same (SCB, 2008), yet figures show that plenty more men than women possess top positions in the business world. This difference is even more obvious in the private sector where figures published by the Statistic Central Bureau of Sweden indicate that less women than men are appointed to top positions (SCB, 2006). A surprising difference though is that men reach their first executive position much earlier in their career than their female competitors. However, when women finally have reached their first executive position, they climb the corporate ladder much quicker than men. An average of nine years for women to reach top management positions compared to men’s 14 years (Göransson, 2003). Until today, according to Bilimoria and Piderit (2007), academic journals have not properly addressed the reality that women in management and business face.
Other scholars furthermore acknowledge the increased significance of networking in order to reach desired career positions (DagensPs, 2006). Top managers’ networks usually consist of hundreds of people. Having large networks both inside and outside an organisation is argued to enhance a manager's job performance and career. The art of networking is an ongoing process for managers; new networks should be established since the organisation and the external environment change and old ones need to be maintained by keeping in touch and showing appreciation for favours received etc (Yukl, 2006). Former studies present information that men and women take advantage of their networks rather differently. While men usually have a more professional approach, women mostly utilise them for social connections (Burke, Rothstein and Bristor, 1995).
1.2
Problem discussion
According to Powell & Graves (2003) one of the most fundamental signifiers of career success is advancement up the corporate ladder. Around the world, female managers are concentrated to lower management levels and hold positions with less authority compared with men. There are many studies conducted in order to find a solution for how to decrease the gap between men and women within the business world at top positions, but with little progression. It does not seem to be a matter of time, nor a matter of personal preferences for women to close the gap and reach top positions. Neither do early sex differences in career patterns provide a sufficient explanation for why the top management positions are so heavily male intense. What is holding women from reaching top management positions has come to be known as the “glass ceiling”. According to this phenomenon, women are restricted access to top positions due to the fact that they are women. It is furthermore argued that women are not allowed to advance in the hierarchies as far as men with equivalent credentials (Powell & Graves, 2003). The first glance on the subject as such is that women’s advancement up the corporate ladder appears to be very different from men’s.
Researchers have tried to clarify the difference between men and women at top positions in the past and a number of different features have been touched upon in order to explain the lack of female top executives. The discussion around this has usually had two aspects. The first explains this phenomenon by indicating that women in general do not have the desire to spend as much time as men on career development, they prioritise differently and allocate their time to other activities and duties. The other aspect shifts focus and designates that the lack of women at top positions is due to the disadvantages that women face in the business world, such as resistance and negative attitudes from colleagues, family and media (Masui, 2004).
Networking has turned out to be an issue that most CEO’s cannot disregard today, and professional networks have come to play a crucial role when maintaining business contacts (Yukl, 2006). Several leadership consultants acknowledge the importance of managing one’s networks in the right way. Networking is according to Lena Ehrlenfeldt, leadership consultant at Ledarna, a good way of managing one’s professional surroundings (Petersson, 2008).
There are many conflicting arguments and mixed attitudes regarding the art of how to network efficiently. Some say that in order for women to reach top positions, networking with men is essential (Dagens Nyheter, 2004). Yet, there are numerous pure female formal networks that have emerged in the last decade, attracting many women to join. One example of a female formal network is Ruter Dam and their mission statement is; “To encourage the appointment of more women managers to higher posts in major companies” (Ruter Dam, 2006). Interesting here is to find out whether or not the formal networks actually help women in their career progression; or if there are other tools that are more suitable for women to use in order to reach the executive posts? Women with some experience from the business world probably have objective and trustworthy input to share regarding this issue.
Being a member in an acknowledged network usually has a great impact on one’s career. Female networks do not have any decisive power, according to Agneta Dreber, instead they only offer support (Dagens Nyheter, 2004). The studies that have been executed show that women network differently in comparison with men. There is a tendency for networking with peers only and not leveraging on their network contacts in order to
progress in their career development (Atkinson, 2001). Göransson (2003) further criticises the pure female networks that exist today. She mentions that they can be efficient in the short run, though suggests that it is vital for women to rather belong to mixed networks, in order to become professionally successful. This primarily as a mixed network to a greater extent gives access to and consists of more important people that possess power in the business world.
What is already well known is that networks are vital and supportive in the business world in general, but it could furthermore be the case that pure female networks are harming rather than helping women to reach the top. If reality is precisely as researchers and other business people claim; that there actually exists a significant difference between how men and women exploit their networks and that men are better in utilising their networks, then maybe women should try to mix or at least do some benchmarking on how to network more efficient (Dagens Nyheter, 2004).
Much research has in the past been conducted to explain why there are fewer women than men at top positions in the business world (Drake & Solberg, 1995; Davidson & Burke, 2000; Powell & Graves, 2000; Masui, 2004; O’Neil and Bilimoria, 2005; Burke, 2007; Gatrell & Cooper, 2007; Meyerson & Fletcher, 2005). This study will through qualitative interviews examine how women utilise their networks and if the imbalance of women at top positions could be explained by the way they network. Expectantly this study will also reveal what important role one’s network plays in progressing throughout the career, and further what structure a network should have in order to help women enter top management positions. The study is assumed to be interesting for women with ambitions to reach the top of the corporate ladder, and also for network organisations to use as a benchmark tool.
1.3
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to analyse if networking can influence women’s career devel-opment.
2
Frame of reference
The theoretical framework will cover different aspects as we will both investigate the general managerial role and the importance of networks in the business world. It will focus on women’s role as a leader and the barriers they may encounter in their career development. The suitable theories found will be used for analysing the empirical data and to reach conclusions for the subject matter.
2.1
Women in business
Women and men face different realities along the path toward the executive suite. Accord-ing to a study conducted by O’Neil and Bilimoria (2005), three gender related issues were identified, which suggest that women in organisations face situations and realities when climbing the career ladder that are considerably different from men’s experiences (cited in Bilimoria, Godwin & Zelechowski, 2007). The arguments for the issues are presented be-low:
1. The first argument involves the persistent under representation of women at top positions, and the resulting in their continued lower status and stereotyping, which poses a threat to women’s career advancement.
2. The second issue discusses the inability of organisations to adjust work structures and success criterias. Women have different life and family responsibilities compared to men as primary care givers, and are hence influenced negatively in the prospect of advancement if the organisation does not adapt.
3. The third and also last issue reflects the fact that women hold a relational approach to career development that frequently shapes her career choices and also her pro-gression (O’Neil and Bilimoria, 2005, cited in: Bilimoria et al., 2007).
These three arguments are important to acknowledge in this thesis due to the fact that all the interviewees are women and hence an understanding of their position in the business world is of importance. It is also vital for this study to recognise that despite the increased recruitment of women they are still under represented as top managers.
2.1.1 Female leadership
There is an apparent increase in the hiring and promotion of female managers in the labour market today (Aaltio, Kyrö & Sundin, 2008). Davidson & Burke addressed this already in 2000 and stated that the reasons for this were several. Firstly, there are demographic causes like the growing need for diversity, but more important is the change of the managerial role. Task oriented and hierarchical leadership are traditional views on leadership and more organisations emphasise the importance of learning instead of control and want to enhance more decentralised decision making. The traits that are attractive for a manager are the abil-ity to share responsibilabil-ity, develop and help others and to build connected networks of re-lationships. These traits are traditionally more considered to be feminine characteristics. It is important to acknowledge that feminine characteristics are not only related to the female gender, but instead to the different behavioural features connected to the gender (David-son & Burke, 2000).
Nonetheless, there is still a gender imbalance in the top hierarchy in organisations. This is evident even in organisations where the female professionals were considered to possess equal amount of social capital as the men. Whether the outcome is increased salary or
ca-reer advancement, women are often considered to be disadvantaged (Aaltio et al., 2008). This argument is very interesting and if it mirrors reality then maybe women should see the increasing “need” of female traits at higher positions within the organisations as a benefit and helping tool in order to be promoted. What also could be shown is that even if these female traits are needed, women still do not get promoted, instead men possessing female traits do.
A study conducted by Rosener (2005) suggests that some similarities exist for male and fe-male leaders. However, differences between their leadership styles and how they influence their work force is still present. Male managers usually describe the job performance of their subordinates as series of transactions. They provide rewards for services submitted or punishment for insufficient performance. This type of leadership style is usually called transactional. Men are in general also more expected to use power and authority that comes from their organisational position. Women on the other hand, portray themselves with characteristics that describe a transformational leadership. They want to get subordinates to transform their own self interest into a common interest for the group. Features often re-lated to female leaders are interpersonal skills, hard work and personal contacts. Women are moreover argued to encourage shared power, information and participation from eve-ryone (Rosener, 2005).
Morrison and Von Glinow (1990) identified three broad classes of theoretical explanations for the differential attainment of women and men as leaders (cited in Dunn-Jensen & Stroh, 2007):
1. Women’s deficiencies as managers. 2. Structural discrimination.
3. Bias and stereotyping by the dominant group.
Research related to the first point, women’s deficiencies theory, has not supported the idea that there exist great differences between men and women’s abilities to manage top posi-tions. However, support to explain the specific phenomenon comes from research related to structural discrimination theory. Also, while much has been written about the effects of negative stereotypes, few have studied the role that the news, media but even more specifi-cally business press play in fostering negative stereotypes of females in the workplace (Mor-rison & Von Glinow, 1990, cited in: Dunn-Jensen & Stroh, 2007). In order to conduct this study, it is of importance to acknowledge theories that provides information about female leadership characteristics. This information will be valuable to consider when collecting and analysing the empirical findings.
2.2
Female career development
According to research within the field of career development, women are argued to have the same possibilities as men to advance up the corporate ladder, particularly if women are entering the same occupations and are similar to men in ambitions and abilities. Women are assumed to have successful careers by following the male model and by sharing child and home responsibilities with their partner (Burke, 2007).
There is an increase in research supporting the notion of various models of career devel-opment for women and men. In a study conducted by Kirchmeyer (1998) including both objective and subjective measures of career success (income, organizational level and self-reported success), four types of career success determinants were identified (cited in Burke,
2007). They were; firstly, human capital variables; secondly, gender roles; thirdly, supportive
rela-tionships; and lastly family status variables. In her study, Kirchmeyer (1998) found support for
all relationships with one exception for family status measure, which was found to have similar effects for women and men (Kirchmeyer, 1998, cited in: Burke, 2007).
Some light has furthermore been shed on the types of work experience likely to be asso-ciated with a female career development. Six crucial factors which contribute to a woman’s career progression were acknowledged in a study conducted by Morrison, White and Von Glinow (1987), they were; help from above; a track record of achievement; a desire to succeed; an ability
to manage subordinates; a willingness to take career risks; and an ability to be tough, decisive and demand-ing (cited in Burke, 2007).
2.2.1 Obstacles to female career development
Obstacles to female career development and the glass ceiling phenomenon have in the past brought to light a number of interesting standpoints worth mentioning. First to acknowl-edge is the social resistance women at management positions face which is argued to cause stress and demotivation. Although both men and women experience stress at top manage-ment positions, women argue that they face additional stress related issues due to their gender. Discrimination is moreover mentioned as a conflict for career progress even though discrimination at the workplace is against all written laws (Gatrell & Cooper, 2007). Theory discloses the fact that life responsibilities clash with the organisational structure. Women find it really hard reaching top positions in the business hierarchy, and approx-imately 70 percent of all women in dual earner couples report that they have to take a greater responsibility for child care than their male partners. The stressful dynamics that women face as work awaits twentyfour seven further hinder their path to the top. The arc-hetype of the ideal worker as someone who can devote all the hours in the day necessary to work, does not fit in with the real life of a woman (Bilimoria, et al., 2007). It is also argued that a woman with children is less work oriented than a man with children, which is an ad-ditional serious source of stress related to a highly work oriented woman. With such lack of progress for women in the workplace and opportunity for advancement in the hierarchy, the imbalance between women and men at top positions will resist (Gatrell & Cooper, 2007).
Based on relational preferences, a woman’s career may ebb and flow differently compared to the traditional male model, which is primarily focused on a linear career progression. As many women choose to have children, childbirth may hinder them from adapting a linear progression, hence making their path somewhat different from men’s. A woman is more likely to travel in and out of the organisational work sphere, and hence take longer time to reach the same organisational status as their male counterparts. However, research further suggests that during middle adulthood, women discover a renewed sense of purpose and increased energy for work (Bilimoria et al., 2007).
It is argued that the entry of women into top management positions is fully influenced by the structure of the decision making process and further by the liability of the decision makers. Therefore, having an unstructured decision making, allowing for biased decisions, will eventually lead to exclusion of the minority, in this case leaving women outside top management positions. Contradictory, the decision making for appointing lower level man-agement positions is more structured and based on objective qualifications that women can consciously acquire, e.g. education (Powell & Graves, 2003).
In general, the informal barriers that prevent women from reaching top level positions are regarded to be multifaceted. Because of the continued prevalence of men at top positions, women are often excluded from informal networks and channels of communication and do not benefit from mentoring or having female role models. Furthermore, the corporate cul-ture demands ambition and continuous availability and since women often are limited by their family responsibilities they are frequently perceived as timid. Other potential barriers for women to reach top positions are discriminatory methods of selection, the lack of ca-reer planning, and also the macho behaviour of male colleagues (European Commission, 2008).
Theories regarding obstacles to women’s career development are important to provide in this thesis due to the fact that the study is conducted in order to see the importance of networks, a possible attribute to improve career development. By presenting theories on attributes that may explain stagnated career advancement, other possible career aids will be more evident as well.
2.2.2 The glass ceiling
A new career barrier was brought to light in 1986, known as the “the glass ceiling”, see fig-ure 2.1. It was The Wall Street Journal who first published this theory regarding that women appear to be blocked from advancing to senior leadership roles. An invisible barrier hinder-ing women to reach to a certain executive level, hence leavhinder-ing them unable to access the very top positions. Ever since the discussion about this phenomenon emerged, efforts have been made in order to address the question and to realise which barriers and biases that have hindered career advancement for women. In the United States a particular commis-sion was appointed, The Glass Ceiling Commiscommis-sion, with its main purpose of identifying barriers and also to recommend strategies to eliminate discrimination at the highest levels of the organisation (Dunn-Jensen & Stroh, 2007).
Figure 2.1 The glass ceiling (Ahl, 2006).
According to Debra Meyerson and Joyce Fletcher (2005) the glass ceiling “is not a revolu-tion but a strategy of small wins – a series of incremental changes aimed at the subtle dis-criminatory forces that still reside in organisations” (Meyerson & Fletcher, 2005, p.69). In their research they not only acknowledge the fact that women are rare to find at top man-agement positions, but also that statistics suggest that as women approach the top of the corporate ladder, many leave due to frustration of the business climate. Their approach to the problem is to defeat it by the power of small gains, and as they see it, it is not the ceil-ing that is holdceil-ing women back; it is the whole structure of the organisation in which they work: the foundation, the beams, the walls and the air (Meyerson & Fletcher, 2005). The glass ceiling is one obstacle to women’s career development that has gained much attention
and has been discussed for a long time. What the researchers hope to find out is if the glass ceiling still exists for female managers in Sweden’s business life today and if one should consider it an obstacle or not. Moreover, if that is the case whether efficient networking could be the key for women to overcome this obstacle.
2.2.3 How to overcome female career obstacles
In order to become successful, women are argued to require support from people in stra-tegic position. They furthermore, need to be easy to get along with and they have to be able to adapt, to a greater extent than men. According to a study by Morrison et al. (1987) these factors related to developing good relationship with men in a male dominated environment are of utmost importance in order for women to overcome barriers to career development (cited in Burke, 2007). Women were also, more often than men, acquired to take career risks, be tough, have strong desires to succeed and have an impressive presence (Morrison et al., 1987, cited in: Burke, 2007). Morrison (1992) developed a model for career progres-sion which has a few assumptions; it assumes that all three elements are present in the same relative proportions over time, in order to sustain the development (cited in Burke, 2007). The components are defined as below;
“The Challenge of new situations and difficult goals prompts managers to learn the lessons and skills that will help them perform well at higher levels. Recognition includes acknowled-gement and rewards for achievement and the resources to continue achieving in the form of promotions, salary increases and awards. Support involves acceptance and understanding along with values that help managers incorporate their career into rich and rewarding lives” (Morrison, 1992, cited in: Burke, 2007, p. 118).
In past years, a greater amount of research have focused on women’s career development, and how women can break through the glass ceiling phenomenon earlier presented. Ac-cording to Burke (2007) three types of information is required to break the glass ceiling:
1. It is crucial to understand the obstacles women face in their career advancement. 2. It is further helpful to understand the career strategies that successful women use. 3. It is critical that CEOs have an accurate and complete understanding of all obstacles
and experiences by their female employees (Burke, 2007).
The question involving “how” women break the glass ceiling was appointed by Ragins, Townsend & Mattis (1998); they found in their research four career strategies that were central for women’s career progress (cited in Burke, 2007). These were:
1. Consistently exceeding performance expectations. 2. Developing a style with which men are comfortable. 3. Seeking difficult or high visibility assignments. 4. Having an influential mentor.
The study involved Fortune 1,000 CEOs in the Unites States, both male CEOs and female executives revealed their view as to what prevents women from advancing. The male CEOs recognised women’s lack of general management or experience, and also women not being in the work life pipeline long enough. The executive women on the other hand, had as their first factor male stereotyping and preconceptions, followed by the exclusion from influential networks (Ragins et al., 1998, cited in: Burke, 2007). By recognizing these as-pects in this thesis an understanding of the factors that may facilitate women’s career
ad-vancement will be developed. Research states several vital aspects for the support necessary to professional progression and to provide these in this thesis is of importance even though networks is one of the aspects that will be investigated more in particular.
2.3
Networking
“‘The right people, the right conversations, the right time” (Dulworth, 2008, p.47).
The subject chosen directs us to investigate networks as a phenomena itself, the history of networking and how it has evolved during the years from a buzz word to more or less a mandatory tool to reach one’s desired post and to be able to advance further in one’s career. We will look into what kind of different networks that exist and how they function as such.
2.3.1 Networks
A neoclassical view on how to gain a job or a promotion has been described as the human capital theory. Human capital is the level of education, experience, intelligence, knowledge, skills etc that an individual possesses (Aaltio et al., 2008). An extension of human capital is the notion of social capital, the capital captured by social connections. Social capital is the vital asset that can be attained by the different actors, connections and resources that exist in an individual’s network or group of which they are members. Moreover; social capital theory states that a person’s ability to interact in a network should be considered as a valu-able resource for that individual. The possession of that resource and the ability to use it will benefit the individual’s performance and actions in career advancement (Lin, 2002). Social network theory describes social networks in terms of nodes and ties. The nodes are the actual actors in the network and the ties are the relationship between them. One view within social theory is that the actual relationship between the actors is more important than the attributes of the individuals. This indicates that human capital may be less vital than social capital in order to advance professionally (York University, 2005).
Whether or not social capital is considered to be of vital importance, networking is still said to be a significant issue for a successful career. It is described as a pattern of the ability to create relations with various people. It is the process of developing connections and also to maintain and establish these relationships. Networks can be informal or formal, social or economical and be developed both inside and outside an organisation. According to Davidson & Burke, networks are considered to be more valuable when people do not ex-pect anything from them. They give the advice to let the relationship evolve over time and let it establish before taking advantage of it, but also to be aware of the limits within one’s network (Davidson & Burke, 2000).
Networks could be viewed in many different ways. Both as a set of links that connect and interact different agents with each other or as a set of agents that adopt a similar behaviour to achieve different economic purposes (Cohendet, Llerena, Stahn & Umbhauer, 1998). A network will most likely enable a person to achieve better results and gain external expertise and later on use this as a resource essential to reach future success in one way or another. Simply put; a network is a tool for development on many different levels in many different ways (Näsman, 2003). Many different types of networks exist and one could distinguish them in different categories by their different structures, purposes and level of interdependence. One feature necessary for all various networks is that the relationship
needs to be reciprocal, where both parties depend on each other (Tuimala, 1999).
A common way to distinguish networks is by adding the label formal respectively informal networks (Litwin, 1999). Individuals create networks for various reasons. It can consist of family and friends and come more by nature through friendship, being members of the same family, living in the same neighbourhood or sharing the same interests. This kind of social networks has little or no formal structure and is developed for social interests and togetherness. The network may evolve naturally or be developed for a particularly shared focus (Lin, 2002). However, a network can also consist of colleagues and business associates at work for professional motives and be more formal. In this type of network the members bond in a more professional and business like way (Litwin, 1999).
Informal networks are a result of an individual’s own choice of relationships. This type of network may also be used to carry out work related tasks and/or for social benefits. Since individual actors may be surrounded in hierarchical situations and other networks, they bring together the interaction that contains their other personal and positional resources as well. Hence, networks sustain not only the individual interaction but also the interaction among other network patterns (Lin, 2002). To understand the reasoning behind interaction, three factors can be taken into consideration; interaction, sentiment and activity. The more individuals interact the more they share the same attitudes and the more they engage in similar activities. Likewise, interaction is mainly based on shared emotions. The principle of homophily is that “social interactions tend to take place among individuals with similar lifestyles and socioeconomic characteristics” (Lin, 2002, p.39). This indicates that not only do relationships imply shared sentiment but also similarities in resources among the actors (Lin, 2002).
Social capital research highlights two various conditions of network structures. Some researchers state that social capital arises in networks with close connections between the individuals. This network structure with strong ties provides the individuals with benefits and knowledge is transmitted quickly. Each contact is linked to one another and information rapidly reaches many nodes within the group. However other researchers argue that weak ties are more important due to the fact that strong ties are linked to the same social structure as the individual. The strong ties lead only to information within solid networks where the individuals only refer to each other. The information gained is most likely very similar since the members share the same information. Individuals who are embedded in strongly tied networks may not always obtain a better opportunity. Non solid networks can reach a wider range of nodes as sources of information that may not otherwise be as extensive in a network with a closed structure (Aalito et al, 2008).
The culture and power structure in an organisation determine the prospect to use informal organisational networks. Research states that an individual’s reputation in an organisation depends both on the person’s actual performance but also on his or her relationship with other colleagues (Davidson & Burke, 2000). Exploring the rationale behind networks in this study is necessary to gain an understanding of what networks are, and if they can help women in their career development. It moreover provides knowledge of how networks function and which network structures that are favoured among business women.
2.3.2 The importance of networking
Networking theories are closely intervened with social capital theories. The social capital is the resources embedded in an individual’s network. The definition of social capital is (Lin, 2002, p.19):
“The investment in social relationships with expected return on the marketplace”.
The individual engage in interactions and networking in order to produce profit. Two per-spectives are acknowledged relative to whether the profit is accumulated for the group or for the individual. Social capital utilised by individuals may access possibilities that promote their careers or preserve gains in expressive actions. Capital is said to be part of a process and hence social capital is the surplus that an individual can possess by engaging in rela-tionships (Lin, 2002).
Lin (2002) discusses four different reasons for why engagement in social networks can be of importance for an individual. Firstly, a network enhances the flow of information. An individual intervened in a network with social ties in strategic locations can gain informa-tion about opportunities and choices that otherwise would not be available for that person. The organisation may be alerted about the availability and interest of an otherwise unrec-ognised individual. That kind of information will enhance the organisation to recruit better individuals with a lower transaction cost. The individual will also easier find an organisation that can utilise that person’s skills, hence creating a win-win situation.
Secondly, the social ties that an individual possesses may influence the decision makers in an organisation. If people on strategic positions “puts in a word” for an individual, the probability that decision makers in an organisation take this into consideration are very likely. Thirdly, the importance of networks is that the social ties the individual possesses may function as a reassurance for an organisation of his or her social credentials. It signifies the individual’s access to resources through relationships and indicates that the individual may provide additional resources and information that may be of value for the organisa-tion. Finally, the network can improve the reinforcement of the individual. Being recog-nised as an individual as well as a member of a group, not only provides emotional strength for the individual but also publicly acknowledge the person’s entitlement to resources (Lin, 2002).
These four elements; information, influence, social credentials and reinforcement explain why indi-viduals engage in networking to gain personal profit (Lin, 2002). To acknowledge the im-portance of networks and the research that has been conducted within the area is essential in order to explore what function networks may fulfill for its members. This is vital for this thesis in order to provide an answer to the stated research purpose.
2.3.3 Female networks
Over the past 20 years an increasing number of female networks, both inside and outside organisations, have emerged. Female networks usually offer instrumental information, job opportunities, mentors and meetings with business contacts (Davidson & Burke, 2000). A variety of female networks exist but usually they fall into three broad categories, which are (Davidson & Burke, 2000):
1. Professional and occupational networks. These are often formal and bring together women with similar business and professional qualifications. The purpose is to share information about the industry or profession and to provide career guidance. 2. In-company networks. These can be either formal or informal and bring together
women that work within the same organisation. Some of these are only open to women at a certain level in the organisation, while others include all women in that particular organisation.
3. The training group. This is a kind of support group that offer guidance for it’s mem-bers. This type of network can be formal or informal depending on what type of support it offers.
The distinction between the more instrumental network ties and those developed for social support is that instrumental ties result from the performance of a particular work role. So-cial support is the exchange between expressive ties and has a more informal structure. Nevertheless, they can be just as important for motivation, career development and infor-mation exchange. In fact, research indicates that informal networks that offer material, emotional and informational support are usually more vital for women than formal net-works (Davidson & Burke, 2000). Since female netnet-works are examined in this thesis it is significant to state research about them in particular, which further will provide a deeper insight of their function.
2.3.4 Differences between how men and women network
It is rare to find men and women that are well integrated into each other’s networks, and hence argued that the informal male social systems serve to protect men’s status on the top and as the mechanism perpetuating the “old boys’ network”. These informal “old boys’ networks” serve men both inside and across organisations enhancing a sort of in-group fa-voritism among the male majority, leaving equally competent women outside their exclu-sive groups (Burke, 2007). Research conducted by Margaret Linehan (2001) furthermore designates that there still exist a lot of “old boy’s networks” in organisations where women not even are allowed to participate. The perception of “old boys’ networks” among female managers is that crucial information is exchanged and contacts are developed outside their reach. Research also suggests that the male managerial network maintain the negative atti-tudes towards female managers. Due to this, the outcome in general for the female manag-ers were lower salaries, missed career opportunities and occupational stress (Linehan, 2001).
Davidson & Burke (2000) also acknowledge this and state that one of the most common problems for women in the business world is their restricted access to informal organisa-tional networks. An effect due to this exclusion is the lack of resources that a network provides that may be critical for the individual’s career development and job effectiveness. The exclusion limits the knowledge about what is going on but it can also make it difficult to form alliances. If women are excluded from the formal networks it affects their ad-vancement for higher positions within the organisation. Moreover, the exclusion from the informal networks may create the consequence that they lack updated informal, though important, information (Davidson & Burke, 2000).
Men and women utilize their networks differently. Men in general network more homoge-nised, meaning that they prefer to establish connections with people similar to themselves in terms of career, education and personality. Their reasons to get involved in networks are often career based. Women employ networks mostly for social reasons and their networks are usually more differentiated (Drake & Solberg, 1995). Women are often as devoted as men to their network but their network may be less effective since they are not as well in-tegrated into the organisation as men. Female networks are important for women, how-ever, it can be even more vital to break the barriers to enter the male networks since men predominantly hold the most powerful positions in organisations (Linehan, 2001).
Since some research state that male networks may be better in order to facilitate one’s ca-reer it is vital to address the differences between men and women’s networks and their
meaning. Women are often excluded from both informal and formal male networks and therefore several pure female networks have emerged recently.
2.4
Research questions
Which network structures appear to be most influential for female career advance-ment?
3
Research approach and Method
This section covers the fundamental areas of research approach and method. Discussions regarding the latter depend fully on the research questions defined in chapter 2.4, and it will result in the general plan of how the research questions eventually will be answered. The inductive approach chosen will moreover be argued for as well as the data collection method. The section ends with a crucial discussion regarding the soundness of the study.
3.1
Research approach
Choosing the right research approach is in many circumstances of vital importance. Three important arguments for such exist, firstly, it enables the researcher to take a more informed decision about his/her research design, secondly, it will help to think about research approaches that will work for the researcher, and also those that will not. Thirdly, it is also argued that knowledge of the different research traditions enables the researcher to adapt the right design in order to cater for constraints (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2003).
There exist three different classifications of research purposes, all depending on how the researcher formulates the research questions. They are descriptive, explanatory or explora-tory. To start with, the purpose of this study generates an answer of explanatory nature. Explanatory studies wish to explain the relationship between variables (Saunders et al., 2003), and in this study the aim is to conclude if a relationship exists between female career development and networking.
To continue, the research questions defined in chapter 2.4 will generate answers of explora-tory nature. The main characteristic of exploraexplora-tory studies is flexibility. When conducting such research one must be willing to change direction as a result for when new data appear and new insights occur. However as Adams and Schvaneveldt (1991) point out, exploratory research does not mean absence of direction to the enquiry. Instead, what it does mean is that the focus is initially broad and becomes progressively narrower as the research progresses (Saunders et al., 2003). This method was used since the researchers only possess little previous experience. As interviews and further research were conducted deeper in-sight within the subject helped the researchers gain better knowledge of how to gauge rele-vant information. A clearer path for how to progress was revealed and deeper knowledge about female career development was attained; helping the investigators reach answers. 3.1.1 Inductive vs deductive approach
There exist two different approaches; inductive respectively deductive approach. A deductive method, often referred to as a quantitative approach, takes a top down approach, moving from theory to data. An inductive method on the other hand, referred to as qualitative approach, takes a bottom up approach. First one collects data and then proceeds with developing theory as a result of the data analysis (Saunders et al., 2003).
The research approach of this study has more characteristics of an inductive study, it therefore takes the form of a qualitative approach. The aim is to develop concepts, insights and understanding from patterns in the data, rather than collecting data to assess preconceived models, hypotheses, or theories (Taylor & Bogdan, 1984). Patterns in data received from the interviews were revealed when transcribing and analysing it through content analysis.
Induction is particularly concerned with context, and therefore the study of a small sample is more appropriate than the study of a large one (Saunders et al., 2003). The aim of this thesis is to increase understanding of the relationship between the investigated variables; networking and female career development, and therefore the small sample is suitable since context is valued higher than quantity. Furthermore when conducting a qualitative study as in this case, there is no concern regarding the need to generalise.
Also, an inductive approach demands the need to have a flexible structure which permits changes of research emphasis (Mason, 2005). Therefore, it has been of importance in this study to remain open and adaptive to changes in the research design described in the next sub chapter.
3.2
Method
When conducting a qualitative study, as chosen in this case, it is essential to evaluate the underlying problem in order to determine the most preferable research method. Different types of qualitative research have similar characteristics and procedures, while they at occasion have differences in data collection (Holloway, 1997). A qualitative study could be conducted through either observation, interviewing or a survey research. When conducting an interview the researcher has the possibility to investigate more in detail, and personal reflections and comments from respondents are allowed (Burns, 2000); since this is what the researchers strive for this is also the chosen method.
3.2.1 Qualitative interviewing
As the authors of this study intend to acquire a deeper understanding regarding if networking can influence female career development, an interview strategy was chosen. The term qualitative interviewing is usually anticipated to refer to in-depth, semi-structured or loosely structured forms of interviewing. Core features common for most interviewing strategies are: interactional exchange of dialogue; a relatively informal style; a thematic, topic-centered, biographic or narrative approach; and a co-production involving both interviewer and researcher (Mason, 2005).
Interviewing can be divided into different categories depending on its structure; they can be unstructured (open-ended) to structured (Burns, 2000). For this specific study it was however suitable to take on an approach which represents a blend of the two spectrums, semi-structured interviews; a type of in-depth interview. Parts of the interview were given direction so that the content focused on the most vital parts of the study. This is argued to be critical due to the fact that the researchers wanted the interviewees to more freely speak about and explain their networking activities and career paths (Hancock, 2002). What was revealed was that questions already set by the researchers, Appendix 1, was discussed as a natural step during the interviews and interviewees more or less followed the semi-structure without influence from the researchers. A semi-semi-structure is argued to be appropriate in order to gain more flexibility and to permit higher valid response from the interviewee’s perception of reality (Burns, 2000). It is also argued that when the study is carried out by more than one person, in order to ensure modicum of comparability of interviewing style, it is most likely that semi-structured interviewing style is most preferred (Bryman & Bell, 2007).
Funneling is the chosen interview approach in which the interviewer gradually guides the direction of the interview by starting with broad general questions, in this case e.g.
concerning the specific interviewee’s work experience and leadership background. Focus progressively proceeds on to the topic with narrower questions for the specific purpose, e.g. how the interviewee’s active networking has contributed to her advancement to top positions (Burns, 2000). Here it was vital to use the interview template in order to not wonder off to other stories, rather stick to the relevant information important for the study.
Using semi-structured interviews as the main method for data collection is in many circumstances advantageous, this essentially where there is a necessity to understand your research participants. It is assumed that managers are more likely to agree to be interviewed, rather than to complete a questionnaire, especially when the topic is seen as relevant and interesting for their current work (Saunders et al., 2003). The topic was intriguing and up-to-date for the interviewees since networking is often discussed in media and new networks continuously are started.
3.2.2 Data collection
The researchers have with hindsight realised that getting female executives to set aside one hour was rather difficult. It has been very hard to get hold of appropriate women and even harder to convince them to devote time for an interview. After multiple unsuccessful trials to get in contact with possible interviewees through female network organisations, the researchers realised that another strategy had to be implemented. Either the network organisations had a policy regarding keeping the members anonymous or contacted executives did not have the possibility to set aside time for an interview. Researchers instead had to look into their own networks in order to gain access to candidates to interview. This is of course one of the main reasons for the smaller sample size.
As the main purpose of this study is to generate an in-depth analysis, issues of representativeness are less important while the characteristics of the interviewees are of greater (Bryman & Bell, 2007). Therefore it can be concluded that the sample selection need not to be of probabilistic nature. The chosen form of non-probabilistic sample is the purposive sampling method. A purposive sample enables the researcher to use his or her own judgments to select cases that will best enable to answer the research questions and to reach the study’s main objectives (Saunders et al., 2003). A qualitative approach to data collection almost always involves direct interaction with individuals, in this case the interviewees and the researchers (Hancock, 2002). Qualitative data is used to obtain details of subjective experiences for a specific situation, therefore when carrying out a qualitative research the researcher is the main instrument of data collection (Clarke, 1999). As said, this is a time consuming method but beneficial as it leads to greater richness of data and deeper insight to the subject.
Semi-structured interviews are preferably used when the interviewees time is scarce (Hancock, 2002), suitable here since this study’s interviewees are busy women with tight schedules. The researchers realized that interviews were limited to one hour; something highly appreciated by the women and another reason for why the interviewees had time to participate in the study. The interviews were conducted at the women’s offices and the actual recorded interview material covered about 45 minutes for each interview.
The registration of the interviews was conducted by using a tape recorder. This to assure no important information was left out, and for the researchers to pay attention to what was said. According to Hancock (2002) notes taken by hand may confuse the interviewee when scribbled down. Using a tape recorder is a way to diminish possible bias from dissimilar
interpretations from the researchers; this since one can replay the interview in order to make sure no details are missed out.
In order to have the interviews in written version, transcribing was done. This process takes a lot of time and produces a lot of written text, a 30 minutes interview could take two and a half hours to transcribe and run to up to 20 pages. Tape analysis is another technique that can be used to cut down transcription time. Only important sections and key quotations are then documented. Problems with biased results are common when using this method (Hancock, 2002) and since the researchers for this study were fairly inexperienced within this research field all interviews carried out were transcribed in full. Transcribing is moreover not only about transferring words from tape to the paper, but also to transfer the content e.g. how and what is actually said. One needs to analyse the tone and inflection to understand feelings and the meaning of what is communicated. One can detect both positive and negative range, certainty or uncertainty, enthusiasm or reluctance. These “feelings” can be hard to communicate through paper but is preferably done by using punctuation marks, underlining, emboldening etc (Hancock, 2002).
The data collected from semi-structured interviews is defined as primary data. This is the only source of primary data in this study due to the fact that it provided enough sufficient information for the purpose of the study. Additional data in this study is of secondary nature, collected from previous researchers, organisations, governments, or the like (Clarke, 1999).
3.2.3 Delimitations
The criteria differ somewhat between the interviewees since the first interviewee was asked to recommend three persons from her network and then, in order to decrease any possible bias, one additional interviewee was identified from another network. This to further add to the trustworthiness of the study and to broaden the perspective of the analysis.
The researchers for this study developed some restrictions for the first interviewee in order to receive valuable answers for the stated purpose. The criteria were the following; the first interviewee should be a woman aged 32-60. This since focus is on female networks and it is of importance that the woman has some work experience and has had the chance to have climbed the career ladder in order to fit the purpose of the study. She should fur-thermore be a CEO for ≥50 employees. Important was that she had a responsible role in the company and that she had advanced from an earlier position within the company or from previous employment. There was no relevancy in where this woman lived or where she came from. Also for the researchers to be able to connect the interviewee’s history from the business world with female networking the interviewee needed to be a part of at least one network.
The interviewee would, after the interview, present her chosen key persons from her net-works that have agreed to be interviewed. The researchers wanted these women, of course, to all be in the same age group as stated above in order to have some experience from the business world and they should all also be active in some type of networking, formal or in-formal, mixed or female. Whether they worked for private firms or not would not matter nor their positions at the organisations. Focus was rather to investigate how they have uti-lised their networks, especially if networking has helped the interviewee to reach her cur-rent and previous positions.
3.2.4 Choice of interviewees and interview setting
It is said that the more receptive the researcher is, the better information can be attained (Saunders et al., 2003). There are also other aspects to ensure that good quality information is achieved. The interview should be rather informal to make the interviewee feel as part of a conversation rather than a question-and-answer setting. This can only be achieved by careful planning and a thought-through interview strategy (Hancock, 2002). This study’s first ambition was to base findings on one woman and her network contacts, three key persons in her closest network. This as qualitative data collection is very time consuming, a reason to why one has to narrow down the number of interviewees. Since all women interviewed were found to be from the same business sector a fifth interview was carried out. This fifth woman had no connection with the previous four.
The first interviewee, Lena Apler, was picked through the researchers own informal though distant network. The distance was important in order to exclude possible bias regarding personal connections. Though, choosing a woman whom the researchers had within their network made the interviewee more willing to set aside time and also made the interview less formal. The first interviewee was of course chosen based on set criteria, stated in chapter 3.2.3, and a random selection of the other three interviewees was then made by her, Lena Apler. She also based her selection on the same criteria. All recommended women were from Lena Apler’s closest and most frequently used networks. Interviews were conducted separately to make sure the interviewees would not be influenced by each other’s answers.
As a result, the recommended women were all situated in Gothenburg and was also working in the finance sector. Some of the interviewees had not only experiences from working both in other cities in Sweden and abroad, but also within other sectors previously in their career. Lena Apler presented the researchers to Charlotta Oom, who works within the same organisation as herself; this since she wanted the researchers to get insights from a younger woman with a different background than herself. Eva Halvarsson was selected since she was and still is working for the government, and has a huge professional network. Anne A Rosengren was chosen not only because of her great professional network but also since she was the founder of an informal network which Lena Apler also is active in. The fifth interviewee; Susanne Jacobsson was afterwards identified from another business setting, in order to decrease any possible bias from the previous four women’s relationship ties.
The researchers aim to gain a holistic view of the situation for women in today’s business life is assumed to be possible through these five interviews. The focus of the interviews was put on the women and how they have used their networks in order to advance professionally; what possible obstacles there are and how one’s networks can be of assistance when facing barriers throughout the carrier.
3.2.5 Data analysis
Quantitative data is analysed differently compared with qualitative data; the latter is analysed based on theory relevant for the study (Hancock, 2002). Therefore, an evaluation and comparison between theory and practice will be done. Collected data need to be honestly represented and objectivity is essential to reach a reliable analysis (Saunders et al., 2003).
