Career advancement strategies of women in leadership at universities of technology in South Africa

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the career advancement strategies of women in leadership positions at Universities of Technology (UoTs) in South Africa. The study focussed on female vice-chancellors and deputy vice-chancellors; registrars and viceregistrars; directors and deans, as these ranks are classified as senior management. It is argued in the study that research has focused more on the challenges women face in their careers, while little has been said about the experiences of women who have advanced to leadership positions. The lack of progress is as a result of inflexibility and unpredictable scheduling at the workplace, networking, mentoring, stereotypes at the workplace, work-life balance, organizational structures and policies, socio-cultural perceptions and societal values that continue to oppress women. However, there is limited literature on the experiences of women who have advanced to leadership positions despite these challenges. Therefore, it is for this reason that this study sought to investigate how women managed to advance to leadership positions in the higher education sector. The researcher believes that focusing on the advancement strategies of women in leadership would provide a more effective response in handling the challenges that women face in advancing to leadership positions in higher education because solutions that are based on analyzing challenges are hypothetical and may not be feasible in real situations, while success strategies are more reliable solutions as they are factual and proven. Furthermore, strategies that have negatively impacted women’s progress were highlighted. It is in this regard that this study adopted the Social Cognitive Theory to investigate the strategies that women in higher education leadership have used to advance in their careers. The central role of this theory is that, the individual in his or her environment can observe others and reflect on their interests, career choices and performance, and alter his or her development accordingly in their careers. The study was conducted at all six Universities of Technology in South Africa, with a target population of 37 women in executive management positions. The study used a qualitative research design. Telephonic and face-to-face semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. An interview guide containing open-ended questions was used in guiding the interview process. A thematic approach was used to analyze the advancement strategies of women in leadership. Themes that emerged were organized and coded accordingly. The findings revealed that socio-economic status affected women’s career advancement, as was how these women viewed and balanced their complex roles in society. The findings also revealed that women’s advancement to leadership positions was through their own creative ways and abilities, as well as through the support structures inside and outside their organizations. With women’s low representation in leadership positions, the participants agreed that policies and support to increase women’s advancement to leadership positions were not enough. They also noted that women had to work harder and show strong determination to become leaders. This may imply that in order for women to advance in their careers, women themselves need to focus more on their strengths and ability, and stop focusing on their weaknesses or challenges.