Achieving leadership and success: A 28-year follow-up of college women leaders

Using a Modified Delphi Approach and Nominal Group Technique for Organisational Priority Setting of Evidence-Based Interventions That Advance Women in Healthcare Leadership

BACKGROUND

Few studies address how to prioritise organisational interventions that advance women in leadership. We report on the relevance, feasibility and importance of evidence-based interventions for a large healthcare organisation. This study supports the first stage of implementation in a large National Health and Medical Research Council funded initiative seeking to advance women in healthcare leadership.

METHODS

An expert multi-disciplinary panel comprised of health professionals and leaders from a large healthcare network in Australia participated. The initial Delphi survey was administered online and results were presented in a Nominal Group Technique workshop. Here, the group made sense of the survey results, then evaluated findings against a framework on implementation criteria. Two further consensus surveys were conducted during the workshop.

RESULTS

Five priority areas were identified. These included: 1. A committed and supportive leadership team; 2. Improved governance structures; 3. Mentoring opportunities; 4. Leadership training and development; and 5. Flexibility in working. We describe the overall priority setting process in the context of our findings.

CONCLUSIONS

With evidence and expert input, we established priorities for advancing women in healthcare leadership with a partnering healthcare organisation. This approach can be adapted in other settings, seeking to advance women in leadership.

Early Career Leadership Advancement: Evidence of Incongruity Penalties toward Young, Single Women Professionals

We advance gender inequality scholarship by drawing attention to a growing but understudied group: young, single women professionals (without children). Our thesis is that for women, singlehood is deemed incongruent with role expectations of leadership – both with masculine expectations of men as “ideal leaders”, but also compared to feminine expectations of women leaders as communal, relational. We predict this incongruity to be most penalizing for analytically-talented, single professional women who are seen as gender incongruent for their masculine skills and for prioritizing their careers. Leveraging a multi-method approach, we present evidence in support of our thesis. In Study 1, a set of experiments, we observe participants evaluate single analytically-talented women as least suitable for a leadership promotion compared to identically-described single men, married men and women. Participant explanations for their negative evaluations support incongruity as the mechanism for the penalty toward single women, whom they describe as “too analytical”, lacking the people management skills needed for leadership. Study 2 adds external validity by examining early career promotions of MBA graduates, where single analytically-talented women prove the least likely to advance post-graduation compared to all other gender, marital status, and talent groupings. The combined studies unveil a novel penalty directed at young, single, analytically-talented women professionals in their early careers for their perceived incongruity with gendered expectations of masculine and feminine leadership.

Advancing women in healthcare leadership: A systematic review and meta-synthesis of multi-sector evidence on organisational interventions

BACKGROUND

Women are underrepresented in healthcare leadership, yet evidence on impactful organisational strategies, practices and policies that advance women's careers are limited. We aimed to explore these across sectors to gain insight into measurably advancing women in leadership in healthcare.

METHODS

A systematic review was performed across Medline via OVID; Medline in-process and other non-indexed citations via OVID; PsycINFO and SCOPUS from January 2000 to March 2021. Methods are outlined in a published protocol registered a priori on PROSPERO (CRD42020162115). Eligible studies reported on organisational interventions for advancing women in leadership with at least one measurable outcome. Studies were assessed independently by two reviewers. Identified interventions were organised into categories and meta-synthesis was completed following the 'ENhancing Transparency in REporting the synthesis of Qualitative research' (ENTREQ) statement.

FINDINGS

There were 91 eligible studies from 6 continents with 40 quantitative, 38 qualitative and 13 mixed methods studies. These spanned academia, health, government, sports, hospitality, finance and information technology sectors, with around half of studies in health and academia. Sample size, career stage and outcomes ranged broadly. Potentially effective interventions consistently reported that organisational leadership, commitment and accountability were key drivers of organisational change. Organisational intervention categories included i) organisational processes; ii) awareness and engagement; iii) mentoring and networking; iv) leadership development; and v) support tools. A descriptive meta-synthesis of detailed strategies, policies and practices within these categories was completed.

INTERPRETATION

This review provides an evidence base on organisational interventions for advancing women in leadership across diverse settings, with lessons for healthcare. It transcends the focus on the individual to target organisational change, capturing measurable change across intervention categories. This work directly informs a national initiative with international links, to enable women to achieve their career goals in healthcare and moves beyond the focus on barriers to solutions.

College women leaders, 1985–2015: achievement motivations across generations

Purpose

Given continuing gender inequality in the upper echelons of organizations, women's leadership aspirations and orientations are of significant research interest. Controversy remains as to whether today's “Millennial” college women approach work with different leadership aspirations and attitudes than previous generational cohorts. This study compares the leadership and achievement orientations of college women leaders from 1985 to 2015, along with peer comparators from 2015.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were obtained from attendees at a conference for college women leaders in 1985 and 2015; male and female comparators were surveyed in 2015.

Findings

Comparing 1985 and 2015 cohorts of college women leaders suggests both similarity and change, as well as differences between women leaders and their male and female peers. Women leaders from 2015 demonstrated no differences in intrinsic direct achievement, lower self-esteem and higher power apprehension and lower levels of leadership motivation compared to the 1985 cohort. Millennial women leaders reported higher intrinsic direct and power direct achievement than male and female peers, with men higher on competitive achievement than either female group. Millennial women were more concerned about workplace gender equity, about sharing household responsibilities and were more favorable toward using external childcare while working compared to male peers.

Practical implications

Implications for developing young women with leadership potential are discussed.

Originality/value

These results make a strong contribution to understanding the leadership aspirations, achievement orientations and work–life expectations of the next generation of organizational leaders.