scholarly journals Educational and Professional Trajectories of Women Leaders

Inter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 47-67
Author(s):  
Yulia Chestnykh

The article analyzes the educational and professional trajectories of women leaders. The study is based on an approach to the educational and professional trajectory as part of the life path. The empirical basis of the study was 20 video interviews published on the website of the news aggregator MediaMetrics, which were conducted as part of programs about women's career success. The intentional characteristics of female successful trajectories are empirically investigated on the basis of narratives. The author uses intent analysis to show how women leaders explain their career paths. As a result of the research, educational and professional scenarios realized by women are formulated, as well as their discursive justifications. Women become leaders due to the implementation of the diachronic educational and qualification scenario of a business idea.

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nóra Hegyi-Halmos

Az egyén életútját, karrierútját számos, tőle független körülmény befolyásolja. A gazdaság szerkezeti átalakulása, a pénzpiac előretörése, a foglalkoztatás csökkenése, a bérek polarizálódása, az általánosan instabil munkaerő-piaci környezet egyre nehezebbé teszi az egyén, de a társadalom számára is az alkalmazkodást. Ilyen társadalmi és gazdasági környezetben fontos feladat lehet az egyént felkészíteni arra, hogy – lehetőségeihez mérten – képes legyen élni az adódó lehetőségekkel, tudjon a körülményeknek megfelelően reagálni, változni és változtatni, saját tanulási útját és karrierútját menedzselni. Az életpálya-építési kompetenciák, vagyis a munka világában való eligazodás, a szakmai pályák ismerete, az álláskeresési készségek, a tanulási utak és képzési lehetőségek ismerete, valamint az önismeret kialakítása és fejlesztése segíthet az egyén számára a nehézségek leküzdésében. A fent leírt kompetenciák megalapozásának és fejlesztésének egyik alappillére lehet az iskolai pályaorientáció. Az életút-támogató pályaorientáció olyan folyamatként tekint a pályaorientációra, ami az egyént egész életútján át elkíséri, azonban nagyban épít az egyén önálló aktivitására. A modern (Savickas,Lent-Brown-Hackett, Krumboltz, Peterson-Sampson-Reardon-Lenz) és posztmodern elméletek (Bezanson, Brousseau) a régebben született modellek szintézisének is tekinthetőek, melyek közös elemei az életút-szemlélet, az életút során megjelenő döntési helyzetek kiemelése, valamint az életpálya-építés folyamatában az egyén önálló aktivitásának hangsúlyozása. A modern elméletekben megjelenő életpálya szemlélet, kapcsolódva az élethosszig tartó tanulás gondolatához az Európai Unió oktatáspolitikai és foglalkoztatáspolitikai irányelveinek alapgondolatává vált, mint a gazdasági problémák megoldásának egyik eszköze. Az uniós dokumentumokban, (Memorandum 2000, Lisszaboni Stratégia, 2000, Oktatás és Képzés 2010., 2020., Európa 2020., OECD, 2004., 2011) irányelvekben visszatérő elemként jelenik meg a készségek és kulcskompetenciák fejlesztése, az egyénhez alkalmazkodó tanulási igény kielégítése, az innovatív pedagógia, valamint az intézményrendszer rugalmassága, mely elengedhetetlenül fontos az egyéni tanulási utak támogatásának, és a különféle tanulási utakon szerzett kompetenciák elismerésének szempontjából. A szemléletváltás megjelent a nemzeti stratégiák szintjén is, azonban a valódi, hétköznapi gyakorlatban számos ország egyelőre csak javaslatként tekint az uniós ajánlásokra, de azok mindennapi gyakorlatba való beépítése meglehetősen esetleges.***An individual’s life and career is influenced by a number of independent factors: the structural transformation of the economy, the rise of the capital market, the decline in employment, the polarization of salaries, and the generally instable labour market environment make adjustment more and more difficult not only for the individual but for society as well. An individual’s career is hardly plannable, the fast changes in circumstances and the need to perform well in multiple roles results in uncertainty and puzzlement. In such a social and economic environment it is important to prepare the individual – taking their opportunities into consideration – to be able to take advantage of arising opportunities, be able to react to circumstances adequately, to be able to change and make changes, and manage their own learning and career paths. Career building competences, that is, the ability to find one’s way in the world of work, knowledge of professions, job search skills, knowledge of learning paths and training opportunities, and self-knowledge development can help individuals overcome difficulties even if we know that career paths have an objective economic definiteness that individuals cannot change. Career guidance in schools can be one of the pillars of founding and developing the above described competences.Career-supportive guidance sees career guidance as a process that accompanies individuals throughout their lives but builds on the individuals’ autonomous activity to a great extent. Modern (Savickas, Lent-Brown-Hackett, Krumboltz, Peterson-Sampson-Reardon-Lenz) and post-modern theories (Bezanson, Brousseau)can be understood as the synthesis of older models, whose common elements are the life-path approach, highlighting decision-making situations during one’s life, and emphasizing the individual’s independent activity in the process of career building.The career approach appearing in modern theories, connected to the idea of lifelong learning, became the basic motif in the directives of the European Union’s educational and employment policies as one of the tools of solving economic issues. In European Union documents (Memorandum 2000, Lisbon Strategy, 2000, Education and Training 2010., 2020., Europe 2020., OECD, 2004., 2011) and directives the development of skills and key competences, the fulfilment of leaning needs that accommodate individuals, innovative pedagogy and the flexibility of the system of institutions appear as a recurring motif, which are indispensably important from the point of view of supporting individual learning paths and acknowledging competences gained through different learning paths. The change of attitude appeared on the level of national strategies as well, but a number of countries consider the EU directives to be no more than recommendations in real every-day practice and their implementation is scarce.


2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yonjoo Cho ◽  
Jiwon Park ◽  
Soo Jeoung Han ◽  
Yedam Ho

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore how multinational corporations’ (MNCs’) women leaders in South Korea (Korea) have overcome career challenges in the process of becoming CEOs. The two guiding questions for this study included: what career challenges have MNCs’ women leaders in Korea faced to become CEOs? How have they overcome their career challenges?Design/methodology/approachThe authors used a basic qualitative research design, the goal of which is to understand how people make sense of their lives and experiences. Qualitative data were collected by semi-structured interviews with 15 women CEOs at MNCs in Korea to capture their lived experiences (challenges and strategies) in their careers. The authors used NVivo 11, a qualitative data analysis software, to analyze the interview data.FindingsFrom data analysis, the authors identified five themes including: becoming a CEO, key success factors, MNC culture, career challenges and career development strategies. The authors found that in the process of becoming CEOs, 15 women leaders faced career challenges that are largely generated by traditional culture, work stress and work–life balance. The authors also found that the women leaders became CEOs through diverse on-the-job experiences (e.g. marketing and sales) and positions (e.g. managers, senior managers and regional directors) with organizational support (e.g. supervisor support).Research limitations/implicationsGiven research on organizational support for leadership, human resource practices and working conditions, this study’s findings have qualitatively confirmed the importance of organizational support for women CEOs’ career success. For theory building in women in leadership, the authors suggest that researchers investigate the complex process of becoming women CEOs, including their early experiences in their career in tandem with family background, organizational climate and national culture.Practical implicationsThe study findings on women CEOs’ career strategies can be used as a reference for women in the leadership pipeline who aspire to take leadership positions in organizations. A lack of role models or mentors for women leaders is one of the reasons why women give up on their career. Learning career strategies (e.g. global development programs, mentoring and networks) that women CEOs have employed to overcome their career challenges can help women in the leadership pipeline from their early career on.Originality/valueThe authors found that both internal and external factors combined were instrumental in the women CEOs’ career success. What stood out from this study was that the women’s desirable personality attributes might not have materialized without the MNC culture that has been supportive for these women. The women CEOs shared their company’s values and philosophy that is based on gender equality, received supervisor support that is crucial for their career success, experienced diverse jobs and positions along the way and were recognized for their work ethic. Given research on women leaders conducted largely in western contexts, this qualitative study on the lived experiences of women CEOs in MNCs contributes to emerging non-western research by capturing the importance of culture that is uniquely Korean.


2019 ◽  
pp. 161-186
Author(s):  
Jamie Ladge ◽  
Danna Greenberg

Chapter 7 moves beyond workplace flexibility to consider career flexibility, which refers to the varied career choices working mothers make as they pursue their work/life path. We begin by introducing a more expansive view of career beyond the traditional career ladder. This holistic career model encompasses work, family, and community interests and activity. This career metaphor more accurately fits the reality of today’s workplace for men and women. It also gives working mothers authority to consider something beyond the next promotion as they construct their careers. We then go into more depth on two of the more prominent twists working mothers make: taking time off from paid work and starting their own business. We focus on the tactics working mothers can use to ensure that these options fit with their work/family interests.


Author(s):  
Vivienne Hunt ◽  
Erling Rasmussen

This paper reports on the employment experience of women in New Zealand call centres. It seeks to determine whether women can develop satisfactory career progress and links the findings to the employment relations context in New Zealand. The study, initiated in 2003, reports on six case studies. Contra1y to the prevailing negative portrayal of call centre employment and career paths, our findings demonstrate women are achieving career success in call centres. Management practices can accommodate the different labour market needs of women, and many respondents reported feeling passionate about their jobs. Those working at entry level said they enjoyed meeting people and being part of a workplace, which enhanced their career prospects. Most respondents mentioned the development of skills and confidence, rather than deskilling, call centre processes have enabled many respondents to become competent, connected and confident.


2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
pp. 199-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Lo Presti ◽  
Angelo Elia

This study examined the role of career attitudes and behaviors and employability enhancement factors in predicting project managers’ career success facets, over and above the availability of clear career paths. An online survey was completed by 552 Italian project managers. Clear career paths, employability culture, and protean career attitude positively predicted both objective and subjective (along with objective boundarylessness) career success. Dominance analysis showed the prevailing role of protean career, employability culture, and clear career paths. Results built a bridge between project management literature and career studies, particularly informing about the significance of the protean career. Organizational and individual implications for practices are discussed.


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