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Opening the “Black Box”: Factors Affecting Women’s Journey to Senior Management Positions—A Literature Review

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The New Ideal Worker

Part of the book series: Contributions to Management Science ((MANAGEMENT SC.))

Abstract

The issue of women participation in top management and boardroom positions has received increasing attention in the academic literature and the press. However, the pace of advancement for women managers and directors continues to be slow and uneven. This study fills a knowledge gap by reviewing the latest empirical evidence from 2009 to 2016 to identify, organize, and describe the factors that affect women executives and directors’ career success (or failure). We integrate the 113 selected publications providing a novel framework of factors organized around (1) career persistence (staying at the organization) and (2) career advancement or mobility (getting promoted in the organization). Our framework organizes the factors at the individual, organizational and public policy level that affect both career persistence and advancement of women in top management positions. This framework has practical implications to several audiences: (1) business women interested in getting promoted or supporting other women who aspire to reach senior management positions, (2) executives from companies seeking to increase gender diversity, and (3) think tanks, trade associations, and government institutions committed to increase diversity. Our findings enlight business leaders and public policy-makers interested in designing organizations that retain and promote talented women in top business positions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Economics and Business, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile

    Erica Salvaj

  2. Dirección de Investigación y Desarrollo Académico, Universidad Tecnológica Metropolitana, Santiago, Chile

    Katherina Kuschel

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  1. Erica Salvaj
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. International Center for Work and Family, IESE Business School, Barcelona, Spain

    Mireia las Heras Maestro

  2. Carmina Roca and Rafael Pich-Aguilera Women and Leadership Chair, IESE Business School, Barcelona, Spain

    Nuria Chinchilla Albiol

  3. Institute of Advanced Family Studies, International University of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain

    Marc Grau Grau

  4. Harvard Kennedy School, Women and Public Policy Program, Cambridge, MA, USA

    Marc Grau Grau

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Salvaj, E., Kuschel, K. (2020). Opening the “Black Box”: Factors Affecting Women’s Journey to Senior Management Positions—A Literature Review. In: las Heras Maestro, M., Chinchilla Albiol, N., Grau Grau, M. (eds) The New Ideal Worker. Contributions to Management Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-12477-9_12

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