1,720,985 research outputs found
Managerial Careers, Gender, and Information Technology Field
No full textCareers are organizational and institutional, and they have know-how-based contexts. Managerial careers from a gender perspective, gendered “blind spots” in organizations and the invisibility of women in management have been an object of study since the 1970s. Gender is a part of socially constructed individual identity. Gendered identities in organizations are defined and redefined in relationships as people become socially constructed through work groups, teams and interactions. Because of this social construction, femininity and masculinity grow into human behavior and outlook. Understanding gender as an activity and a term in the making (Calás & Smircich, 1996), it is a constitution of an activity, even when institutions appear to see woman and man as a stable distinction (Korvajärvi, 1998). Beyond work-life and organizations, there are multiple institutional and gendered structures. The information technology (IT) industry and companies are also an institutional construction with gendered dimensions, and they also participate on the creation of femininity and masculinity. Career can be seen as a conceptual artefact that reflects a culture and rhetorical context in its use. It is a kind of window to a network of values, institutions and functions, where actual careers are made. Usually, the formal organization is based on neutrality and equality, but a closer look reveals the deeper social structures that make it different to women and men. There is a concept of an abstract and neutral worker, and this worker is supposed to be highly competent, work-oriented and available, committed to work-life without any knit to private life. These characteristics support a good career climb in an organizational hierarchy, and many of these characteristics better suit men than women (Metcalfe & Altman, 2001). For instance, home responsibilities make often working hours less flexible for women than men. The notion of an essential person with no gender characteristics does not recognize these issues, whereas taking gender as a research topic shows that work-life as a context differs between women and men. </jats:p
Managerial Carers, Gender, and Information Technology Field
No full textCareers are organizational and institutional, and they have know-how-based contexts. Managerial careers from a gender perspective, gendered “blind spots” in organizations and the invisibility of women in management have been an object of study since the 1970s. Gender is a part of socially constructed individual identity. Gendered identities in organizations are defined and redefined in relationships as people become socially constructed through work groups, teams and interactions. Because of this social construction, femininity and masculinity grow into human behavior and outlook. Understanding gender as an activity and a term in the making (Calás & Smircich, 1996), it is a constitution of an activity, even when institutions appear to see woman and man as a stable distinction (Korvajärvi, 1998). Beyond work-life and organizations, there are multiple institutional and gendered structures. The information technology (IT) industry and companies are also an institutional construction with gendered dimensions, and they also participate on the creation of femininity and masculinity. Career can be seen as a conceptual artefact that reflects a culture and rhetorical context in its use. It is a kind of window to a network of values, institutions and functions, where actual careers are made. Usually, the formal organization is based on neutrality and equality, but a closer look reveals the deeper social structures that make it different to women and men. There is a concept of an abstract and neutral worker, and this worker is supposed to be highly competent, work-oriented and available, committed to work-life without any knit to private life. These characteristics support a good career climb in an organizational hierarchy, and many of these characteristics better suit men than women (Metcalfe & Altman, 2001). For instance, home responsibilities make often working hours less flexible for women than men. The notion of an essential person with no gender characteristics does not recognize these issues, whereas taking gender as a research topic shows that work-life as a context differs between women and men.</jats:p
Social Interaction Technologies
No full textThis chapter explores a relationship between social interaction technologies (SIT) and guanxi, a major Chinese informal style of networking, in the context of the careers of women managers in the information technology (IT) field in China. Addressing women’s under-representation in non-traditional occupations (such as IT), prior research has established that networking, especially informal, is an important career management tool for women. Recent advances in social capital theory and social network analysis provide a framework for understanding the role of social processes in achieving career success. Today, the growing Web-based social and professional networking in China weighs against the traditional forms of relationships, such as personal networks based on guanxi. The study indicates that SIT and guanxi should be viewed as complementary rather than mutually exclusive influences.</jats:p
PORTRAITS OF RUSSIAN WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS: IDENTIFICATION AND WAYS OF LEADERSHIP
No full textEntrepreneurship has developed in Russia during the past two decades, which is a short time to develop a firm business culture. Women are still a minority among entrepreneurs globally, also in Russia [Verhovskaya, O. and Dorokhina, M. (2008) GEM. Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, Executive Summary, Russia 2007, www.gemconsortium.org, 30.9.2008]. Our study focuses on Russian women entrepreneurship by means of an interview and photographs of 10 women entrepreneurs in the St. Petersburg area. We ask, how do they identify themselves in the current economic situation. Further, we ask if there is a specifically Russian type of women entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial identification. Finally, in the study it is also elaborated the interviewed women entrepreneurs' perceptions concerning the Russian market economy and its transition, as well as their views for the future.This study results show that the women entrepreneurs make sense of their identity as leaders using expressions of autocracy and democracy. Moreover, they express a subjectively rich sense of their own entrepreneurship with no signs of marginality, and had an optimistic outlook on the future with wishes to expand and develop their businesses. Methodologically, the study contributes in combining the interview data and photograph analysis.
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