Factors influencing the progress of women into senior management positions in a selected traffic management company in Cape Town, South Africa

Abstract

Women comprise between 54%-61% of the population of any country and have a longer life span than their male counterparts. Women comprise between 70%-85% of hospital staff and yet occupy less than 35% of the hospital middle and senior management positions combined. Increasingly more and more women are acquiring higher degrees like their male counterparts, yet less than 10% of them manage to reach to senior management levels. These statistics may go on, and this is the reality that women live by, with the grand question that no one gives answers to; why are there so few women in leadership in different spheres and industry disciplines when the majority of the population is female? This study sought to identify possible causes for these anomalies in a society where all are equal before the law. This empirical study was conducted at a traffic management company where these anomalies are visible. Even though there seems to be numerous women in sectional managerial positions in the company, the number of women in senior managerial positions is still less than that of men. Semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect both qualitative and quantitative data from the respondents. The target population was specifically the women employee actively occupying various management positions. Initially, a total of 40 women were selected for this study, at different project levels and in different positions. Due to the research method, 60 responses were received. The method of data collection for this research is through a survey or questionnaire. The structure of the questionnaire contains a series of sensible structural problems to obtain a reliable answer from the population sample. Their perception is that men apply to senior management positions even though they are not qualified for the specific position. They also perceive that having priorities outside of work does contribute to them not applying for senior management positions. Consequently, for this particular company, the study shows that some females prefer to work and be led by male colleagues more than female colleagues as they perceive there is a difference in the way men and women lead.