Contemporary challenges facing female senior managers in selected sport organisations in South Africa

Abstract

The aim of the study was to investigate the perceived challenges facing female senior managers working in selected South African sport organisations. A qualitative research approach was adopted, where twelve in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with purposively selected female senior managers. Furthermore, an inductive approach to data analysis was applied using Atlas.ti (v. 9) for coding purposes, and the data was thematically analysed. The key findings suggest that historical events linked to Apartheid (segregation) in South Africa, along with a largely patriarchal culture, have led to extensive challenges in the representation of females, particularly Black females, at senior management levels of South African sport organisations. The study further revealed the negative impacts of autocratic leadership styles, and the perpetuated impacts of the Apartheid era on the current state of management in South African sport organisations. The findings propose that a lack of capacity-building, networking and mentoring impacts the career advancement opportunities of female senior managers in South African sport organisations, and it is apparent that the poor implementation of existing policies or guidelines on gender equity hinders the support for females in senior sport management positions in South Africa. The outcomes of this study support the sports business literature on the documented challenges females face in corporate organisations. The study contributes to decision-makers and organisations in the sport business, by adding knowledge, from the Global South perspective, about the unequal access to decision making positions in sports and the maintenance of the predominantly male power over female employees in sport organisations, as per liberal feminist theory, and further details the application of the constructs of management in relation to the liberal feminist ideology.