Although more South African women are progressing into managerial positions, they are doing so at a slow pace and continue to face many challenges (Paulsen, 2009; Mckinsey & Company, 2010; Molebatsi, 2009). Therefore, this research set out to investigate South African women managers’ experiences and how they might relate to their perceptions of organisational justice and perceptions of leadership self-efficacy. Perceptions of organisational justice and perceptions of leadership self-efficacy are significant because they have been individually linked to motivation, commitment, satisfaction and performance (Baldwin, 2006; Combs, 2002; Colquitt, et al., 2001; McCormick, et al., 2002; Paglis, 2010). In addition, the research aimed to explore how these two concepts might interplay. The research took a qualitative approach and conducted in-depth interviews with eight senior women managers from different organisations. A tape recorder was used to record the interviews and thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data collected. The women in the study highlighted both negative and positive work experiences in their role as women senior managers. Further, the study revealed that senior women managers are not a homogeneous group as their experiences are also influenced by factors such as their race, marital status and number and/or age their children. The study also showed that the senior women managers’ experiences were related to their perceptions of organisational justice and leadership self-efficacy. The women in this study were vibrant and positive, and reflected high levels of leadership self-efficacy. It was also clear that these women’s experiences placed more emphasis on procedural and interactional justice than on distributive justice as they placed greater emphasis on work relationships, how they were treated and the fairness of work processes. In addition, the research also found a link between perceptions of organisational and perceptions of leadership self-efficacy

Thesis ( M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2015. / The study aims to gain an in-depth understanding of the gender dynamics which promote or retard the full participation of women in decision-making and leadership positions in the Nkangala District Municipality (NDM), Mpumalanga. Local Government, through municipalities, is the most strategic sphere of government. This is so because municipalities are the institutions of government that are closest to the people. Municipalities, through the various services provided, present critical service delivery institutions for women to actively participate in and influence decisions. Therefore the study contends that these institutions of local government are gendered. Against this backdrop, an analysis of gender representation of women and men in decision-making and leadership positions in the NDM was conducted. The aim was to assess the state of gender equality in the NDM. Further, the study explored this gender representation in relation to how it translates to women’s authority and influence in decision-making and leadership. This qualitative research study triangulated data collection using questionnaires, interviews and observation. The study focused on both the administrative and political components of local government. In the administrative component; interviews were conducted with Municipal Managers (MMs), Executive Directors (EDs) and Managers. In the political component, interviews were conducted with Executive Mayors, Speakers, Chief Whips and Members of the Mayoral Committees (MMCs). These constitute the decision-making and leadership positions in municipalities as institutions of local government. The study revealed that amidst the national and international policy and legislative provisions on women’s empowerment and gender equality, women continue to be confronted with institutional gendered challenges. Amongst others, the study revealed that there are pervasive gender dynamics, stereotypes, attitudes and perceptions towards women in decision-making and leadership positions in these institutions. Also, that there are minimum institutional mechanisms and strategies that encourage and support women’s participation in decision-making and leadership positions. The provincial and national gender machineries’ roles and responsibilities with regard to municipalities’ monitoring, oversight and overall support is not as vibrant. Drawing from the findings, the study concludes with a proposal for a Women’s Leadership Empowerment Model WLEM). A comprehensive model that will comprise of professional capacity-building and training, on-the-job coaching and mentorship, regular peer assessment and review for a to continuously support women in and into decision-making and leadership positions.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Public affairs))-University of Pretoria, 2004. / Abstract and summaries in English. Includes bibliographical references. Available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

The research problem addressed in this study was to determine the challenges facing the financial manager in the manufacturing organisation and the possible ways of surmounting these challenges. To achieve this objective, relevant literature was reviewed and an empirical survey conducted. The main challenges identified are discussed under the following headings: · Regulatory requirements; · Information age; · Employees; · Economic environment; Each challenge was broken down into sub-challenges that were analysed using literature identified in the literature study. This information was used to develop a questionnaire to test the degree to which financial managers working for manufacturing organisations are challenged. The empirical results obtained indicate a strong concurrence with the literature study emphasising the importance of the identified challenges and the best possible ways of surmounting these challenges.

M.A. (Social Work) / There are some drastic changes that took place in Telkom SA during the past six years. The extent andpace of these changes could lead to increased stress levels in employees and especially technical managers. This study undertakes an exploratory and descriptive investigation into the manifestation of work / stress in the lives oftechnical managers employed by Telkom. The study has a dual purpose, namely to explore work stress from a social work perspective and to determine to which extent the technical managers experience work stress. Four measuring instruments were used during the empirical research. A description of the group ofrespondents was obtained by way of a biographical questionnaire. The use of the experience ofwork and life circumstances questionnaire (WLQJ provided information about the stress levels ofrespondents and the stressors that influence respondents. The stress reaction questionnaire gives a quantitative indication of the stress reactions and symptoms which manifests in managers. This questionnaire also served as a cross correlationfor the WLQresults. Focus group discussions were facilitated to obtain information about the envisaged nature and impact ofspecific stressors in Telkom. Most respondents presented normal stress levels on the WQL results, while 64% of the respondents presented high levels of stress reactions (symptoms). Respondents with high stress levels also had high levels ofstress reactions. Managers in the age category 35 - 39 years with 0 - 5 years experience on management levels and in the Free State- and Northern Cape region apparently had higher stress levels and stress reactions. Respondents from the Northern Cape area presented higher stress levels than their colleagues in the other areas. Stressors such as organizationalfunctioning and task content was perceived by all respondents as being most stressful. Recommendations with reference to the study are made: Industrial social workers in Telkom can present programmes to improve the internal capacity of managers to deal with stress. Programmes can include include stress control, management support the establishment of support networks and mid-life crisis information. A further recommendation is that human resource sections must join forces to ensure career planning, effective organizational structures and healthy management culture. It is recommended thatfurther research in this regard must be undertaken.

Family businesses are major contributors to economies around the world. It is also recognised that family businesses are critical to entrepreneurship, socio- economic development and industrialisation around the world. Women in family business are major contributors to the success of the family business around the world. Limited research is available on the role of women in family business. The research conducted yielded similar results for South Africa. The impact of family business on entrepreneurship and the economy, with respect to socio- economic development, has placed great interest in family business studies in South Africa. This study focused on the role of women in black family business in South Africa. This research found that women in black family business focus on bringing softer skills to the business which are beneficial for people management. In their capacity as managers in the family business, women tend to take on a supportive role to the spouse; they tend to focus on ensuring a harmonious and peaceful culture in the work place. Women in family business have a dual role of ensuring business success and quality family life. They prefer to work in the shadow of their male counterparts. Challenges faced by women in black family business have been identified as the lack of inclusion in strategic decision- making, lack of decision-making career opportunities and the lack of consideration for succession within the business, a lack of business mentorship and ambiguity of roles in the business and in the family. It has been found that the role of women in black family business may be enhanced going forward. This may be done through educational programmes or workshops for management skills for women, networking opportunities and support groups, counselling on work/family management strategies, and spousal sharing of responsibilities in the work- family management relationship. A suggested area for future research is the impact of culture in family business in South Africa.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Business and Executive Coaching Johannesburg, 2017 / This qualitative study explored the leadership journeys of black women executives (BWEs), to understand those elements they perceived to enable and those they perceived to inhibit their career progression, as well as to establish implications for coaching. Eighteen participants were interviewed. The sample included BWEs who had been coached, those who had not, human resources managers, and line managers to create some triangulation. The BWEs were all in the top two organisational levels, as defined by the Employment Equity Act. A semi-structured interview guide was utilised for the BWEs and another for HR and line managers. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and uploaded into ATLAS.ti analysis software. Coding was conducted inductively to identify themes that emerged. The study highlighted the importance of ensuring that all parties to the coaching intervention are fully briefed, aligned, and coaching-ready before implementation. If readiness is not ensured, the process can be negatively affected. A key finding was that a minimum of a bachelor’s degree, but preferably a postgraduate degree, enabled the career progression of BWEs. Once in the workplace BWEs need to continue with self-development. Elements that were found to enable career progression for BWEs were hard work, networking, self-development, and access to mentors. Resilience was found to be important in managing the challenges the BWEs’ experience in the workplace. Elements that inhibit BWEs’ career progression were found to be lack of implementation of employment equity (EE) or transformation in the workplace. It was also found that BWEs operate in challenging work environments where they experience marginalisation, stereotyping, and racism. Work-life integration is an issue as they are the homemakers. Another key finding was that coaching could contribute to BWEs’ career progression. It is important that all parties in the process are coaching-ready. It was also found that coaching heightened resilience for BWEs. Coaching was shown to be utilised for leadership development, including improving communication skills. Line managers were unsure of the objectives for which their BWE charges were being coached. This highlighted the importance of aligning all parties and ensuring coaching readiness before coaching implementation. This point is also important because to be successful, coaching needs the support of organisational leadership. It was encouraging to realise that the line managers viewed coaching as confidential between coach and coachee; however, they appeared to have had no input into development needs identification. This could point to a missed opportunity to align coaching with business needs. The intrapersonal skills of self-confidence and self-awareness were shown to have been developed through coaching. These skills are vital to effective leadership. The BWEs’ experiences of coaching were found to be challenging, and uncomfortable, and BWEs found that the coach did not understand or trivialised the coachee’s issues. Coaching conversations are meant to be challenging, however too much challenge can derail the process. BWEs experienced coaching as uncomfortable because the conversation delved directly into deep personal issues without preparing the coachee or building rapport and a trusting relationship. Two BWEs felt that their coaches had trivialised or misunderstood their issues. The finding that line managers were unaware of the development needs being addressed in their BWEs’ coaching, the BWEs’ experiences of discomfort in the coaching process, and coachees feeling that the coach had trivialised the coachee’s issues, highlights the important matter of coaching readiness. Coaching readiness is important to the success of any coaching engagement. Without participants being fully ready for coaching, the process might be compromised. Coaching was found to be an appropriate tool for leadership development and improving the career progression prospects of BWEs. It was also found that it is important to ensure that every party to the coaching is coaching ready. / MT2017

DEd / Department of Curriculum Studies and Educational Management

Thesis (MBA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / Although several women's leadership studies globally have identified a number of issues that women grapple with in their upward mobility in building a career, including gender differences as these relates to styles of leadership, and the behaviour of senior women toward other women in organisations, there has however not been a South African study documenting the existence of the Queen Bee syndrome within Multi-National Corporates, as a barrier to professional women's career growth. The "queen bee syndrome" is a term that has been used to describe women managers who find themselves within a predominantly male environment and have alienated other women by their behaviour, and are therefore perceived to be a barrier to the advancement of other women coming through the ranks. These women fail to assist other women in their aspirations to advance and do not work towards the advancement and empowerment of other women within the corporate sector. The queen bees are normally very protective of their powerbase and attempt to surround themselves with men. They do not believe in female solidarity behaviour and do not actively seek to mentor or coach other women. The aim of the present study is to investigate the existence of the queen bee syndrome in South African retail banks. The following aspects, as they relate to the queen bee syndrome, are examined: • The establishment of the existence of the queen bee syndrome. • The reason for the existence of queen bees. • The possible implication of the existence of queen bee behaviour for the organisations. A total of 25 women in executive and senior management positions, from South Africa's 5 retail banks, were interviewed for the present study. These women were asked to relate their unique personal experiences and perceptions of queen bee behaviour. The method of Content analysis was used to analyse the responses received through the interviews. The findings of the present study clearly indicated that women still face barriers to advancement within corporate organisations, and that organisations need to make adjustments to their internal cultures, structure and strategy to accommodate the growing workforce of females who are rapidly joining the management ranks. The blame for women's lack of progress into senior positions cannot be generally attributed to males only, as women also need to work at growing, developing, educating and empowering themselves in order to facilitate their own advancement, besides helping, supporting and guiding other women in their career progressions. The present study also found that senior women managers and women executives work actively towards being coaches and mentors to women coming through the ranks and assist them in their development towards management roles. The present study's findings indicated that senior women executives and managers currently support women development agendas within their organisations, and also that the presence of the queen bees did not serve as a stumbling block to the advancement of the sample of women who took part in this study. The study was limited to 5 retail banks of South Africa only. Future studies can investigate other sectors and work at providing tools that will assist women in combating the behaviour of the queen bee. It might also be useful to determine whether women are more supportive or less supportive of other women, and women's issues and programs.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study presents an empirical investigation that was conducted on why the number of women on executive and board levels in companies is not consistent with the number of women in the workforce. The barriers which women face in career progression were explored by focusing on three main themes, namely internal, societal and organisational barriers. The research method used to evaluate previous and current research was content analysis which provides a definitive correlation between current challenges that women face and how they have progressed over the past 20 years. The research further provides insight in what changes companies and government can incorporate to ensure that the gender gap is closed over time. Analysis shows that although the number of women on executive and board level has improved during the past ten to 15 years, it remains disconcertingly low. The type of barriers which hindered women from reaching the upper management positions some time ago, are still the same reasons that keep them in the lower ranks in the business. Findings have indicated that the strongest internal barrier is that women struggle to balance family obligations with the severe requirements of top positions in business. It was also found that some women do not perceive the male-dominated structures and discrimination in companies as a threat but rather see it as a challenge which strong women can overcome if they believe in and equip themselves. Although some companies have made progress in supporting women and invite women onto their boards and executive teams, the attempt is still not enough to close the gender gap. The present study concludes with recommendations on what women, male colleagues, companies and government bodies can do to increase the number of women on upper levels in the organisations.