Thesis (M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2006 / Numerous programmes addressing performance assessment in the workplace have been designed and implemented in various organizations. In South Africa, public institutions have employed various appraisal systems with mixed results. A new tool for performance assessment has been designed and implemented since 2003 (for the past three years). This tool is called Performance Management Development System (PMDS).This study is based on the performance assessment of women in managerial positions, in the Lepelle-Nkumpi Municipality, Capricorn District, Limpopo Province. It explores the views of women managers on the challenges they are faced with, the type of support they receive, the effects of PMDS on work performance and the extent of institutional intervention at workplace. The qualitative techniques were used on the population of 180 women managers. The sample size of 114 was selected using random sampling method. The findings indicate the need to improve Performance Management and Development Systems (PMDS) and Performance Instruments (PIs) in order to create an environment conducive to better performance standards of women managers.

Since the beginning of time, men and women have been separated by the "division of labor." Men were hunters and defenders and the women nurturers, bearing the responsibility of the raising of the children and homemaking. By the time of the Greeks, women were afforded great respect and treated with great dignity. They were looked upon as the pillars of morality and tradition. In 1765, women had been legally declared non-persons in William Blackstone’s Commentaries on English Law. Further reinforcement of this belief was put forth by Max Weber and Sigmund Freud who both felt women had no place in organizations and business. Women wanted recognition of their "personhood" and from the first women’s rights convention in 1848, demanding and finally obtaining the vote in 1920, through to the Civil Rights Movement in the 60's and the women’s movement which grew out of it, women have been making strong statements for equality and job opportunities. Just how successful women have been in their demands for acceptance in the business world is examined in this dissertation.

Abstract not available

The aim of this thesis is to investigate how the distribution and function of talk in workplace meetings contributes to differential outcomes for women and men in Australian organisations. This study explores how patterns of male advantage and female disadvantage are reproduced in workplace meetings through the different communication styles which tend to be employed by men and women, and through the way that these different performances are judged. Workplace meetings emerge as a critical site where leadership potential is identified yet, it is argued, men and women do not meet as equals when they meet at work. The thesis includes an evaluation of the current literature on women's and men's communication styles, and the findings of the present study are discussed in terms of the extent to which they correlate with or diverge from existing views. The implications for social change are explored and recommendations provided for the consideration of organisations seeking to broaden the pool of talent from which future leaders are drawn. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The purpose of the study was to examine the career paths of women managers in the service area of higher education and women managers in the hospital industry service area. A secondary purpose was to identify factors that influence the advancement of women managers in those areas.This research outlined the career paths of women managers in the service industry in educational and in non-educational organizations. It identified encouragements and impediments to the promotion of qualified women in the areas of management within the service industry.Findings from the study show that there is no significant difference between the career paths of women managers in higher education and women managers in the hospital industry. There are no differences between the education, training, length of tenure, motivation for employment, mentoring, emotional support or career impediments of women managers in service area of both higher education and the hospital industry.The following conclusions were drawn from the study:1. Women in the service field of higher education and the hospital industry face very similar histories.2. Entry into the profession can be found through a variety of sources and it is through the investigation of these sources that a woman will find entry into this field.3. Very few women reported career impediments and many reported having the emotional support of family and friends.4. The true reason why the experienced, educated, trained woman manager has not progressed up the career and salary ladder until the past several years has not been found. Both groups are being motivated by opportunity for advancement and salary.5. Most women managers in the service have been the determinants of their own career advancement. The women desiring to become managers in the service field must realize that the future of her career and its advancement lies with her own decisions and her own initiative. The woman manager must be responsible for her own future. / Department of Educational Leadership

The research focused on three main themes in the Kuwait society. The first study is developed to measure the differences in the characteristics of the work environment between the public and the private sectors within Kuwait labor force. The study had been conducted on 80 managers of both sexes and 266 employees of both sexes from the public sector, and 80 managers of both sexes and 274 employees of both sexes from the private sector. The results had indicated that according to the combined group (employees and managers, both sexes), the private sector exceeded the public sector regarding: involvement, peer-cohesion, task orientation, work-pressure, clarity, control, innovation and physical-comfort. Only the employees sample showed similar results. By comparing the male employees and the female employees in both sectors, it was clear that males had higher mean scores than females regarding involvement, task orientation, work-pressure, clarity, and control. Also, the results of the manager group is consistent with the combined group (both employees and managers, both sexes). However, the comparison between the male managers and female managers in both sectors indicated that, involvement, staff-support, clarity, control, innovation, and physical-comfort were higher in males than their females counterparts. The second study is designed to clarify any differences in personality traits between male and female Kuwaiti managers. The study has been conducted on 150 male and 150 female managers from Kuwait society. The results showed few differences between male and female managers. It was clear that males were more lively or enthusiastic and more imaginative than females. While, females were more depressive (as a personality characteristic) or apprehensive than male managers. The third study is concerned with the status profile of Kuwaiti women during the oil era (1946-1960) and developing period (1960-1985) regarding her social, educational, and vocational status. So, regarding work environment, work in the private sector was more likely to be seen as high in the involvement factor, more concerned with the work's regulations, conscientious, and more likely to remain and conform to the organization's disciplinary systems, more committed to new styles and modern systems in their jobs to achieve their targets, and they were more interested with their work place, than their public staff counterparts. Also, the private sector is often seen as an efficient and productive work sector in comparison with the public sector. Regarding the personality traits, Kuwaiti male managers appear to be more enthusiastic and lively with strong and imaginative personality traits. However, the Kuwaiti female managers appear to have strong apprehensive personality traits.

Thesis (MSocSc)--University of South Australia, 1997

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Western Sydney, 2004. / Includes bibliography.

Thesis (M.C.M.)--Lincoln University, 2008. / Also available via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.)--Indiana University, 2008. / Title from screen (viewed on Aug. 13, 2008). Department of Communication Studies, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI). Advisor(s): Kim White-Mills, Catherine A. Dobris, Ronald M. Sandwina. Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 55-66).