The Leadership Pipeline: Achieving Gender Equity in U.S. Business Schools

Abstract

Despite the challenges of career advancement for women in the corporate sector, where only 5.2% of S&P 500 CEOs are women, business and management—the educational field that develops many of these industry leaders—has its own advancement challenges for women that are not widely publicized. For female faculty, women’s advancement can be thought of as a pipeline that has several levels, and this faculty pipeline is the feeder to administrative leadership positions in academia such as department chairs and deans (Mctiernan & Flynn, 2011). Data on the faculty pipeline for women in U.S. business schools shows that in 2015-2016, 40% of business doctoral graduates were women. However, 38% of women are in the most junior faculty position, assistant professor; 33% are associate professors; and 20% are full professors. Additionally, approximately 20% of business school deans are women. As business schools continue to graduate future leaders, it is important to ensure that gender equity is present at all levels of these academic units. Fortunately, research exists on factors influencing gender equity in business schools, such as stereotypes placed on women; challenges in obtaining valuable networking opportunities; lack of role models, mentors, and the right work experiences; familial responsibilities; a history of men in leadership positions; and the tendency of women to take on voluntary extracurricular activities at work. Equity in pay and research support are also potential considerations. However, what is not known are the actions business schools have taken to support women faculty and whether they have been successful.

The purpose of this study is to understand how to advance women faculty in business schools through the faculty pipeline. For this research, a qualitative study was undertaken at three business school sites, focusing on those business schools in four-year, public institutions. Interviews of tenured and tenure-track (tenure-line) female faculty as well as administrators at the business school that could influence the experience of those faculty in the pipeline was conducted. Ultimately, these findings can be used to identify recommendations for how to better support female faculty in advancing their careers.