Masters Degrees (Management)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10413/8363

Browse

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4

The challenges faced by African women in management : a case of the National Research Foundation.
(2017) Nxumalo, Mbalenhle Mandisa.; Gamede, Vangeli Wiseman.
At the dawn of the new South Africa (SA), the introduction of many policies and strategies that included new employment and labour laws aimed at transforming the country resulted in an increased number of African women employed in all sectors of the economy. Since the new dispensation, supporting policies and laws, more and more black women have taken up management positions in various organisations. However, there are not sufficient women in management. Those that aspire to management positions and or are already in management continue to face several challenges. If SA is to fast track its transformation agenda with even more women taking up management positions and rising through the ranks, it is important to understand and address the challenges and or barriers that they face as managers, and of course to propose solutions to these challenges. The main objectives for this study were to investigate the barriers that prevent African women from entering into management, and to investigate the challenges they encounter once they are in these positions. To address this problem, an exploratory and case study approach was used. An interview based survey was conducted with eleven out of fifteen African women managers at the National Research Foundation (NRF), the remaining four were not available for the interviews. Before the interviews, the researcher firstly discussed the motivation for the study with the aim of ensuring clarity and understanding. Due to the fact that the study was exploratory, data was collected using qualitative method. Thematic analysis was used to analyse data. The findings of this study supported the assumption that there are barriers that prevent African women from occupying managerial positions. These barriers include; the perceived unwillingness of the organisation to promote diversity in the workplace, the ‘think manager-think male’ stereotype, the issue of not having enough qualifications and skills, conflicting roles, glass ceiling and the SA history of apartheid and patriarchy. It was also revealed that once African women finally progress to these positions they face challenges; they are not acknowledged and respected as their male counter parts. African women sometimes find it difficult to maintain balance between responsibilities at work and at home. The abovementioned findings imply that African women are still underrepresented at management level. The existing literature attempted to compare the experiences of African women and white women management and discovered that their experiences are not the same.
Factors affecting employment equity in the eThekwini Municipality, Durban, South Africa.
(2020) Makhanya, Thabile.; Williamson, Mervywn Kenneth.; Ayandibu, Ayansola Olatunji.
Abstract available in PDF.
Gender-based challenges faced by women in leadership: a case study of one government department in KwaZulu-Natal.
(2020) Msibi, Sicelo Vincent.; Phiri, Maxwell Agabu.
In post-apartheid South Africa, various legislation, policies and strategies have been introduced, including the new labour and employment legislation aimed at advancing equitable, fair and non- discriminatory labour force practices. These laws and legislation have resulted in an increased number of women occupying managerial and leadership positions in large organizations, both in public and private organizations. However, it has become evident over the years, since the dawn of the new South Africa, that women still face challenges that are gender-based. Women still face discrimination and other related challenges that inhibit them from performing their assigned duties to the best of their ability. These challenges are a result of patriarchal tendencies in the treatment of women by men. Amongst other visible challenges, the number of women who hold managerial positions is still low, and there is a material imbalance between men and women. The patriarchal mindset holds that women cannot be leaders of organizations and that leadership functions were meant for men only; women’s functions involve household chores, taking care of the male of the house and raising children. With the employment and labour laws now in place, South Africa is in great position to fast-track the transformation agenda in relation to equality and gender-equity in organizational structures should strict measures be put into place for implementation purposes. However, it is of utmost importance to first understand the underlying challenges that women in managerial positions face and then strive to address those challenges in a manner that will be favorable to everyone. The main objectives of this study were to establish the challenges that women face as managers and leaders in organizations and ascertain whether or not such challenges have any material impact on the performance of women managers as well as the overall performance of the organization. A case study approach was adopted and face-to-face interviews were conducted with nine women who hold positions of power and authority in one selected government department in the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government. The findings of the study show there are still gender-based challenges confronting women who hold managerial positions. These challenges include discrimination on the basis of gender, unfair treatment of women by men, patriarchal treatment and stereotyping in relation to the thinking capacity of female managers, not being acknowledged and appreciated as their male counterparts, not being respected and treated fairly compared to male managers, and work functions that conflict with their household responsibilities, such as late-night meetings. The research results showed that women are still confronted with multiple gender-based challenges in organizations; they deem these challenges as hindrances on how they perform their duties as well as their managerial capabilities as women. Emanating from the study’s results, the researcher has suggested a number of recommendations that may assist the organizations in addressing the challenges faced by women. The recommendations suggested include investigating whether or not the available legislation is producing the desired results, for government to take a proactive approach in creating a conducive environment for all irrespective of gender, conduct continuous education and training on the effects of patriarchy and unfair-discrimination, establishment of a Women in Leadership Forum which will serve as a support mechanism for women in leadership, have a clear consequence management against the perpetrators of gender- discrimination, formulate an EEA that is gender balanced and enforce compliance thereafter as well as ensuring that information on the matters of gender in an organization is easily accessible to all personnel through posting on the intranet as well as having printed material on the strategic points of the organization.
A study of employment equity in higher education institutions in Durban, South Africa.
(2020) Nunoo, Grace Nketiaba.; Maharaj, Ashika.
Post 1994, several reforms took place in South Africa aimed at transforming all institutions to become representative of all citizens. However, discriminatory practices, inequalities and racism still prevail in the South African workplace. This study investigates the implementation of the employment equity (EE) in Higher Education Institutions using the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) as the case study organisation. A mixed methods approach was used to collect and analyse both quantitative and qualitative data. The target population of the study was made up of 240 participants who had in-depth knowledge of the phenomenon. Purposive sampling used to select 10 participants for the qualitative phase, whereas the stratified sampling was used to select 138 respondents for quantitative phase. Interviews were used to collect the data for the qualitative phase, while the quantitative phase analysed the existing 2018 EE reports available at UKZN. The qualitative results revealed that the barriers to EE in the University include remuneration, institution culture, recruitment practices, selection criteria, retention of designated groups, succession planning and reverse discrimination. It was found that EE legislation has a positive impact on recruitment and selection and talent management practices. The quantitative results, on the other hand, showed that targets were met at some levels and in some groups whilst, they were not met by others. The quantitative findings further showed that most posts at UKZN, especially at top, senior and professionally qualified and experienced levels were filled by men and not women. The study recommends the need for culture diversity, EE awareness and communication, a positive attitude to EE, strong leadership support and commitment, compliance with EE regulations and EE sensitivity. The study was limited to the staff at UKZN. Future research should be comparative in nature to assess how EE is implemented at UKZN and other HEIs.

Browse

Browsing Masters Degrees (Management) by Subject "Affirmative action."