Mentoring as a strategy to develop leadership potential of female employees

• Main Author: Potgieter, Deidre
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University 2009
• Subjects: Mentoring in business; Leadership in women; Women employees
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1472

Institutions of higher learning should be doing leadership development of females to enhance the gender balance. The number of females employed in South African higher education is almost equal to the number of males, yet the highest proportions of females continue to hold the lowest academic and support positions. To compound the problem, after attracting suitable female staff, institutions do not have programmes to encourage them to remain within the system. Females need to surmount extra hurdles to be considered as leaders, and have different experiences of organisations from those of their male peers. Research suggests that women have the qualifications, skills and experiences required for leadership. This study aimed to look at mentoring as a strategy to enhance female leadership development. A literature review was conducted to understand the term mentoring and all related aspects. The aspects included the functions and phases of mentoring, as well as the process of a mentoring programme. Recently organisations have begun to realise how important mentoring can be to their success. Research has shown that mentoring facilitates leadership development through the career and psycho-social functions that the relationship provides. The study also investigated gender and leadership, and highlighted the barriers faced by women. The empirical part of this study was to determine employees‘ perceptions of mentoring. It was conducted in a Higher Education Institution. Random sampling was used to select respondents. The sample size consisted of 110 respondents. A structured pre-coded questionnaire was used to collect the data. The data was analysed Abstract Page iii using the relevant statistical package. Independent t-tests and analysis of variance techniques were used to determine statistically significant differences in perceptions between groups according to race, qualifications, period of employment and the type of appointment (academic/administrative). Statistically significant differences were found between race groups and the period of employment. Qualification and type of appointment did not significantly affect employees‘ responses. The major findings indicate a general congruence towards mentoring as a suitable strategy to enhance female leadership development. Institutional barriers were identified and the organisation needs to acknowledge and understand the organisational culture before embarking on this process. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed and recommendations based on these findings are provided.