Northouse describes the gender gap in leadership as “differences in developmental opportunities may be in driven in part by prejudice” ( 2019, Northouse, p.406). It seems so backward in this day and age that we still have a gender bias in leadership. In reviewing the case studies in chapter fifteen one really stuck out to me. Case study 15.3 “pregnancy as a barrier to job status”. It hit close to home not because I have experienced it myself as I have not. As a woman who primarily works with women, I have seen this happen over and over again. Pregnancy should not be seen as a hiccup or a hindrance in the organization. When a woman conceives she should have to worry about job security or how she will support her family if she has no job to come back to. Yet I see it happen over and over again. A staff member goes on mat leave and her position is posted externally. Pregnant women are often thought of as replaceable. Why is this an organizationally accepted norm?
If a leader was focused on best practices alienating and treating pregnant women as disposable would not be one of them. To foster change especially surrounding gender bias in organizations it starts with the individual. Leaders lead by example if you want to foster real change be the example.
The Leadership Labyrinth is supposed to signify the incredibly difficult journey for a woman to reach a position of leadership (2019, Northouse, p. 405). Traditionally Northouse points out women took on more of a domestic role which contributed to the lack of access to training and education. In this day and age women can be who and whatever they want, we are living in a time of female empowerment. There is no reason for women to feel incompetent or uneducated. I want to be able to encourage and empower my female staff and lead by example and show them how to be transformative leaders.
Northouse, P. G. (2019). Leadership: Theory and practice.