"We Need More Women in Managerial Jobs": Gender Eqality and Management in the Nordic Context. Deconstruction and Critical Perspectives

Janne Tienari, Charlotte Holgersson, Susan Meriläinen, Anne-Marie Søderberg, Eero Vaara

    Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearch

    Abstract

    Focusing on the Nordic context, this article highlights complexities between genderequality discourse established at the societal level and discursive practice in organizations, particu-larly in relation to management, managing and managers. This research task is carried out bydeconstructing a management text, and grounding the deconstruction in critical feminist literature.This analysis illustrates how managerial discourse is challenged and questioned by pro-egaliterianarguments in the Nordic context. However, it also demonstrates the pervasiveness of the genderedelements in managerial discourse, which relies on specific conceptions of parenthood where mo-therhood is constructed as problematic whereas fatherhood remains absent – and thus unproblema-tic. It is suggested that the ‘Nordic case’ provides a fruitful basis for similar studies in other societalcontexts in Europe.
    Original languageEnglish
    JournalComportamento Organizacional e Gestao
    Volume9
    Issue number2
    Pages (from-to)147-161
    Number of pages15
    ISSN0872-9662
    Publication statusPublished - 2003

    Keywords

    • Gender equality
    • Feminist perspective
    • Management
    • Discourse

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