Date of Conferral
4-10-2024
Date of Award
April 2024
Degree
Ph.D.
School
Management
Advisor
Jean Gordon
Abstract
Women represent almost half of the Canadian labor population, but less than 6% of women advance to executive leadership. This is problematic because previous studies showed gender balance has been proven to be good for business, but with not enough women advancing in the leadership pipeline, business performance will continue to suffer. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of Canadian female executives regarding how career sponsorship may have influenced their career advancement to executive management. Role congruity theory provided the framework for the study. Eleven Canadian female executives participated in semistructured interviews to share their personal lived experience of career sponsorship. Findings from the modified van Kaam data analysis indicated all female executives had multiple informal career sponsorship experiences and their sponsors helped advocate for and propel their career to executive leadership. Themes included sponsors are champions, sponsorees lived up to expectations, sponsorship reciprocity, succession planning, paying it forward, and no-sponsor-no-advancement. Recommendations include urging executives and young professionals to forge an informal sponsorship to support gender balance in executive management. Findings may inspire positive social change by informing women and other professionals, organizations, and policymakers regarding the impact of career sponsorship.
Recommended Citation
Dinevski, Dianna, "The Lived Experience of Career Sponsorship of Canadian Female Executives" (2024). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 15640.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/15640
