Factors effecting career advancement of Indian women managers

Purpose Reasons that have an effect on the continuity and career progression of women in corporate India are complex. The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors that have an effect on the women leadership pipeline of Indian organizations. Design/methodology/approach The present study adopted a qualitative research methodology within a dyadic framework by including women managers and their respective supervisors in the study. Findings Thematic analyses of the qualitative study conducted on Indian women managers as well as their supervisor revealed rich insights into the antecedent social-psychological factors of a women leadership pipeline that can be summarized under three broad categories, namely, intra-personal, interpersonal and organizational. Research limitations/implications The limitations are the small sample size and the qualitative nature of this study. An important implication is that the results of this study can be used for cross-cultural comparisons because most studies that have focused on the effect of gender on career advancement have used western conceptualizations and measures. Practical implications The findings of this research suggest designing organizational interventions that can help women professionals in navigating the complex social environment in order to create their own leadership identities supported through a high-quality leader-member exchange. Social implications The study takes an important step toward developing a better understanding of the factors affecting the career advancement of women managers by contextualizing the way women professionals perceive their career identity and the meaning they imbue to career advancement. The findings of this study can aid policy makers toward arresting the leaking women leadership pipeline. Originality/value The study contributes by exploring several social-psychological dimensions of objective-subjective career success perceptions and their interplay among women managers drawn from three organizations in India.