STRUCTURAL DIVERSITY TO ADDRESS STRUCTURAL BARRIERS: WHY IT’S INCUMBANT ON, AND ADVANTAGEOUS FOR, ORGANIZATIONS TO REDUCE BARRIERS TO POWER AND ADVANCEMENT FOR WOMEN OF COLOUR. By SHEMEENA SHRAYA Integrated Studies Final Project Essay (MAIS 700) Submitted to Dr. Mike Gismondi in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts – Integrated Studies Athabasca, Alberta December, 2015 ABSTRACT This paper examines gendered and racialized white-male norms associated with leadership that are deeply embedded in organizational and societal culture. Particular emphasis is paid to the experience of women of colour and how gendered and racialized norms impact their progression to leadership positions. An intersectional frame is used to interrogate the barriers that gendered and racialized environments pose for women of colour, and the strategies typically proffered to women of colour are examined. This paper contends that is it necessary for organizations to undergo structural change that unmasks and acknowledges the white-male norms associated with leadership and authority, in order for women of colour and other subordinate employee groups to move into positions of leadership and address gaps in leadership capacity. 2 Table of Contents ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................................... 2 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ 4 Organizational Context and the Leadership Pipeline ..................................................................... 5 Women of Colour in Organizations .................................................................................................... 9 Why an Interdisciplinary Approach? ............................................................................................... 11 The Racialized Organization .............................................................................................................. 13 The Gendered Organization ................................................................................................................ 15 Women of Colour as Gendered and Racialized: Importance of Intersectionality and an Intersectional Frame.............................................................................................................................. 18 Strategies and Structural Change ...................................................................................................... 21 Going Forward ........................................................................................................................................ 23 References ................................................................................................................................................ 25 3 Introduction Demographic shifts, including projected retirements of the baby boomer population, have resulted in fewer experienced leaders in the ‘leadership pipeline’ who are available for senior leadership positions. These demographic changes are exacerbated by the fact that there are large segments of the labour force (women, people of colour [specifically women of colour], and others with multiple non-dominant identities), that are not seen as having leadership ‘potential’, or the qualities associated with traditional leadership/authoritative styles, and are therefore not being developed to advance and build the leadership capacity necessary to move into senior positions. This invisibilizing of segments of the labour force is a result of the deeply hidden and ingrained racialized1 (white) and gendered (male) norms embedded in organizations. Women of colour (WOC) are particularly disadvantaged and marginalized in organizations as they are visible embodiments of difference in opposition to the white male norms which make up the status quo, and therefore encounter structural barriers not only at the advancement stage, but in terms of: recruitment; employment status (full-time vs. contract); performance evaluation; rate of pay; and access to organizational resources among other things. Research in the areas of organizational behavior, management studies, feminism and critical race studies among others, have looked at this issue from different angles to determine how to develop potential leaders and address the marginalization of different 1 Racialization is the socially constructed process of assigning racial constructions via stigma and labels to the activities of minority peoples. Through this process groups come to be designated as different, and on that basis subjected to different and unequal treatment. Racialized groups include people who might experience differential treatment on the basis of race, ethnicity, language, religion or culture. Racialization can extend to specific traits and attributes, which are connected to racialized people and deemed to be abnormal and of less worth. Besides physical characteristics of people, other characteristics that are commonly racialized are accent, speech, name, clothing, diet, intelligence, beliefs, practices and habits. (University of Guelph, 2010) 4 employee groups. Much of this research has centered on (a) the development of formal mechanisms of inclusion, and (b) what strategies marginalized employees can employ to work through barriers to their career progression and development. This paper asserts that it is the informal organizational processes, based on racialized and gendered organizational norms, that pose the greatest barriers for non-dominant employee groups - specifically WOC- and that it is not only incumbent on, but advantageous for, organizations to expose, challenge and change those white male norms to reduce barriers to power and advancement for WOC. Organizational Context and the Leadership Pipeline Canadian labour force projections predict a “shrink in absolute size after 2016” (McMullin & Cooke, 2004, p.iii) which will result in what Roy, Hensen & Lavoie (1996) see as both, a quantitative shortage of employees in the leadership pool, and a qualitative shortage of employees with necessary skills and experience to fill senior leadership positions (Roy, Hensen & Lavoie, 1996). This is an issue that spans across the private and public sectors, with additional factors such as the globalization and the increased global competition for talent (Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, 2007), and the effects of downsizing measures undertaken in the public service (most drastically in the 90’s but continuing through the last fifteen years through periods of economic downturn), that have left the public sector with decreased numbers of employees in the middle management pool that have the required skills and experience to take on senior leadership roles. Organizations have responded by undertaking formalized succession planning strategies in an attempt to fill the anticipated senior vacancies, which include development and training programs to cultivate leadership ‘pipelines’ of internal 5 employees (Gilmore, 1988). These succession planning strategies and other formal leadership development mechanisms, have been developed and implemented primarily in the private sector, and are also being adapted for use by public sector organizations which have the additional challenge of “incorporating those systematic changes in large scale, bureaucratic, unionized environments with highly regulated, and often inflexible human resource policies and guidelines” (Shraya, 2013, p. 4). At the same time as major demographic shifts in the population, the labour force in Canada, the US and the UK, as well as other industrialized western European countries is increasingly made up of racialized individuals. According to Block & Galabuzi (2011), there were over 5 million racialized Canadians (16.2%) enumerated in the 2006 Canadian Census, and estimates by Statistics Canada project that by 2031 one in three Canadians will be racialized. Thus in attempting to address the leadership deficit, and in conjunction with the development of formalized succession planning strategies and tools, organizations have responded to changing population profiles and undertaken diversity initiatives in the workplace. Both private and public institutions have extolled the value of a diverse workforce, with the productive value of diversity and diverse perspectives seen as beneficial tool in promoting more informed and nuanced decision making that can better prepare organizations to deal in increasingly globalized markets. In literature from the private sector, there was additional emphasis on the effects to the bottom line of organizations through the potential loss of business from consumers who perceived organizations as being non-representational (at best), and discriminatory to employees (at worst), as well as from resource loss through the ‘leaking pipeline’ (Price Waterhouse Coopers, 2008). For the public sector, diversity initiatives have been framed as necessary 6 to fulfill espoused mandates regarding social responsibility, social justice and equality (Block & Galabuzi, 2011, Gonzalez, 2010). The emphasis on internationalization and the value of diversity posits that “as more diverse and globally connected organizations are increasingly being created, more creative and diverse types of leadership will be required,” and as such, “leadership style diversity will need to match global diversity” (Sanchez-Hucles