In between light empowerment and corporate moderate feminism

Gender equality and women’s emancipation in organizations

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15448/1984-7289.2023.1.39808

Keywords:

Gender equality, Support groups, Diversity management, Emancipation, Ethnography

Abstract

The relation between the institutional frameworks and the promotion of gender equality, considering the corporate social responsibility (CSR) movement, has been scarcely analyzed from the experiences of developing economies. We aimed to contribute to fill that gap, bringing to the debate the concepts of emancipation in organizations and support groups. We asked: in which ways, gender equality fostered by initiatives implemented in developing economies by transnational corporations in the form of support groups allow for organizational transformations that strengthen the process of women’s emancipation in the corporate world? So, an ethnography was undertaken within a transnational company of the financial sector that operates in Brazil. The results show that these initiatives can only lead to organizational transformations that strengthen women’s empowerment if they are inscribed in an institutional framework that guarantees the participation of multiple actors. 

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biographies

Pedro Jaime, Centro Universitário da Fundação Educacional Inaciana (FEI), São Paulo, SP, Brazil.

PhD in Social Anthropology by Universidade de São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, Brazil, and in Sociology and Anthropology by Université Lumière Lyon 2, Lyon, France; and MSc in Social Anthropology by Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp), Campinas, Brazil. Full Professor in the Graduate Program in Management at Centro Universitário da Fundação Educacional Inaciana (FEI), São Paulo, SP, Brazil and Professor in the Undergraduate Program in Communication and Advertising at Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESPM), São Paulo, SP, Brazil.

Mariana Lima Bandeira, Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar (UASB), Quito, Ecuador.

PhD in Administration, by Escola Brasileira de Administração Pública e de Empresas, Fundação Getúlio Vargas (Ebape-FGV), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and MSc in Administration, Human Resource Management, by Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Full Professor affiliated to Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar (UASB), Quito, Ecuador.

 

Dra. Janette Brunstein, Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie (UPM), São Paulo, SP, Brazil.

PhD and MSc in Education by Universidade de São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, Brazil. Full Professor and Researcher in the Post-graduation Program in Business Administration of Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie (UPM), São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Provost for undergratuate Education at the same university.

References

Alvesson, Mats, and Stanley Deetz. 2013. Critical theory and postmodernism approaches to organization studies. In The Sage Handbook of organization studies, edited by Stewart Clegg, Cynthia Hardy, Thomas Lawrence and Walter Nord, 255-83. 2nd ed. London: Sage. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781848608030.n8

Alvesson, Mats, and Hugh Willmott. 1992. On the idea of emancipation in management and organization studies. Academy of Management Review 17 (3): 432-64. https://doi.org/10.2307/258718. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1992.4281977

Alvesson, Mats and Hugh Willmott. 1995. Strategic management as domination and emancipation: from planning and process to communication and praxis. In Advances in strategic management: challenges from outside the mainstream, vol. 12A, edited by Paul Shrivastava, and Charles Stubbart, 85-112. London: JAI Press.

Auster, Ellen. 1994. Demystifying the glass ceiling: the organizational and interpersonal dynamics of gender Bias. Business in the Contemporary World 5 (3): 47-68.

Bexell, Magdalena. 2012. Global governance, gains and gender: UN–business partnerships for women’s empowerment. International Feminist Journal of Politics 14 (3): 389-407. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616742.2012.659855. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14616742.2012.659855

Billing, Yvonne Due. 2011. Are women in management victims of the phantom of the male norm? Gender, Work and Organization 18 (3): 298-317. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0432.2010.00546.x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0432.2010.00546.x

Brunstein, Janette, and Pedro Jaime. 2009. Da estratégia individual à ação coletiva: grupos de suporte e gênero no contexto da gestão da diversidade. RAE-eletrônica 8 (2): 1-33. https://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1676-56482009000200004. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/S1676-56482009000200004

Cappellin, Paola. 2008. As desigualdades impertinentes: telhado, paredes ou céu de chumbo? Revista Gênero 9 (1): 89-126. https://doi.org/10.22409/rg.v9i1.97.

Collins, Patricia Hill. 2000. Black feminist thought: knowledge, consciousness, and the politics of empowerment. New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203900055. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203900055

Connell, Robert, and James Messerschmidt. 2013. Masculinidade hegemônica: repensando o conceito. Revista de Estudos Feministas 21 (1): 241-82. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0104-026X2013000100014. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0104-026X2013000100014

Cook, Alison, and Christy Glass. 2018. Women on corporate boards: do they advance corporate social responsibility? Human Relations 71 (7): 897-924. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726717729207. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726717729207

Cornwall, Andrea. 2018. Além do “empoderamento light”: empoderamento feminino, desenvolvimento neoliberal e justiça global. Cadernos Pagu (52): 1-33. https://doi.org/10.1590/18094449201800520002. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/18094449201800520002

Crane, Andrew, David Knights, and Ken Starkey. 2008. The conditions of our freedom: Foucault, organization, and ethics. Business Ethics Quarterly 18 (3): 299-320. https://doi.org/10.5840/beq200818324. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5840/beq200818324

Creek, Steven, Kristine Kuhn, and Arvin Sahaym. 2019. Board diversity and employee satisfaction: the mediating role of progressive programs. Group e Organization Management 44 (3): 521-548. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059601117740498. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1059601117740498

Crenshaw, Kimberle. 1991. Mapping the margins: Intersectionality, identity politics, and violence against women of color. Stanford Law Review 43 (6): 1241-99. https://doi.org/10.2307/1229039. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1229039

Davis, Angela. 2016. Mulheres, raça e classe. São Paulo: Boitempo. https://doi.org/10.1590/0101-3173.2019.v42n2.12.p235. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/0101-3173.2019.v42n2.12.p235

Davies, Charlotte Aull. 2008. Reflexive ethnography: A guide to researching selves and others. 2nd ed. London: Routledge.

Douglas, Priscilla. 2008. Affinity groups: catalyst for inclusive organizations. Employment Relations Today 34 (4): 11-8. https://doi.org/10.1002/ert.20171. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ert.20171

Ezzedeen, Souham, Marie-Hélène Budworth, and Susan Baker. 2015. The glass ceiling and executive careers: still an issue for pre-career women. Journal of Career Development 42(5): 355-69. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894845314566943. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0894845314566943

Garsten, Christina, and Anette Nyqvist. 2014. Organisational anthropology: doing ethnography in and among complex organisations. London: Pluto Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt183gzs7

Grosser, Kate. 2009. Corporate social responsibility and gender equality: women as stakeholders and the European Union sustainability strategy. Business Ethics: A European Review 18 (3): 290-307. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8608.2009.01564.x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8608.2009.01564.x

Grosser, Kate and Jeremy Moon. 2005. Gender mainstreaming and corporate social responsibility: reporting workplace issues. Journal of Business Ethics 62 (4): 327-40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-005-5334-3. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-005-5334-3

Grosser, Kate, Jeremy Moon, and Julie Nelson. 2017. Guest editors’ introduction: gender, business ethics, and corporate social responsibility: assessing and refocusing a conversation. Business Ethics Quarterly 27 (4): 541-67. https://doi.org/10.1017/beq.2017.42. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/beq.2017.42

Guimarães, Nadya Araujo, and Isabel Georges. 2009. A construção social de trajetórias de mando: determinantes de gênero nos percursos ocupacionais. Cadernos Pagu (32): 83-134. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0104-83332009000100004. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0104-83332009000100004

Hirata, Helena. 2014. Gênero, classe e raça interseccionalidade e consubstancialidade das relações sociais. Tempo social 26 (1): 61-73. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0103-20702014000100005.

Huault, Isabelle, Véronique Perret, and André Spicer. 2014. Beyond macro- and micro-emancipation: rethinking emancipation in organization studies. Organization 21 (1): 22-49. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508412461292. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508412461292

Jaime, Pedro, Edvalter Holz, Raquel Sajonc and Audrey Hein. 2022. Degendering organizations? The emergence of post-feminist networks. Revista de Administração da Mackenzie 23 (3): 1-27. https://doi.org/10.1590/1678-6971/eRAMG220022. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/1678-6971/eramg220022.en

Johnson, Phil, and Joanne Duberley. 2015. Critical theory and management: the return to rationalism and the promise of progress. In Understanding management research: an introduction to epistemology, edited by Phil Johnson and Joanne Duberley, 1-10. London: Sage. https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9780857020185.n6 . DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9780857020185.n6

Kahnweiler, William, and Richard Riordan. 1998. Job and employee support groups: past and prologue. The Career Development Quarterly 47(2): 173-87. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.1998.tb00550.x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.1998.tb00550.x

Kaley Alexandra and Gal Deutsch. 2018. Gender inequality and workplace organizations: understanding reproduction and change. In Handbook of the Sociology of Gender, edited by Barbara Risman, Carissa Froyum and William Scarborough, 257-69. Springer: Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76333-0_19. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76333-0_19

Karam, Charlotte, and Dima Jamali. 2017. A cross-cultural and feminist perspective on CSR. In Developing countries: uncovering latent power dynamics. Journal of Business Ethics 142 (3): 461-77. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2737-7. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2737-7

Kreuzberg, Fernanda and Ernesto Vicente. 2019. Para onde estamos caminhando? Uma análise das pesquisas em governança corporativa. Revista de Administração Contemporânea- RAC 23 (1): 43-66. http://doi.org/10.1590/1982-7849rac2019170381 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-7849rac2019170381

Lewis, Marjorie. 2017. Gender equality: a view from beyond the ‘glass ceiling.’ Feminist Theology 26 (1): 101-09. https://doi.org/10.1177/0966735017714408. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0966735017714408

Lewis, Patricia. 2014. Postfeminism, femininities and organization studies: exploring a new agenda. Organization studies 35 (12): 1845-66. https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840614539315. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840614539315

Mavin, Sharon, and Gina Grandy. 2019. Women leaders, self‐body‐care and corporate moderate feminism: an (im) perfect place for feminism. Gender, Work e Organization 26 (11): 1546-61. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12292. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12292

Mouffe, Chantal. 2013. Agonistics: thinking the world politically. London: Verso

O’Mahoney, Joe, Steve Vincent and Bill Harley. 2018. Realist studies of oppression, emancipation and resistance. Organization 25 (5): 575-84. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508418789686. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508418789686

Oakley, Judith. 2000. Gender-based barriers to senior management positions: understanding the scarcity of female CEOs. Journal of Business Ethics 27 (4): 321-34. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006226129868. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006226129868

Oh, Won-Yong, Young Kyun Chang and Kim Tae-Yeol. 2018. Complementary or substitutive effects? Corporate governance mechanisms and corporate social responsibility. Journal of Management 44 (7): 2716-39. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206316653804. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206316653804

Olsen, Jesse, Charles Parsons and Vera Ivanaj. 2016. Gender diversity programs, perceived potential for advancement, and organizational attractiveness: an empirical examination of women in the United States and France. Group e Organization Management 41 (3): 271-309. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059601115583579. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1059601115583579

Raffnsøe, Sverre, Andrea Mennicken and Peter Miller. 2019. The Foucault effect in organization studies. Organization Studies 40 (2): 155-82. https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840617745110. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840617745110

Riordan, Richard and William Kahnweiler. 1996. Job support groups: three configurations. Journal of Counseling and Development 74 (5): 517-20. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6676.1996.tb01903.x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6676.1996.tb01903.x

Walby, Sylvia. 2005a. Gender mainstreaming: productive tensions in theory and practice. Social Politics. International Studies in Gender, State e Society 12 (3): 321-43. https://doi.org/10.1093/sp/jxi018. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/sp/jxi018

Walby, Sylvia. 2005b. Introduction: comparative gender mainstreaming in a global era. International Feminist Journal of Politics 7 (4): 453-70. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616740500284383. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14616740500284383

Zanoni, Patricia and Maddy Janssens. 2007. Minority employees engaging with (diversity) management: an analysis of control, agency, and micro-emancipation. Journal of Management Studies 44 (8): 1371-97. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2007.00700.x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2007.00700.x

Downloads

Published

2023-01-09

How to Cite

Jaime, P., Bandeira, M. L., & Brunstein, J. (2023). In between light empowerment and corporate moderate feminism: Gender equality and women’s emancipation in organizations. Civitas: Journal of Social Sciences, 23(1), e39808. https://doi.org/10.15448/1984-7289.2023.1.39808