Paths to Leadership for Women in Emerging Markets

An unresolved question for management scholars is whether the path to leadership is different for women in emerging markets. In emerging markets, profound familial and societal pressures rest on women to fulfill domestic duties, and a more nuanced view of the interaction between these so-called “pushes” and “pulls” is needed. If granted access, I intend to interview women entrepreneurs involved with the 10,000 Women Initiative — a five-year investment by Goldman Sachs to provide more than 10,000 women in emerging markets with a business and management education. Other research strategies include interviewing past and current participants of the University of Cape Town’s Women’s Leadership Initiative, or those of the Ghana Association of Women’s Entrepreneurs. I propose to conduct primary quantitative research on women in the above-mentioned existing program cohorts in places that management scholarship has seldom explored, particularly in Africa. Such a comparative study would enable scholars and practitioners to better understand how women in emerging markets navigate their careers.