Abstract
Abstract : The scarcity of women within leadership roles is a global phenomenon garnering much attention. Within the South African context, this lack of representation is exacerbated by the intersection of race and gender against the backdrop of the historical context. Legislation and organisational practices have made progress in increasing race and gender representation in leadership roles within organisations; however, the pace of progress is slow, and barriers remain pervasive. Within the financial services industry, and banking specifically, organisations are Western and predominantly represented by White males in leadership, thus making the advancement of African females into leadership roles a challenge requiring attention. The primary objective of this study was to identify perceptions held towards African female leaders, and the impact these perceptions have on them within the financial services industry, with special focus on the banking industry. In addition to this, the study aimed to: establish how African female leaders from the financial services industry are perceived by their subordinates, peers, and managers; establish if gender influences how African female leaders in the financial services industry are perceived; establish how African female leaders within the financial services industry think they are perceived by others; establish if the way in which African female leaders in the financial services industry think they are perceived by others influences their leadership style; and, lastly, establish if there is a difference in how African female leaders, females, successful middle managers and males in the financial services industry are perceived. The study followed a mixed-methods approach, employing a sequential explanatory design strategy. The first phase was quantitative, which comprised distribution of questionnaires. A total of 415 individuals from the financial services industry responded, and the resultant data were statistically analysed. The second phase was qualitative in nature, where semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten African female leaders, five subordinates of African female leaders, five peers of African female leaders, and five managers of African female leaders within the financial PERCEPTIONS HELD TOWARDS AFRICAN FEMALE LEADERS. 2019. (MOLEKO, Zandile Sanelisiwe) vi services industry. The quantitative data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) and the interviews were transcribed, and thematic analysis conducted. The two methods were then triangulated, and the findings of the research were considered in the context of previous research and literature. The study found that African female leaders are not perceived as displaying destructive characteristics and withdrawal characteristics. African female leaders are perceived as displaying intrapersonal capabilities, interpersonal capabilities, and internal derailers. Additional behaviours were identified as characteristics of African female leaders. In terms of influencing leadership, race and gender were identified as having an influence in leadership approach by some subordinates, managers, and African female leaders, but not all. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) to assess respondents’ perceptions of African female leaders, females, successful middle managers and males in the financial services industry in terms of positive and negative leadership characteristics revealed that there is a significant difference in respondents’ perceptions of African female leaders, females, successful middle managers and males in terms of negative and positive leadership characteristics. Other factors that influenced the success of African female leaders were considered. This study contributes to the paucity of research on African female leaders, adding to the understanding of the intersection of race and gender. It further adds to existing knowledge by giving a perspective from the financial services industry, namely banking within the South African context, an area where limited research has been conducted. The researcher makes recommendations to organisations on mechanisms to address inherent bias within organisations and foster greater advancement of African female leaders. The focus is the role of organisational practices, organisational culture, the role of line managers, networks as an enabler, and the power of formal learning and development, coaching, mentoring, and sponsorship. This research intends to ensure that perceptions of African female leaders enable their advancement and success, which simultaneously requires effort from African female leaders themselves, as well as line managers and organisational practices.
D.Phil. (Leadership in Performance and Change)