Gender equality in top management (C-suite) : a Christian-ethical perspective

Abstract

Gender balance in the Western world has made significant progress over the last few decades, and is now reflected in many parts of society, spanning from higher education, legal rights and obligations, and to some extent, access to work life. However, within the corporate world, differences are still reported in areas such as compensation, career progress and leadership roles. In top management, also referred to as the C-suite level in the corporate world, women are still a minority, not reflecting the proportional number of women within higher educational institutions or the number of women in the lower corporate ranks. The number of women in C-suite roles is surprisingly low, despite research showing the benefits of having women in leadership roles, with respect to financial output, overall performance, improved governance, increased talent pool, etc. The corporate world’s commitment to gender balance and change is often shared on paper; however, it is hard to track in real life as progress is slow, and good intentions lack actions. This dissertation focuses on the lack of gender balance at the top corporate echelons from a constructive Christian-ethical point of view. It addresses the biblical support for equality in line with the Reformed paradigm. The path to gender balance at C-suite level includes a strategy ensuring that all corporate processes, internal and external, embed steps that support a recruitment process that appreciates gender diversity. It also includes a commitment to influencing lawmakers and other extra-organisational stakeholders towards awareness of the internal working environment and grooming of talent, including the appointment of candidates to various roles, while balancing the influence of unconscious bias and stereotypy. Principles to guide these steps are proposed under the name Gender Appreciative Recruitment Practice (GARP) offering a constructive process based on the foundations of Scripture, as expressed under the Reformed paradigm. A general recommendation to decision-makers and other relevant stakeholders as to the ways in which GARP might operate in real life is included