This book takes an in-depth look at the position of women in senior positions in the public sector using a case-study approach, based on ten 'successful' women and their background, upbringing, career progression, successes and failures, challenges and experiences. Each case study includes a 'lessons learned' response in the form of advice both to other women, and the organisations in which they work. Surrounding and supporting the case studies are short essays charting the main themes that emerge from the interview process, backed up by extensive literature reviews. There will be comparison between relevant public sectors in different parts of the world and the inclusion of one case-study on experiencing success in the private sector. The key themes include: gender-based approaches to definitions of success; trends and attitudes in public sector organisations towards diversity in general and gender balance in particular; women and men as carers.It summarises the commonality and the diversity of the challenges and issues. It provides an analysis of the factors that help and hinder women in reaching the top positions. It provides solutions suggested by detailed analysis of real-life experiences. It adopts a novel approach - in-depth use of case studies, gaining personal, in-depth insights from successful women (typically in top positions) in the public sector. It questions existing constructs and paradigms based on empirical evidence. It is capable of adaptation and replication in a wide range of environments. It fills a major gap; there is little else current on the subject, as the book focuses on qualitative rather than quantitative data.
Women at the top (or not): history, background, issues, themes; The case study approach: an explanation and a critique; The literature; Case study 1: CEO of a national body 1; Case study 2: CEO of a national body 2; Case study 3: CEO of a public service organization 1; Case study 4: CEO of a public service organization 2; Case study 5: CEO of an educational institution 1; Case study 6: CEO of an educational institution 2; Case study 7: CEO of a private sector organization; Case study 8: Success redefined 1; Case study 9: Success redefined 2; Case study 10: Group case study; Conclusions; Bibliography; Index.
David Baker is Principal of University College Plymouth St Mark & St John and Professor of Strategic Information Management there. He has published widely in the fields of strategic management. Bernadette Casey left school at 16 and was married with a child by the age of 19. Balancing the domestic with a desire for knowledge, she went on to further and higher education as a mature student, gaining an Honours degree in Sociology and Politics from Plymouth Polytechnic in 1978, an MA from the University of Manchester in 1979 and a PhD, also from Manchester in 1987. She has taught in a dult and Higher Education since 1980. Bernadette Casey is now Dean of the School of Culture, Communication and Society at University College Plymouth St Mark & St John.
