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This paper aims to appraise the effectiveness of gender quotas in breaking the glass ceiling for women on boards (WoBs) in companies that are legally obliged to comply with quotas (listed companies and state-owned companies, LP) and in those that are not (unlisted companies and nonstate-owned companies, NLNP). Furthermore, it investigates the glass cliff phenomenon, according to which women are more likely to be appointed to apical positions in underperforming companies.

A balanced panel data of the top 116 Italian companies by total assets, which are present in both 2010 and 2017, is used for estimating ANOVA tests across sectors and fixed-effects panel regression models.

WoBs significantly increased in both the LP and the NLNP companies, and this increase was greater in the financial sector. Furthermore, the relationship between the percentage of WoBs and firm performance is not linear but depends on the financial corporate health. Specifically, the situation in which a woman ascends to a leadership position in challenging circumstances where the risk of failure is high (glass cliff phenomenon) is only present in companies with the lowest performance in the sample, in other words, when negative values of Roe and negative or zero values of Roa occur together.

These findings have relevant policy implications that encourage the adoption of gender quotas even in specific top positions, such as CEO or president, as this could lead to a “double spillover effect” both vertically, that is, in other job positions, and horizontally, toward other companies not targeted by quotas. Practical interventions to support women in glass cliff positions, on the other hand, relate to the extent of supervisor mentoring and support to prevent women from leaving director roles and strengthen their chances for career advancement.

The authors explore the ability of gender quotas to break through the glass ceiling in companies that are not legally obliged to do so, and to the best of the authors’ knowledge, for the first time, the glass cliff phenomenon in the Italian context.

Recent evidence from glass cliff research suggests that women are more willing than men to accept risky leadership positions. The purpose of this paper (based on three studies) is to reveal and resolve the apparent paradox that women are more risk averse than men yet end up in risky leadership positions.

In Study I, risk attitudes of 125 participants were surveyed to understand gender differences in risk taking. In two experimental vignette studies, 119 university students (Study II) and 109 working adults (Study III) were offered a leadership position in either a risky or successful company and asked to rate their willingness to accept the job.

Together, the results showed that although women are generally more risk averse than men, women who scored low on career self-efficacy were more likely to perceive a risky job as a promotional opportunity and were therefore more willing to accept such a job. These findings shed light on the role of women’s career decision making in the glass cliff phenomenon.

Glass cliff research has focused almost exclusively on organizational decision makers. The authors aim to better understand the glass cliff phenomenon by incorporating the perspective of job seekers.

The purpose of this paper is to consider the current status of women in management and explanations offered for this status in light of a rare empirical field study of the “glass ceiling” phenomenon the authors conducted about 20 years ago.

The authors review the study’s key arguments, unexpected results, and implications for organizational effectiveness (which have been largely ignored). The authors then review what has transpired and what has been learned about the glass ceiling phenomenon since.

The nature of glass ceilings has remained essentially stable over a 20-year period, although further explanations for them have flourished.

More scholarly examinations of ways to shatter glass ceilings and thereby enhance organizational effectiveness are recommended.

Organizations, human resources directors, and internal decision makers need to adopt practices that foster “debiasing” of decisions about promotions to top management.

Societies need to encourage organizations to adopt ways to shatter glass ceilings that continue to disadvantage women.

A systematic review and analysis of the present-day implications of an early study of the glass ceiling phenomenon has not previously been conducted.

This paper aims to identify and systematically summarize the relevant research on metaphors that are used to explain gender inequalities in the organizational context.

The researchers conducted a systematic literature review using bibliometric techniques and content analysis.

The systematic literature review identified a total of 1,269 papers in 688 journals written by 2,441 authors. The first paper was published in 1971 and the publication growth can be observed in the five decades analyzed. The Gender in Management: An International Journal, was the journal that published more papers about this thematic. Michelle Ryan was the most influential researcher regarding the number of papers and citations she had. The content analysis performed with the 27 most influential papers showed 4 research streams (metaphors; gender and leadership; challenges, stereotypes and toxic environment; and gender in the academy). Concerning the metaphors explored in those papers, the glass ceiling is the most prominent. Furthermore, 26 kinds of barriers were identified regarding the challenges that women face to reach positions of power.

The scrutiny of the metaphors and barriers enable access to what is being a hindrance to female progression in the organizational structure. So, this study may instrumentalize organizations and women to improve gender diversity practices in the workplace.

The value of the paper lays in the extensive literature review, using a bibliometric approach and content analysis.

The purpose of this paper is to review many of the diverse metaphors and labels that are used to highlight insights into glass ceilings – the obstacles hindering women reaching the top levels of organizations.

The development of metaphors and labels related to theories about the causes and consequences of glass ceilings are discussed. They are classified according to whether or not they infer women play a role in creating glass ceilings.

It is concluded that most metaphor‐linked explanations focus on discrimination and prejudice towards women seeking leadership positions. A small number of metaphors target characteristics of women as causes for the gender inequality in leadership and upper management.

Even though there is a plethora of metaphors highlighting obstacles and prejudice against women leaders and several metaphors have been part of the popular lexicon for at least three decades, metaphors do not appear to have greatly helped to quicken the dismantling of glass ceilings.

This is a unique approach to reviewing literature in this area.

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

This conceptual paper's environmental effect model reveals that women operating at an executive level are required in male-normed organizations to adapt their leadership behavior continually between male and female traits, both to break through the glass ceiling to secure their leadership position and to keep it without falling off a glass cliff. Gender-based self-constraint and self-monitoring is a behavioral habit that can be difficult to shift in all but the most positively supportive and openly diverse work environments. Only here can executive women be their authentic selves without fearing negative career repurcussions.

The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

This study addresses gender composition in universities. The purpose of this study is to define the vertical and horizontal gender segregation in both public and private universities. In particular, it measures the gender distribution throughout academic careers across levels and time, and among fields of science in Italian academia.

The authors adopted the framework of Blackburn et al. (2002) as a theoretical lens through which they examine and explain occupational gender segregation in the university context. A mixed methodology of both document analysis and examining some statistical indicators was used to create gender-disaggregated measures to help the authors answer their research questions. The data collected represent academia in Italy for the period 2010-2018. The data were obtained from the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research.

The authors show the gendered nature of academic institutions in Italy. In particular, the authors acknowledge that hierarchies of power exist that privilege men and the masculine and devalue women and the feminine within academic institutions.

This paper provides theoretical and practical findings that support the literature on gender issues in universities and other public and/or private institutions. The academic community, practitioners and policymakers can use the results to design measures to address gender inequality in academia.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is novel because it provides gender-relevant insights on the gender composition in universities in the Italian context. These insights are also relevant for academic institutions that operate in an international setting.

The purpose of this study is to develop a theory that explains how organizations can create a more inclusive atmosphere on the individual, organizational and societal levels. The consequences of an inclusive environment were subsequently developed and explored.

Constructivist grounded theory methods were used to collect and analyze data from interviews with 20 hotel executives and their company websites.

The findings of this study produced a theoretical framework for inclusion in hotel leadership, leadership inclusion theory (LIT). The LIT states organizations must address individual differences, organizational policies and culture and societal norms to develop an inclusive environment. Equity follows inclusion as the value for individual differences makes equitable treatment easier. Finally, diversity increases through increased inclusion and equity.

The LIT describes steps for managers to take to develop an inclusive environment, establish equitable practices and increase diversity within an organization.

The LIT highlights several unintended exclusion practices and generational attitudes that are common among organizations. By making conscious efforts, managers can take deliberate actions to establish a perceived environment of equality.

The LIT is a seminal theory-building effort grounded in hospitality. It explains the when and why of several phenomena related to inequality in the hotel industry and how to overcome such imbalances.

This paper aims to draw on Ashcraft’s (2013) metaphor of the “glass slipper” (which highlights the need for alignment between occupational identity and embodied social identities of workers) to show how merit may not adhere to individuals when social identity in the form of gender, race or class fails to fit the definition and perceived characteristics of the job.

This is a conceptual paper.

This study develops the notion of the Teflon effect to describe the way merit may go unrecognised and may therefore not “stick” to the bodies of women in management and leadership roles.

This study provides an explanation for the persistence of the glass ceiling and the barriers women face as they undertake or aspire to management and/or leadership positions in organisations.

This study introduces a more embodied notion of merit which relies on both performance and recognition to “take effect”. Professionals must see beyond “objective” measures of merit in performance reviews and/or in recruitment and promotion decisions to include reflection on the significance of merit’s subjective, “performed” dimensions.

This study adds to understandings of women’s positioning in organisations.

This study develops the notion of the Teflon effect. This highlights the significance of the recognition, performance and embodiment of merit and how merit may fail to adhere to the bodies of women in management and leadership roles.