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The 1990's see the managerial woman in a transition phase in her quest for equality in employment. As Still (1993) suggests, a tension associated with this transition is that of conquering traditional and enduring organisational and attitudinal barriers while responding to new employment opportunities as organisations re‐vision in response to global socio‐political and economic change.

Changes to government policy, deregulation and corporatization in New Zealand have influenced the number and status of women on boards of directors. Using company records, archival material and interviews, examines gender equity on boards of directors in New Zealand and compares the progress of women on the boards of corporate companies in the private sector with those on crown company boards in the public sector. While increasing numbers of New Zealand women are entering the business arena, they continue to be underrepresented in the boardrooms and there exists a clear disparity between gender representation on the boards of crown and corporate companies with women being disadvantaged in the private sector. Includes interview material from women who have successfully achieved directorships and examines the approaches they adopted. Outlines some positive steps to assist women in the bid for corporate directorship, but suggests that the challenge of changing corporate and societal attitudes remains.

A dramatic acceleration in “girl power” predicted for the boardrooms of major New Zealand business is examined against the notion that age is a traditional demographic variable influencing board selection. For example, the average age of directors in Canada and the USA is 59 years, with 56 per cent of Canadian directors over 60 years. The paper examines whether there is a generational divide between younger women with higher educational qualifications who have “fast‐tracked” onto boards and older female directors with substantial business experience and expertise and the seniority to dedicate the time to board membership. Six interviews were undertaken with women under 40 years who are directors, and with older women, aged 45 years and over, on the same three boards. Similarities and differences in selection and perceptions of the role are analysed. Whether being young and female is a form of double jeopardy or an expression of boardroom diversity in action is explored.

Press constructions of the appointment of a female to New Zealand’s top corporate position are examined against the theory that women are “symbolically annihilated” by the news media. A study of press clippings shows that news was framed primarily around gender and age and that questions about marital status and child‐rearing devalued and trivialised the elevation of a woman to the top. Contrary to other research there is evidence that female reporters framed the news differently from male journalists. The strategies of challenging poor reporting practices and cultivating better performing journalists are outlined for use by women in management.

The rise of corporatisation poses a new challenge for equal opportunities as women struggle to participate in corporate governance. Traditionally, the corporate model was confined to the private sector which is now strongly driven by a prevailing ideology of economic de‐regulation. A consequence of laissez faire economics is that the private sector is assuming greater responsibility for political and economic development as the state sheds power and loses its legitimacy for some functions. Market liberalism has also widened the ambit of the corporate model which is now increasingly applying to the public sector. For example, in New Zealand 56 crown companies have converted to the corporate model with compelling legislation which prioritises profitability over social responsibility (Taggart, 1993). Both private and public sector trends elevate the social and political significance of how corporates are governed and the question of women's participation in the process as directors of boards.

The purpose of this paper is to consider the following questions: who needs gender? Can there possibly be any intelligence left to share? What is the role of gender researchers in 2010 and in the twenty‐first century?

This reflective piece considers these issues against the author's own personal experience as Gender in Management's Regional Editor: Australasia, as the Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner in the New Zealand, as an occasional gender researcher, and as a woman.

Gender in Management has, and continues to act, as a catalyst for authentic, lived collegiality among its networks.

The paper offers insights into some of the big questions which spill out from commemorating 25 years of publication for Gender in Management, previously Women in Management Review.

Since Schein’s evocative and enduring metaphor "think manager – think male" there has been a stream of literature discussing gender difference in managerial style. The newer literature about managerial competence, however, remains largely silent about gender, regardless of whether managerial competence is contextualised in an organizational or a human resources perspective. This is true even of edited collections where gender tokenism is generally evident. The study uses a rarely‐researched sample, female manufacturers in small and medium manufacturing enterprises, to explore gender and managerial competence and to test Marshall’s suggestion that the next wave of theorizing may well strengthen an “androgynous” manager model. The findings show a pattern of both similarity and difference in the managerial competence of male and female manufacturers in technology uptake and tentative support for the androgynous manager model.

Changes to government policy, deregulation and corporatization in New Zealand have influenced the number and status of women on boards of directors. Using company records, archival material and interviews, this paper seeks to examine gender equity on boards of directors in New Zealand and compare the progress of women on the boards of corporate companies in the private sector with those on crown company boards in the public sector.

The paper includes interview material from women who have successfully achieved directorships and examines the approaches they adopted. The paper uses company records and interviews to achieve this aim.

While increasing numbers of New Zealand women are entering the business arena, they continue to be underrepresented in the boardrooms and there exists a clear disparity between gender representation on the boards of crown and corporate companies with women being disadvantaged in the private sector.

The paper outlines some positive steps to assist women in the bid for corporate directorship, but suggests that the challenge of changing corporate and societal attitudes remains.

The burgeoning literature about the knowledge economy has marginalised its most important dimension – people. The development of human capital and its role in the competitive advantage of business is discussed in relation to the changed nature of the employment relationship. In particular Drucker's concerns about the threat to business of attenuated relationships between workers and their organisations are examined. Contextual factors such as the dynamic nature of labour markets, the centrality of profit making and the definitional difficulties inherent in the new and old economy dichotomy are acknowledged. A transitional model of human capital in the new economy is suggested as a way of modernising traditional thinking. An analysis of the capabilities required by new economy workers leads to a discussion of the corresponding competencies necessary for managers. The paper concludes that changed employment relationships do not spell death to people development. Rather it makes managing talent different and more challenging.

Professional inquiry networks are becoming essential features of effective, innovative, and responsive school systems. In this chapter, the authors draw from their work with a team of British Columbia district leaders who use inquiry as a primary means for shifting practice and supporting innovation and change that benefit all learners. The authors argue that networking enables ways for districts to share emerging practices, engage in collective dialogue, draw from exemplary research, and deeply reflect on impacts. In doing so, leaders build strong relational ties and professional capital that accelerates innovation between and among district leaders. Two specific cases develop a deeper understanding of how change is taken up and accelerated at the local level, providing examples of how inquiry networks operate across multiple sites and simultaneously seed and nurture innovative thinking.