Different or similar: constructions of leadership by senior managers in Irish and Portuguese universities

Abstract

(125 words)Despite over 60 years of research on leadership, few attempts have been made to ensure that the models of leadership are inclusive of women or other 'outsiders' (Alimo-Metcalfe and Alban-Metcalf 2005). This paper explores variation in the constructions of leadership, at a time of institutional change in higher education.Drawing on a purposive sample, including those at Presidential/Rector, Vice Presidential/Vice Rector level in Irish and Portuguese universities, it compares and contrasts such senior managers' conceptions of leadership, as reflected in their descriptions of a typical President/Rector and those characteristics that they see as valued in senior management in their own university. Attention is particularly focussed on the identification and gendering of collegial/managerial characteristics, and the extent to which it reflects variation in these university contexts.

Informality, emotion and gendered career paths: The hidden toll of maternity leave on female academics and researchers

“…As these quotes illustrate, in order to understand why prospective and actual motherhood negatively impacts on female academics (Byrne & Keher Dillon, ; Monroe et al, ; Rice, ), it is necessary to look at how maternity leave intersects with gendered organizational cultures. Kate's view (above) indicates the structural obstacles women experience in a context in which masculinity is implicitly valorized within management structures (O’Connor & Carvalho, ). This has implications for women and men who do not conform to typically masculinist values and behaviours (Knights & Richards, ) and, for women who have children during the course of their academic and research careers, it crucially reveals the ‘care‐less’ context of academia and the ‘care ceiling’ those with primary care responsibilities encounter (Grummell et al, ).…”