Increasing the Presence of Black Women in Executive Leadership Positions

Date of Award

8-1-2024

Degree Name

Ed.D. in Leadership for Organizations

Department

Department of Educational Administration

Advisor/Chair

Meredith Wronowski

Abstract

Through a Critical Action Research (Hesse-Biber, 2017) study utilizing the sequential mixed method to examine the experiences of Black women leaders in corporate spaces in the U.S. by situating their experiences in national and local Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) data and delving into the nuanced experiences of four Black women previously employed at the organization of interest (Mertler, 2020). This study focuses on researching the problem of practice regarding the disproportionately low number of Black women in leadership roles in my organization, which professes to value inclusion, diversity, and equity (IDE) in the workplace. The study results indicate an urgency for senior leaders to commit to increasing inclusion, diversity, and equity and create a space for Black women to be their authentic selves. These themes introduce an action plan, discussed in greater detail within the dissertation, that objectives are to (1) increase the recruitment and retention rate of Black talent within the organization by intentionally engaging Black women college students at career fairs and (2) improve opportunities for success and advancement of Black women by improving the cultural proficiency of the organization. Meeting the program's objectives better aligns the organization with its mission and minimizes the disproportionately low number of Black women in senior leadership and executive positions, as reflected in the EEO reports.

Keywords

Inclusion, diversity, equity, Disproportionately low population of Black women, EEO-1, Racial disparity, Funds of Knowledge

Rights Statement

Copyright © 2024, author.

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