Abstract
The hotel industry in Timor-Leste is female-dominated, but women are under-represented in management and senior executive positions. The objective of this study is to examine gender differences in the relative importance of individual and organizational factors and their effects on career advancement in the hotel industry in Dili. A survey of hotel employees in Dili was undertaken, yielding a total of 385 respondents. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The hypothesized model predicted that individual factors of personality traits, education, work experience, and organizational variables of opportunities for promotion and corporate training and development would have a positive effect on career advancement. The results found that for both genders, education and work experience were two common factors with a direct effect on career advancement. However, for male employees, conscientiousness directly predicted career growth, while corporate training and development mediated the effect of harmonious passion for work on career advancement. On the other hand, among female employees, corporate training and development directly influenced career progression and mediated the effect of openness to experience and opportunity for promotion on career advancement. This study is the first to examine the factors facilitating the career advancement of hotel employees in Timor-Leste and the extent to which their path to advancement differed for males and females. We present the theoretical and practical implications of the role of individual and organizational factors on career advancement and possible ways to mitigate gender inequality in organizations.
Highlights
Career advancement refers to the upward progression of employees’ career, which means employees can advance by moving from an entry-level job to a management position (Jauhar & Lau, 2018; Ting et al, 2020)
The personality trait of conscientiousness was a significant predictor of Big Five factors” (BFF) on career advancement, and corporate training and development (T&D) mediated the effect on harmonious passion for work on career advancement
The results obtained from the considered gender analysis concluded that for women and men, education and work experience are two common factors with direct effects on career advancement
Summary
Career advancement refers to the upward progression of employees’ career, which means employees can advance by moving from an entry-level job to a management position (Jauhar & Lau, 2018; Ting et al, 2020). Women are occasionally denied opportunities merely because of their gender (Acker, 2004). This critical issue is faced by many organizations globally, in which the majority of the employees are women (Mišić-Andrić, 2015; Mooney & Ryan, 2009). As gender inequality persists in organizations and in various industries worldwide; this issue warrants further investigation. Previous studies have generally found that only a few women are in the management level, which is mainly occupied by men. Studies have been conducted in other countries to explore the reasons for women’s under-representation in the hotel industry, the current study is the first to address this particular issue in the context of Timor-Leste
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