The Impact of Information Technology on Leadership Opportunities for Women: The Leveling of the Playing Field

Abstract

Executive Summary Advances in information technology (IT) are providing leadership opportunities for women both in upper and middle management. This paper aims to fill the gap in the literature concerning the effects of IT on these leadership opportunities by examining IT's potential as a leveler of the corporate playing field, facilitating the entry of women into the upper ranks of management and allowing those in middle management to emerge as leaders in decision-making groups. Specifically, the explosive growth of talent-driven Internet-related businesses has opened up opportunities in upper management for women, while the very nature of the Internet and computer-mediated communication (CMC) has the potential for increasing the opportunities for emergent leadership by women within middle management. Four interrelated factors are suggested as to why Internet companies are playing the role of the "great leveler" of leadership opportunities in upper management: (a) the demand for qualified top managers; (b) the nonexistence of an "old boy" network; (c) the existence of diversified, mixed gender personal networks; and (d) an organizational culture open to diversity, which is typical of Web-related firms. Two factors are suggested as enablers of leadership emergence by women in middle management in decision-making groups: (a) technology-based information accessibility, and (b) potentially increased participation in decision-making through CMC.