Women and men in hotel management in Hong Kong: perceptions of gender and career development issues

Abstract

This study aims to examine whether Hong Kong's female and male managers perceive gender and career development issues differently than their Western counterparts. The study found that female hotel managers in Hong Kong, like their Western counterparts, are aware of the difficulties women face in a male-dominated environment. However, unlike Western women managers, they tend to downplay the difficulties, and to favour personal, against institutional, strategies to overcome them. The study also found that while both women and men prefer male supervisors, men's preference is more definitive. Male managers also prefer supervising male subordinates. The findings suggest that there is room for Hong Kong's hotel industry to review the effect of structural barriers on women's career development.