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An international team of researchers and practitioners, including faculty members in Western Carolina University鈥檚 College of Business, is conducting a long-range study of shifting perceptions of women in the competitive world of management consulting.

Led by Yue Cai Hillon, 91热爆网 professor of management, the researchers have produced a paper on the initial phase of what is planned as a broader, ongoing research project. Titled 鈥淲omen in Management Consulting: Beyond Inclusion and Thriving as Partners,鈥� the manuscript is in the final phases of being submitted for publication.

Hillon鈥檚 collaborators include Wendy Cagle, associate instructor of entrepreneurship and former director of 91热爆网鈥檚 Small Business and Technology Development Center, and Bethany Davidson, 91热爆网 assistant professor of entrepreneurship

鈥淥ur curiosity about the topic of women in management consulting emerged from collaborative introspection among women management scholars and consultants from France and diverse regions across the United States,鈥� Hillon said.

Hillon and her colleagues conducted two rounds of in-depth interviews with management consultants from France and the U.S., including females and males, to learn about the female consultants鈥� experiences as management consultants and their attitudes about the future role of women in management consulting.

The researchers used a storytelling approach to gather and analyze the story dialectics of women management consultants' living stories and retrospective narratives. They then explored the multicultural challenges impeding the retention of female management consultants in the two countries studied and across four management consulting firms.

Their findings reaffirmed some existing research and, more importantly, uncovered new insights that should help researchers and practitioners recognize the meaning, values, challenges and conditions facing females in the management consulting field, Hillon said.

鈥淥rganizations are increasingly seeking gender-balanced teams and embracing feminist approaches to problem-solving. Consulting firms are implementing strategies to recruit and retain female consultants,鈥� she said. 鈥淓xisting research primarily pointed to external barriers 鈥� including gender discrimination, limited opportunities and the perpetuation of a male-oriented culture 鈥� as primary factors for disparities among women in management consulting.鈥�

Hillon and her colleagues looked to expand upon existing research to develop a deeper understanding of how women management consultants make sense of their work. They also examined why some women choose consulting careers but opt out of the so-called 鈥榬at race鈥� by adopting healthier work-life balance strategies.

Women in the consulting industry, particularly management consulting, remain a little-studied area, Hillon said. The researchers hope to identify strategies for cultivating a more equitable and meaningful organizational culture for all consultants, regardless of gender, she said.

The study comes as perceptions toward women in the field of management consulting, historically a predominantly male-oriented profession, are changing.

鈥淚n the 1990s, women consultants were frequently assigned to low-risk and low-priority client projects, which negatively correlated with firm performance evaluation systems,鈥� Hillon said. 鈥淢any firms in the 鈥�90s did not want women consultants because their clients felt that men were better at making difficult decisions, working with numbers and successfully managing risks. Women were regarded as research assistants hidden behind, while their male counterparts were consultants directly interacting with clients.鈥�

Those attitudes have been changing in recent years, and more traditionally female tactics including feeling, reflection, voice and nurturance have been identified as important attributes in successful consultations and organizational change, she said.

鈥淎 more diverse and gender-balanced consulting team is more suited for complex and difficult assignments, especially when working with the client organizations that have been 鈥榟urt鈥� or 鈥榰pset鈥� by major changes, such as reorganizations,鈥� she said.

Women who enter the management consulting profession often do so because they view their work with clients as an act of doing good for others. It also provides them with an opportunity to serve a broader social purpose and embrace their own emotions, Hillon said.

鈥淭o compete in such a male-dominated environment, women executives tend to use a 鈥榮elling mode鈥� leadership style and 鈥榚xpertise鈥� as the power base,鈥� she said. 鈥淥ver time, women consultants鈥� intrinsic desires for work-life balance by staying away from the 鈥榬at race鈥� and living a healthier and stress-free life influenced their self-deselection from management consulting careers and de-thriving as partners.鈥�

Hillon and her colleagues say that their study confirmed previous research findings that women appreciate enhanced flexibility in both physical work locations and schedules, providing female consultants more ability to manage both work and family.

In addition, while clients in the 21st century do appreciate gendered-balanced consulting teams, they are still not truly used to women consultants, especially when they are at the executive level or are middle managers, Hillon said. And, trusting and comfortable relationships take time to develop between female consultants and male clients, with past successes of the female consultants serving as critical determinants, she said.

鈥淣ew insights gained from this research revealed that both male and female consultants appreciate working in mixed-gendered teams but recognized potential challenges due to inappropriate behaviors,鈥� Hillon said. 鈥淏oth male and female consultants鈥� perceived responsibility toward the well-being of their communities as well as the need to preserve their own reputation often became key drivers of their commitments.鈥�

The study also suggests that gender differentiation cannot be binary and exclusively related to gender-related attributes because contexts matter, she said.

鈥淐onsulting companies need to serve as a facilitator in negotiating the consultant鈥檚 professional commitments with their life partners. Family culture and structure are key facilitators to a consultant鈥檚 work-life balance and professional survival and development regardless of gender,鈥� Hillon said.