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Performative contortions: How White women and people of colour navigate elite leadership roles

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  • Christy Glass
  • Alison Cook

Abstract

How do non‐traditional leaders negotiate their entrance and inclusion in elite leadership roles? This study explores the intentional strategies used by non‐traditional leaders to obtain and sustain elite leadership positions. While previous research has documented the barriers that limit the advancement of White women and people of colour, this study extends our understanding to the deliberate, intentional strategies outsiders use to negotiate their entrance to and inclusion in elite leadership roles. We use Bourdieu’s concept of habitus and Puwar’s bodies out of place perspective to analyse the ‘performative contortions’ of outsiders who occupy elite roles. Our analysis relies on 32 in‐depth interviews with White women and men and women of colour who occupy senior leadership positions in large organizations. Our findings uncover a range of embodied, cultural and interactional strategies outsiders employ to gain entrance to top positions and thus reveal the ways gender and race are embedded in the ‘hidden curriculum’ of elite organizations. The ongoing labour required of organizational outsiders to negotiate their own inclusion sheds light on the continuing failure of current efforts to achieve equity and inclusion among elite leadership ranks.

Suggested Citation

  • Christy Glass & Alison Cook, 2020. "Performative contortions: How White women and people of colour navigate elite leadership roles," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(6), pages 1232-1252, November.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:gender:v:27:y:2020:i:6:p:1232-1252
    DOI: 10.1111/gwao.12463
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    4. Alison Pullen & Torkild Thanem & Melissa Tyler & Louise Wallenberg & Alison Pullen & Torkild Thanem & Melissa Tyler & Louise Wallenberg, 2016. "Sexual Politics, Organizational Practices: Interrogating Queer Theory, Work and Organization," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(1), pages 1-6, January.
    5. Sharon Mavin & Gina Grandy, 2016. "Women Elite Leaders Doing Respectable Business Femininity: How Privilege is Conferred, Contested and Defended through the Body," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(4), pages 379-396, July.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Jennifer L. Berdahl & Barnini Bhattacharyya, 2024. "Do White Women Gain Status for Engaging in Anti-black Racism at Work? An Experimental Examination of Status Conferral," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 193(4), pages 839-858, September.
    3. Bashir Bello & Mansur Muhammad Bello, 2023. "An Empirical Study of the Numerical Proportions of Women Academics in Selected Universities in Nigeria: A Study of Federal University Gusau and Umaru Musa Yar’adua University," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(2), pages 21582440231, June.

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