D.B.A.  Baker College (Michigan), 2023.
Subect:  Organizational behavior

Mentoring staff women in higher education
146 pages. UMI #: 30486900
Citation, Abstract & Full text in ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Database

Mentoring is an essential tool in the toolbox of workplace advancement. Mentoring, workplace incivility theory, and social role theory literature all demonstrate a lack of mentoring opportunities for women. This study investigated a unique mentoring program specifically designed for staff women at a university and provided by a volunteer staff organization. The problem is that when barriers prevent women’s access to mentoring programs in higher education, then women are denied advancement opportunities. This problem impacts women in the workplace by denying them a spectrum of opportunities and necessitating this examination of the mentee-mentor relationship. This study was conducted to create a reproducible women's mentoring program intended to help women overcome barriers to advancement. This study assessed women mentee's perceptions of their mentoring goals, mentoring relationship, and program recommendations. This qualitative case study sought to expand the knowledge base about mentoring for women. This study revealed the complexity that exists within the process of women's mentoring and answered the three research questions, what were mentee’s impressions of the mentoring program, what were mentee’s perceptions of their mentoring relationship, and what future mentoring programs should include. The mentoring program was open to all female staff at the university. The target population included women who have participated as mentees in one of the mentoring programs totaling 224 women. Continuing the mentoring program will benefit current and future female employees at the university. The current program has been successful for the women who participated in this study. The formal program has helped forge informal mentoring relationships, opened space for women to act with agency without reprisal, and proves a formal mentoring program can support mentee goals. The size of the organization allowed for mentoring to happen outside of direct lines of supervision essentially eliminated the social role and workplace incivility typically found in direct lines of supervision. Future research could focus on using a formal mentoring program presented by an organization seeking similar outcomes. Reproducing this program in other organizations could help reveal how to have women advance through the workplace ranks in equal numbers.

• Dr. Susan Cathcart, Ph.D., Chair
• Dr. Peggy Houghton, Ph.D.
• Dr. Jennifer Logiudice, Ph.D.