Nino Kartvelishvili

Bank Of Georgia

Professional Development Coach

Tbilisi, Georgia

nibukartvelishvili@gmail.com ORCID: 0009-0008-1318-9750

Gender equality and women in managerial positions

Abstract

In the past, traditional gender roles and social norms often restricted women from occupying managerial positions.

Nowadays, there is significant progress in terms of gender equality in Georgia and the Caucasus, which is the result of the increase of social awareness. However, a lot of effort is still required to achieve full equality.

In the Caucasus and Georgia, due to some certain reasons it was very difficult for women to be promoted in their careers and moreover to assign to key management positions. These barriers were of the following types:

1. Gender stereotypes:

Traditional gender roles and stereotypes have often limited women's career opportunities in the past  years. The wide-spread belief that women should primarily focus on family responsibilities created barriers that prevented women from occupying senior positions in organizations.

2. Limited education and skill development:

 In the past years, unlike men women had limited access to high quality education. This lack of educational resources prevented them from competing with men for managerial positions.

3. "Glass ceiling":

 Women often countered the "glass ceiling" phenomenon, where they faced invisible barriers of career development. Gender bias and discriminatory practices hindered them from employment and promotion. 

4. Work-life balance challenges:

 Finding the balance between work and family responsibilities was always and still continues to be a significant challenge for women in general.

5. Gender pay gap:

Gender pay gap was common in Georgia and the Caucasus. It means that compared to men women earned less for similar work.

Progress towards the gender equality is a collective effort that requires the involvement of various stakeholders, including governments, employers, civil society and individuals. Only through the joint action we can create a more inclusive and fair society where women have equal opportunities to succeed in managerial positions.

Currently, compared to previous years, more women are employed in management positions of various sectors in Georgia and the Caucasus, including business, politics and civil society.

In the future, it is important to ensure gender equality and create a supportive environment for women in managerial roles. In order to achieve this desired end-state it is necessary for the government and organizations to conduct various events and take required measures based on joint efforts. All this will create a fair environment that will support gender equality in managerial positions