Abstract

Women have played a much greater role in large Australian firms than previously appreciated. This article examines Australian women in corporate leadership since 1910, revealing the role of networks and personal characteristics for access to positions of corporate influence. From 1910 to 1964, corporate women were cast as the ‘good wife’, with marriage and kinship affording some the ability to influence the networks of corporate men, and the fortunes of the companies they controlled. Since the 1980s, the number of women directors has grown substantially, and women have come to occupy central positions in director network. Efforts by government, regulators and professional associations have improved the number of women in leadership, their importance in the community, and their ability to integrate with core male board members. These insights highlight the multi-dimensional progress of Australian female board members, and the effectiveness of both external pressure and internal advocacy for improving corporate diversity.

摘要

女性在澳大利亚大型公司中发挥的作用比以前认为的要大得多。本文考察了自 1910 年以来担任企业领导层的澳大利亚女性，揭示了网络和个人特征在获得企业影响力职位方面的作用。从 1910 年到 1964 年，企业女性被塑造为“好妻子”，婚姻和亲属关系提供了一些能力来影响企业男性的网络以及他们控制的公司的财富。20世纪80年代以来，女性导演的数量大幅增加，女性开始在导演网络中占据中心位置。政府、监管机构和专业协会的努力提高了女性领导人数、她们在社区中的重要性以及她们与核心男性董事会成员融合的能力。