Gender and Managing

the different gender in managing and leding people

South African schools are presently faced with the challenge of managing educational change effectively. There are a number of policy initiatives that have been introduced to help educators deal with the new demands of change. Some argue that these policies are not working because schools are still fraught with enormous problems. In some quarters there is an atmosphere of dissipation and frustration and yet there is still hope that if we persevere we can make things happen notwithstanding of our difficulties. We realise that education operates within a context that is continually changing, complex and turbulent. More recently, the issue of diversity in organisations is looming high in the transformation agenda. We see more and more women assuming challenging and stimulating leadership positions in various industries. The question is: Can women make a significant difference in a transforming society? Does gender really matter in leading and managing people?

We take five directions that inform the transformational leadership form women's perspective: firstly, leadership challenge in a transforming educational context, secondly, women as strategic and visionary leaders for change; thirdly, women as effective inspirational leaders, fourthly, women leaders as risk takers and lastly, leadership-learning strategies for success in the 21st century. We argue that it is important to retain all five directions in dealing with the women leadership challenge because they set the preconditions and parameters for competitive advantage in a continually changing educational context that operates within a more complex competitive global setting.