2.4.6.3 Lack of role models

Due to women’s underrepresentation in senior executive positions, there is a lack of female role models at the corporate top.1 Female role models are important for a women’s career as they can shape women’s motivation to aspire for these positions.2 Accordingly, the lack of role models is related to the barrier ‘career preferences’ (Figure 2.3, arrow 13). The lack of female role models also ‘reinforce[s] the prevailing male-based cultural norms (…) and the way work is consequently organized’.3 This indicates a relationship between the barrier ‘role models’ and the barrier ‘organizational culture’ (Figure 2.3, arrow 14).