Sustainable Leadership amongst Female Managers in Spain

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1		Elena Bulmer	--	3257	2023-05-12 08:19:31	\|
2	format	Jason Zhu	-2 word(s)	3255	2023-05-15 04:47:13	\|

This entry is adapted from the peer-reviewed paper 10.3390/su13126841

The logistics industry in Spain is one that is mostly male-dominated, and women middle and top managers make up less than 10% of the workforce at these management levels. There is therefore an obvious lack of parity in this sector. Spanish regulation supports and promotes gender parity in different sectors including the logistics industry.

sustainable leadership sustainable development goals sustainability

1. Introduction

According to different researchers, leadership is among the key elements for a successful organization ^[1]. According to ^[2], leadership (1) enables the creation of a vision, (2) leads to the setting up of a high-performance team, (3) keeps the team motivated, (4) maintains a good rapport and ensures that team members are aware of the information needed, and (5) helps maintain the satisfaction of employees.

The concept of leadership in itself is a concept that has very varied interpretations ^[3], and to date, no single definition has been accepted by all ^[4]. However, it must be said that despite the great body of literature on leadership, it continues even now to be one of the most misunderstood business phenomena ^[2]. Therefore, different leadership definitions are not common for leaders in all contexts, and it has been shown that individual personality aspects are of considerable importance for effective leadership, such as dominance, sociability, and self-confidence ^[5]. A leader is defined as a person with a responsibility to influence one or more followers who is able to direct them to achieve an objective ^[6].

However, what can be agreed upon is that leadership is important ^[7]. When leadership is ineffective or absent, the results may sometimes be devastating at all levels, affecting stakeholders both inside and outside of the company ^[2]. Therefore, the leader in question will consequently need to adopt different leadership styles, in order to move the organization to a desired future state ^[7]. Modern organizations now are constantly changing and are not averse to potential changes. A refusal to change would undoubtedly affect a company’s operational effectiveness ^[8]^[9]. Leaders and leadership are therefore necessary to enable the organization to adapt to these changes (i.e., potential threats) and to promote the generation of organizational opportunities ^[8]. Furthermore, organizations need to stop believing that leadership should be undertaken from a control perspective ^[10]^[11] and start working on a type of leadership based on dialogue between leaders and their followers ^[12]^[13].

With regard to sustainability, leading an organization toward the achievement of the United Nations’ seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) necessitates a long-term vision, as well as a capacity for resilience and an ability to adapt to changes. Often corporations prioritize and gear their efforts toward attaining short-term objectives and profit targets, and a long-term and durable vision of sustainability is nowhere to be seen. Furthermore, analysts of corporate action on sustainable development issues are calling for more leadership for sustainability to tackle a range of social and environmental issues that still need to be progressed ^[14].

Leadership to achieve such long-term objectives effectively and cohesively should not be performed in a restricted single-governance manner, but instead exercised collectively in groups, organizations, societies, and networks calling on resources both internal and external to the company. In this respect, the authors Hargreaves and Fink (2006) highlight the importance of practicing a sustainable type of leadership. The goal of sustainable leadership is to lead an organization and its members towards sustainable development through the adoption and implementation of activities and strategies that are socially responsible ^[15], and this is also so with companies. This type of leadership is based on fairness and aims to benefit stakeholders in the longer-term future as well as in the present and the immediate future.

A systemic approach must therefore be undertaken regarding the decision-making processes of the company to create additional value. This is very much aligned with the seventeenth Sustainable Development Goal, “partnerships to achieve the goals”, namely, to “enhance the global partnership for sustainable development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology, and financial resources, to support the achievement of the sustainable development goals in all countries, in particular developing countries” ^[16]. For example, at the procurement level, sustainable leaders will select suppliers based not only on low prices, but also on other indicators such as a long-lasting trustworthy relationship of the company with its suppliers. Researching how a holistic approach to leadership can affect organizational effectiveness is necessary, as very little has been done in this respect. Much research to date has been carried out on the outcomes of such leadership for individuals, but not at the organizational level ^[17], thereby revealing an area of research still to be tackled in real depth on how organizational leadership may be improved and transformed to benefit the organization, as well as the wider society, not just in the short but also in the long term. Such societally conscious approaches with respect to leadership have in the past been largely ignored or bypassed ^[12], with leadership success being largely measured simply by the pursuit of maximizing profit ^[10]^[12]^[18]^[19]. Therefore, a different type of leadership is needed that builds upon the organization’s present context to achieve a socially responsible and successful future with a long-term focus that is socially responsible and not solely based on maximizing profit ^[20].

2. The Sustainable Leadership Concept

There are those who think that there should be another form of leadership, a “sustainable leadership” style ^[21]. As is implicit in the term itself, sustainable leadership implies a type of leadership that is carried out over the long term and that is based on acting in a fair and ethical manner with all stakeholders (i.e., both internal and external to the company). The adoption of a long-term perspective has aided companies to survive times of hardship such as economic depressions, recessions, and intense global competition ^[22], and situations such as, for example, the whole of the COVID-19 context, which researchers are experiencing at the moment. According to Avery and Bergsteiner, sustainable leadership is “reflected in the system of principles, processes, practices and values that a firm adopts in pursuing its future” ^[22] (p. 7) and “sustainable businesses should pursue to meet the needs of the present without affecting the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” ^[22] (p. 9). There is therefore a need for new leadership styles. Leaders have shifted from leadership styles that are often more reflective of individual personality or self-interest to ones that are more people and societally oriented. Often, sustainable leadership has multiple advantages such as collegial management with wider people involvement, lower costs, and a better brand reputation and societal respect.

According to the Cambridge Institute of Sustainable Leadership, sustainable leadership should not be considered as a different school of leadership, but as a particular type of leadership within a specific context, a context that understands the sustainability challenges facing the world and aspirations as humans for a more sustainable future ^[23]. Furthermore, sustainable leadership should also consider equity, environmental justice, intergenerational equity, and governance ^[24]. However, it must be noted that sustainable leadership should not be considered to be a business model based on altruism or charity, but on the notion of making companies more competitive and resilient, and at the end of the day, more attractive to clients ^[22].

Research has analyzed sustainable leadership in several different settings, such as educational contexts and organizational structures ^[12]^[25]^[26]. The first sustainable leadership framework dates back to 2006 and was developed by Hargreaves and Fink who analyzed sustainable leadership at the organizational level in the educational sector. According to these authors ^[21], there are seven key characteristics of sustainable leadership (SL), which are listed below. According to these authors, sustainable leadership enables the nurturing of an educational context that promotes the interchange of opinions and ideas. According to these authors, sustainable leadership possesses a futuristic commitment to the powers that influence it and develops an educational environment of corporate multiplicity that stimulates the interchange of valuable opinions and effective exercises in societies of common learning and development ^[21]. The seven principles of sustainable leadership as presented by Hargreaves and Fink are listed below:

Sustainable leadership develops and maintains sustainable learning; it is a type of lasting learning that is based on learning about and caring for others.
Sustainable leadership ensures future success; this will be achieved through the effective transfer of sustainable leadership knowledge and skills from today’s to tomorrow’s leaders.
In complex corporate scenarios, it is extremely difficult for a leader to manage all problems without the support of other stakeholders such as members of the specific organization. Leadership must therefore be disseminated among all members of the company and adopt a more systemic type of approach.
Sustainable leadership focuses on social justice; it must not cause any type of environmental damage (i.e., both inside and outside of the organization).
Sustainable leadership must nurture and replenish human and financial resources rather than deplete them. This is very much aligned with the depletion of resources, a major potential risk for companies with regard to their survival.
Sustainable leadership creates an environmental mindset in the company. It identifies and rewards the leadership capacity of the company and its members. It has a creative and long-term vision to ensure the sustainability of the human and financial resources.
Sustainable leadership respects and builds on experience to find ways to create a better world.

Similarly, the authors Hargreaves and Fink (2006), Davies (2007), and Lambert (2011) also developed sustainable leadership frameworks at the organizational level in the education sector both in the United Kingdom and the United States ^[21]^[25]^[26]. According to Davies (2007), sustainable development entails key elements that determine the long-term development of the school. Such leadership is based on a moral purpose that provides success that is accessible to all. According to Lambert (2011), sustainable leadership necessitates the commitment at all levels of the organization to developing a culture in which leadership skills may be developed ^[26].

The Cambridge Institute of Sustainable Leadership—CISL ^[23] has developed a sustainable leadership model that is based on three main elements: (1) the internal and external leadership context; (2) the leader’s style, skills, traits, and knowledge; and (3) leadership actions. It could be argued that none of these characteristics apply exclusively to sustainable leadership; however, taken together, they can respond to the challenges of sustainability. According to Kouzes et al. (2007), good leaders should be honest, forward-looking, competent, inspiring, and intelligent, in addition to having the ability to be flexible and adapt to the specific context of the organization ^[27]. In this sense, a sustainable leader should also be concerned for the well-being of humanity and all forms of life.

In 2010, Casserley and Critchley developed a model that aimed at promoting sustainable leadership through the development of sustainable leaders, thereby not operating at the organization level but at the individual level. They described the performance of sustainable leaders as being based on three core elements: (1) reflection on action, (2) psychological intelligence, and (3) physiological well-being. These three elements would need to be accompanied by the engagement of the individuals to the culture of the organization. According to these authors, sustainable leaders were more likely to create sustainable organizations ^[10].

Avery and Bergsteiner (2011) developed a sustainable leadership model that is based on 23 key factors that underlie sustainable leadership, which, if undertaken together, will contribute over time to organizational performance improvement. Compared to Davies’ (2007) and Lambert’s (2011) models, Avery and Bergsteiner’s sustainable leadership framework has been applied to a more ample variety of contexts and not just the educational sector.

Avery and Bergsteiner’s (2011) framework divides organizations into two main categories, which are known as (1) “locust leadership” and (2) “honeybee leadership”. The locust leadership philosophy is very much based on the concept of making profit, and at the very extreme, of making profit at any cost, even if it involves harming the natural environment ^[22]. This philosophy can be summarized as being an attitude that one’s own advantage can be achieved only by making others suffer ^[22]. On the other hand, the honeybee leadership approach undertakes a “stakeholder-oriented, social and sharing approach to leadership… Honeybee leadership assumes that a company can be sustainable only if the basic needs of all stakeholders are considered” ^[12]. Moreover, it is more holistic in nature and is based on generating stakeholder value. This is again very much aligned with the seventeenth Sustainable Development Goal of the United Nations. Although the honeybee model has been found to be more sustainable and profitable in the long term, many companies still persist with the more conventional locust model, which is based on short-term evidence-lacking decision making ^[22]. Due to its more ample potential applicability, Avery and Bergsteiner’s framework will be used as a basis for the methodological approach undertaken.

3. Female Leadership in the Corporate and Public Sector

At present, women have scarce representation in management positions both in the private and public sectors in the Western world. Over the years, the participation of women in the workforce has increased considerably (i.e., in lower and medium level positions), which is a very positive result ^[28]; however, women are still poorly represented in higher positions. The European Commission (EC) has over the years developed a database on the participation of women in decision-making bodies so as to be able to analyze the evolution of the role of women in different sectors ^[16]. The corporate information included in these analyses carried out by the EC derives from data pertaining to major companies that are quoted on the stock markets of each country.

In 2016, the EC analyzed the presence of women in senior positions in some of the most important companies in Europe. It is possible to observe that the percentage of women in senior positions increased considerably between 2006 and 2016 in all countries; however, there are still marked differences between European countries, such as for example the percentage of senior positions held by women has reached 41% in Norway but only 9% in Greece. According to another European Commission report from 2013, the larger increases recorded in countries such as Norway and France are due to the fact that these countries have adopted binding legislation in this regard. As regards executive director or managing director roles, only 5% of these roles were held by women in 2016. More recent data from 2020 point out that women account for just 7.8% of Board Chairs and just 8.2% of CEO positions in the EU ^[29].

Women’s employment rates have reached historically high levels in the European Union (EU), and women are more than ever in leadership positions; however, considerable work still remains to be achieved to attain gender equality. The participation of women in the labor market is still lower than that of men in the EU, and their average pay is still circa 16% lower. Women rarely reach high managerial positions, with only 6.3% of CEO positions ^[29].

These figures on gender inequality clearly illustrate the necessity for the fifth Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), which is “to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls”. Researchers could extrapolate the following three specific targets ^[30]:

Target 5.1—End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere.
Target 5.5—Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision making in political, economic, and public life.
Target 5.c—Adopt and strengthen sound policies and enforceable legislation for the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls at all levels.

Gender equality is considered by authors Miotto and Milajoana-Alejandre ^[31] to be a multifactorial concept that is based on specific normative principles such as those of anti-poverty, anti-exploitation, and income equality, just to mention a few. Furthermore, it has been shown that the inclusion of women in corporate leadership positions leads to more diverse and inclusive management teams and improved intangible benefits such as those of reputation and legitimacy ^[31]. Furthermore, it is also linked to another basic concept, which is corporate social responsibility ^[32].

4. Female Leadership in Spain

The European Commission results expressed above may be surprising when researchers compare between different countries and consider that most recent graduates in Spain are women and that presently 45% of the Spanish workforce are women ^[33].

In Spain, the percentage of women in senior positions reached 20% in 2016, which is still under the European average of 23%. The leading public companies on which this information is based comprise the main index of the Spanish stock exchange, the Ibex 35 ^[34].

The Spanish Organic Law 3/2007 of 22 March 2007 sets out as a fundamental principle the equality of men and women and expressly mentions the participation of women on the boards of directors of mercantile companies, especially those that are obliged by law to publicly disclose their accounts. The idea behind this law was to increase the presence of women on the boards of directors of companies over the following years to reach parity in this respect between men and women. It must be noted, though, that there is no obligation in this law for companies to achieve such parity, there being no “must” element; it is left to best intentions or, perhaps, pressure from shareholders to achieve results.

Let people highlight that this law develops and applies the principle of equality between men and women, based on the absence of any direct/indirect discrimination due to gender. Furthermore, this law advocates a principle of equal treatment and opportunities between men and women in both the public and the private labor markets.

Unfortunately, as shown by the European figures, this regulation from 2007 does not seem to have been enforced. There are still several different obstacles that seem to hinder women’s professional development such as:

The difficulties faced by women in reconciling the obligations of their personal and professional lives ^[35].
In Spain, there are still a few companies that have a way of operating from years back when men worked outside and women inside the home. Some organizations are still more male-biased, in the sense that they make the professional progression of women to management positions more difficult ^[36].
Promotions to senior management positions are usually decided by and managed by those already in senior positions, and these are usually men who tend to select human resources from amongst their acquaintances or trustworthy contacts who also tend to be male.
Furthermore, overall, women often stay under the radar in the sense that they tend to focus more on just their own work than on building work-oriented and career-oriented personal relationships at work.

Specifically, in the logistics sector in Spain, women managers are not common, and the top management of logistics companies tend to be very largely male. According to a recent article from the Spanish online newspaper “El Mercantíl” dated from 6 March 2020, in a recent report, only 8.4% of managers in the logistics industry are women. Through time, the logistics sector has been very much thought of publicly as comprising only such stereotypically beefy activities as driving heavy trucks and heavy lifting and handling work in warehouses, but the growth of e-commerce, the automation of warehousing, and the advent of the digital transformation in recent years have created more and new opportunities for women in the logistics industry.

In this respect, the legislators have continued to edge companies towards gender equality through the so-called “equality plans”, which are mandatory as established in article 45.2 of Organic Law 3/2007 of 22 March, which strives towards equality between men and women.

There is therefore a clear need for the authorities to continue regulating and developing legal frameworks and regulations to promote gender equality and sustainable corporate practices as established by the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations ^[37].

Furthermore, gender equality and female leadership education in corporate environments should also be promoted. The Sustainable Development Goals consider education to be a priority for sustainable development, leading to inclusive and equitable opportunities for all. In this sense, education plays a critical role in assuring gender equality, particularly to help women attain managerial and leadership positions ^[38].

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