Vägen mot jämställdhet. En studie om hur rekryteringsföretag arbetar med jämställdhet

Abstract

The following essay investigates how Swedish recruitment agencies work with gender equality when they are recruiting for leader positions. It also investigates how the recruitment process was perceived from the perspective of the female candidate who was later elected for the job. By interviewing one person in charge of recruitment from three different agencies and two women who have been recruited through these agencies, the essay aims to describe how recruitment agencies work with gender equality based on the obstacles visible within the industry, and how the recruiting process is perceived from a female perspective. By analysing the results from the interviews with theory based on the connection between leadership and manliness and homosociality, it shows that all agencies work continuously with the problem of gender inequality in higher positions. The most apparent obstacles they see are that fewer women seek a leader position and that it is hard to find the right competence for a leader position in an industry which, historically, has been dominated by a certain gender. The female leaders also claimed that the view on leadership is different depending on gender which creates obstacles for women. The recruitment agencies try to work with these obstacles by challenging the thoughts of their customers, their own prejudice and by working together with their candidates to help them realise their true potential.