Exploring authentic leadership in the context of women's retention and advancement in small- to medium-sized public accounting firms

摘要

Although the literature has suggested implanting strong leadership programs in public accounting, as well as the need for a new theoretical construct of authentic leadership related to auditing, there has been no research that considers the influence that authentic leadership theory practiced by supervising partners may have on women's advancement and retention. This study sought to explore that gap in the research. To understand how partners practice authentic leadership and how it influences female accountant's retention and advancement in their firms, two main research questions qualitatively sought to explore this process via phenomenological and constructivist grounded theory methodologies. Through these methodological explorations, the lived experiences of five supervising partners and five women in public accounting firms throughout Southern California were purposively explored through homogenous sampling. Pertinent to the findings of this study, rich theory emerged through in-depth interviews of the study's participants revealing the following five emergent themes that impacted the advancement and retention of women accountants employed in their respective firms: (a) self-identifying with their profession and valuing their relationships, (b) practicing transparency and objective communication, (c) experiencing transparency in leadership, (d) honest and fair professional development, and (e) experiencing the acceptance of new things. Additionally, implications and recommendations were presented based on the present study's findings for both practitioners and academicians, including areas that could be considered for future research.