Title: The rise of women and their impact on firms' performance

Authors: Charbel Salloum; Georges Azzi; Catherine Mercier-Suissa; Stephanie Khalil

Addresses: USEK School of Business, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Lebanon ' USEK School of Business, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Lebanon ' IAE Lyon 3 School of Management, 6, cours Albert Thomas, BP 8242 – 69355, Lyon cedex 08, France ' Credit Libanais Bank SAL, Sofil Center, Charles Malek Avenue, P.O. Box 16-6729 – Ashrafieh, 1100 2811, Beirut, Lebanon

Abstract: This paper aims to understand how the presence of women in management positively affects firms' financial performance. In order to validate our hypotheses, we used a quantitative method to collect data and performed an inquiry by surveying the top 30 Lebanese firms. The results showed that the presence of women in management in Lebanon is not positively correlated with firms financial performance. Women occupying high managerial positions are most probably a member of the family owning the business, and therefore they are not directly concerned with the management of the business. Moreover, a large number of the surveyed females in our sample are married. Consequently, their priorities change, and they put their family before their career development.

Keywords: women managers; managerial structures; glass ceiling; financial performance; female managers; firm performance; Lebanon; family business; family firms; family priority; career development.

DOI: 10.1504/IJESB.2016.073976

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2016 Vol.27 No.2/3, pp.213 - 246

Received: 24 Dec 2014
Accepted: 10 Jan 2015
Published online: 31 Dec 2015 *

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