Asadian, E; Azeez, S; Leicht, R M and Asadi, S (2024) Exploring the barriers to women in construction and the opportunities presented through lean. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 150(5): 04024029, ISSN 0733-9364
Abstract
Construction remains a male-dominated industry, with women underrepresented both numerically and hierarchically. However, the growing shortage of construction professionals and skilled workers can be addressed by engaging more women in the industry. The present study sought to answer two research questions: "What are the major barriers hindering the participation of women in construction?"and "Is there any relationship between lean implementation and overcoming these barriers?"The study investigated women's challenges and the relationship with Lean principles through a literature review and expert interviews. Two pillars of Lean, Continuous Improvement and Respect for People, were identified as potential mechanisms to support female practitioners, helping to eliminate the barriers identified. The study conducted 27 semistructured interviews to collect data on Lean benefits and their impact on gender diversity. Findings indicate that Lean provides team-related benefits, such as a psychologically safe and respectful environment, transparency, diversity, and inclusion, helping women build positive career experiences.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | gender diversity; lean culture; women's careers |
| Index terms: | women, construction professional, transparency, implementation, skilled worker, continuous improvement, practitioner, career, respect for people, interview, lean construction, literature review |
| Subjects: | management, performance measurement, professional development, building construction, sociology, data collection methods, practitioner, ethical practice, contractual arrangements, data analysis and analytics |
| Topics: | Procurement, Roles and Professions, Research Practice, Information Management, Site Management, Human Resources, Quality Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here