Mentorship as a retention stratefy for female engineers in the oil industry in South Africa

Abstract

Orientation: There remain significant challenges to gender equality in the engineering industry. Female engineers in South Africa are still in the minority and are facing challenges that affect their retention levels. Research Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate, through the experiences of female engineers, whether mentorship could be used as a strategy to retain more females in the South African engineering industry. Motivation for the study: The aim of this study was to understand why the gender gap persists, by analysing the experiences of females in the oil industry. The study sought to ascertain whether mentorship could be used as an instrument to attract and retain women in this industry in South Africa. Research approach/design and method: The qualitative study was exploratory in nature. The data was collected in the form of in-depth focus groups and analysed through thematic analysis. Main findings: This study concluded that there were still explicit and implicit organizational practices in the engineering industry which were discriminatory towards females. Females were finding coping mechanisms, such as mentoring, to navigate these biased organizational practices. Female engineers utilised mentoring to try to find a work life balance, to advance their careers, to gauge a firmer technical understanding of the industry and for support, however it did not always lead to retention in the industry. Gender did not have any influence on the effectiveness of the mentoring relationship, however females would recommend having more female mentors to speak to regarding female specific issues. Practical/managerial implications: The findings will be used to guide organizations on how to implement mentorship initiatives into their organizational policies in order to attract and retain female talent in the organization. It can also be used to create general awareness in the industry around how they can support and motivate women in the industry. Contribution: This study is part of the body of knowledge which is directed towards evaluating how to improve the gender disparity in previously classified male dominated careers and to retain females in these occupations.