Impact of Glass Ceiling on Career Development of Women: A Study of Women Branch Managers in State Owned Commercial Banks in Sri Lanka

This study is mainly focused on the impact of glass ceiling on career development of women branch managers in state Commercial Banks in Sri Lanka. The research problem addressed under this study is to identify the impact of glass ceiling on career development of women branch managers in state commercial banks in Sri Lanka. The data were collected from a randomly selected sample of 100 women branch managers in state commercial banks in Sri Lanka with a structured questionnaire which consisted of 28 questions with five point likert scales. Data was analyzed using correlation and regression analysis with the SPSS (16.0 Version) and the results were derived. The major finding of the study revealed that there was a negative relationship between corporate practices with women career development, family commitment with women career development, stereotypes about women with women career development. Then, there was a negative impact of glass ceiling on career development of women branch managers. More opportunities of training and development, organizational support such as mentoring, networking and flexible working hours should be provided by companies to develop women in the company. Keywords: Glass Ceiling, Career Development, Corporate Practices, Family Commitment, Stereotypes about Wome