How can women reach higher-level positions: Implications for policy makers : A study of Swedish municipalities

Sweden possess the forth place as the most gender equal country in the world (World Economic Forum, 2013). But when it comes to women in higher-level positions, Sweden ends up below the European mean (European Commission, Justice, 2011). How can this be? And more importantly, how can Sweden work to attain gender equality in higher-level positions in the future? Why this gap exists in Sweden and how to reduce it is in need of further investigation and research. The thesis aims to investigate why men keep dominating higher- level positions within organisations in Sweden. A focus has been put on municipalities and their extensive work for gender equality. The thesis will address the extensive work Swedish municipalities have done within gender equality and why they are relatively equal when it comes to gender equality in higher- level positions. Further on it will provide a general understanding of their successful work and how it can be useful in other organisations. Additionally, it will be investigated how this extensive gender equality work, with a primary focus on gender equality policies and plans, and other regulations can help women reach and keep the higher-level positions in an organisation. A qualitative research approach has been used for this research. The primary data was collected through in-depth semi- structured interviews with five Swedish municipalities. The data was later analysed through qualitative data analysis. In conclusion, the most successful factors to include when working towards a gender equal workplace and encouraging more females to aim for higher-level positions are extensive work with gender equality policies and plans, including changes in the recruitment process together with providing options of how to allocate your working hours. This to open up for equal opportunities, excluding gender based prejudices, for those individuals who have the right competence and are interested in possessing a higher-level position in an organisation.