Maranda Ridgway

While there has been an increase of women in the workplace, why do they remain underrepresented at the senior level, even in women‐dominated occupations such as Human Resources (HRs)? This article examines gendered wording in UK HR job adverts and the extent to which job adverts are a gendered practice contributing to women's underrepresentation in senior roles—even within a women‐dominated profession. We analysed 158 HR job adverts to identify the use of gendered language, traits and behaviours, equality, diversity, and inclusivity (EDI), and flexible working practices. Findings show that as the salary or title seniority increases, the proportion of masculine words in the job adverts increases, the prevalence of EDI statements, and flexible working practices decreases. We theorise how job adverts are a hidden gendered barrier to women's progress in HR, contributing to the (re)production of patriarchy, the masculine discourse of leadership and a negative cycle sustaining hierarchical segregation where men dominate in senior roles. HR is not leading by example in reducing systemic inequality practices and is complicit in reinforcing gender stereotypes.

This article presents our “multi‐vocal memory work” of collaborative researching and writing experiences as women academics in UK Business Schools. Set against the backdrop of the broken neoliberal academy, we use Daoism as an analytical lens to identify two emergent themes: 1) emotional contradictions and 2) institutional and social structures: micro‐creative and collective change. Examining ourselves and the academy as broken, we learn to find beauty in the flaws as they signify healing. Thus, sharing our emotions and vulnerability through collective research and writing enables us to “put ourselves back together.” Methodologically, we draw on memory work to explore different ways of researching and writing. We argue that there is emergent hope in identifying and raising the profile of growing spaces within the academy for alternative forms of writing.