The Struggle to Succeed: A Phenomenological Study of Female Engineer Leaders in the Engineering Fiel

This qualitative, hermeneutic phenomenological research study explored the lived experiences of 20 female engineers with 10 or more years of experience in the engineering industry within Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia region. The survey instrument utilized consisted of 10 open-ended questions used in gathering detailed information from female engineers working in the engineering field. Ten of the participants occupied mid-level to upper-level leadership positions, and the other 10 were non-managers. The use of NVivo 10 software and a manual process of pattern identification aided the analysis of this study, and led to unveiling the six major premises of female engineer underrepresentation in leadership within the engineering industry: stereotyping, stigmatization, gender bias, sex discrimination, role misconceptions, and typecasting. Also, the research findings revealed these success factors -- networking, good communication, confidence, hard work, and self-development. The study affirmed that underrepresentation of female engineers in the engineering field is an ongoing issue demanding immediate resolution. Some of the solutions that would help to mitigate this issue lie within the efforts that organizations could offer to promote the awareness of female underrepresentation and contribute to warring against its continuity. Individuals (both males and females) in the engineering field should also be willing to confront the situation until success is achieved. Future research opportunity recommendations include further exploration of female engineers' rate of success in leadership roles in female-led organizations traditionally dominated by men when compared to their male counterparts.