What Good Management Looks, Feels, and Sounds Like for Women of Color Workers in Corporate America

In recent years, there has been increased attention to the fact that most organizational systems, processes, and spaces in the United States have been historically developed through a Eurocentric framework.

In corporate America, women and men of color often enter predominantly Euro-American spaces where their unique support needs have been overlooked. Assuming organizations are race-neutral ignores the need for tailored resources and wrongly implies that only people of color face racial issues, masking how white people hold power. A key missing support is tailored leadership. McKinsey and Lean In (2021) report that women of color are less likely than their peers to have managers who advocate for their work, assist with organizational politics, or socialize outside work.

This study further articulates an often unconscious yet pervasive reason for this lack of support, noting that: When looking for employees to sponsor, most executives apply the same rules we use when seeking out new friends: they search for people like them, with similar life experiences. In effect, the presence of affinity bias contributes to the inequitable support women of color receive from managers in the workplace.

Skillsoft’s report (as cited in Riseley, 2020) shows a sharp rise in demand for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training: a 367% increase in DEI courses, 1,200% more completions of “Understanding Unconscious Bias,” and a 407% rise in “Trust Building Through Effective Communication.” This growth highlights a significant knowledge gap that employees are actively seeking to close.

It is a well-timed eagerness. Forbes (Corbett, 2022) reports that 1 in 5 Americans is a woman of color, and by 2060, they will comprise the majority of all women in the U.S. This demographic shift will impact corporate America’s workforce, reflecting growing racial and ethnic diversity.

Moreover, a 2018 study by the Network of Executive Women, Advancing all Women: How Women of Color Experience the Workplace found that women of color identify two key factors influencing their intent to stay: a sense of belonging and satisfaction with achieving long-term career goals (as cited in Alter, 2018, p. 88). These retention factors offer explicit insight that has often been overlooked historically.

Direct managers play a key role in these outcomes. Earlier studies identify factors predicting retention of women of color, including manager relationships, management’s role in diversity efforts, and workplace openness (Baldiga, 2005). If companies want to retain women of color, they will need to take deliberate action.

Minda Harts of The Memo LLC reports that Black women are the fastest-growing group of women entrepreneurs, increasing by over 600% from 1997 to 2017 (Connley, 2020). Deepa Purushothaman, author of The First, the Few, the Only (2022), notes that a 2021 study found two-thirds of women of color considered leaving their roles within 12 months.

Gallup’s State of the American Manager Report shows that managers account for 70% of the variance in employee engagement and 50% of employees who leave do so because of their manager (Beck & Harter, 2015). Effective management of diverse identities is critical today. A one-size-fits-all leadership approach hinders equity by failing to meet individual needs. Barriers for women of color differ from those for white women and men of color, including microaggressions, double standards, and unconscious bias (Washington & Roberts, 2019). McKinsey and Lean In (2021) report that while many companies address hiring bias, few apply these practices to reviews. Only 65% track promotion rates by gender, and 35% track promotions for women of color, revealing a lack of intentional, ongoing support for their unique needs.

This research also addresses the workplace challenges women of color experience when they are both the only woman in a room and the only person of their race, stating that as a result of these dual identity factors, they face more bias, discrimination, and pressure to perform, and are more likely to experience burnout. The study more specifically highlights increased challenges to competence. The heightened experience of disrespectful and “othering” behavior they encounter for their double-jeopardy identities, including being interrupted more often than others, having their judgment questioned in their area of expertise, and hearing others express surprise at their language skills or other abilities, to name a few. (McKinsey & Lean In, 2021)

In light of these findings, this research explores the management approaches needed to support women of color in overcoming structural and interpersonal barriers to equity in the workplace.

Research Objective and Approach

The purpose of this research is to explore what good management looks, feels, and sounds like for women of color knowledge workers in corporate America. It aims to investigate best practices for managing women of color, given the limited research on the topic.

The research questions that guided this inquiry were organized around the themes: What does good management look, feel, and sound like for women of color, and what do women of color believe a leadership framework tailored to their experiences should entail.

Implications of This Research

Understanding how to manage this diverse workforce benefits organizations in various ways as the workforce becomes increasingly diverse. For example, Betz (2022) highlighted in the State of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Tech that companies promoting diversity consistently achieve 2.3 times higher cash flow per employee, and that diverse management leads to a 19% increase in revenue. Moreover, companies with high gender diversity tend to create greater value. The study also indicates that diverse teams are better at capturing new markets and making effective decisions.

This study’s findings have implications for organizations and managers aiming to improve support for women of color, increasing retention and upward mobility. In the context of a more diverse U.S. workforce and global economy, the benefits of supporting diversity include a competitive advantage, a stronger bottom line, a better ability to attract candidates, greater employee satisfaction and loyalty, and improved performance (McCuiston et al., 2004).

This research seeks to foster focused dialogue on the support managers should provide women of color in the workplace. With better leadership support, women of color may remain with organizations and advance to senior leadership. More women of color in leadership may inspire the next generation and create a workforce that better reflects society. McKinsey and Lean In (2020) reported in The State of Black Women in Corporate America that, among those aspiring to be top executives, black women are 50% more likely than men to be motivated to serve as role models.

As the field of organization development (OD) continues to evolve and impact systems, processes, and frameworks to increase organizational effectiveness, it will be critical to center on inclusion. According to a 2022 workplace trends forecasting article in the Harvard Business Review (HBR), fairness and equity will be the defining issues for organizations. According to an analysis of S&P 500 earnings calls, the frequency with which CEOs talk about issues of equity, fairness, and inclusion on these calls has increased by 658% since 2018" (Kropp & McRae, 2022). OD is already taking steps toward this end, focusing on supporting systemic organizational culture change to develop capacity for inclusion. Understanding how effective leadership might look different for women of color would allow OD to further support leaders, to have a significant impact on this population and, therefore, on the landscape of Corporate America as a whole.

Organization of the Study

The next chapter explores the literature on the origins and evolution of management and leadership sciences, as well as the place (or lack thereof) of women of color within these frameworks. Subsequently, we introduce the research methodology, including research sampling, data collection, and analysis procedures, before presenting the results of the data collection and analysis. Interpretations of the results, study limitations, and opportunities for future research are discussed in the closing chapter.

Literature Review

History and Evolution of Management

To understand current leadership gaps, it is essential to trace the origins of present-day management systems and for whom they were designed. The dominant discourse stems from the early 1900s work of Frederick Taylor, Henri Fayol, and Max Weber. Their foundational contributions—Scientific Management, the 14 Principles of Management, and Bureaucracy, respectively—were designed primarily for the industrial era, utilizing a white male workforce (Bacud, 2020).

In the 1900s, women were largely still considered homemakers. The societal ideal placed women in the home, while men occupied the workplace. While white women who entered the workforce often did so temporarily in "casual roles. In contrast, " Black women were much more likely to be gainfully employed outside the home, even when married (Nkomo & Smith, 2021, p. 103).

Due to pervasive gender and race segregation, managerial positions and primary sectors’ jobs were reserved for white males. This structural reality meant the early scientific management theories were naturally developed by and for white male workers, reinforcing the idea that women lacked the necessary managerial skills (Nkomo & Smith, 2021, p. 104).

While early theories are not wholly irrelevant, the specific needs of women of color have rarely been explicitly considered in the evolution of management best practices. For instance, Fayol’s “scalar chain” (line of authority) principle structurally disadvantages this group of active workers who occupy only 4% of C-Suite roles compared to 62% for white men (McKinsey & Lean In, 2021).

Shifts and Continued Gaps

The field of management has evolved over the years through three main eras: scientific management from 1910 to the late 1920s; human relations from the late 1920s to 1959; and behavioral management science from 1960 to the present day. Although management practices have constantly evolved over the years, they cannot be separated entirely and definitively from their origins.

Women have contributed to management and leadership theory over the years; however, their contributions have often been less recognized and rarely included women of color. Women like Lillian Gilbreth contributed to the same era of ‘machine view’ of management as mentioned above but with a person-first philosophy. Mary Parker Follett identified that the key to managerial success was related to individuals and their feelings (Stead, 2001, p. 33). Jane Mouton, an American management theorist later contributed to the Managerial Grid, focusing on balancing task- and person-centered leadership, highlighting opportunities for managerial development. More recently, women of color have also contributed to shaping the way forward. One such example is Elsie Cross (1996), who helped pave the way in the field of diversity by advocating for more inclusive and tolerant practices.

Despite these contributions, the management discourse has mainly remained white-centric. Scholars note that women in management research often implicitly focuses on white women, frequently ignoring intersectional issues such as racism, class, and sexuality (Betters-Reed & Moore, 1992). Without continued intentional exploration of this topic, there is a risk of simply replacing Euro-American male dominance with Euro-American female dominance (Chin et al., 2007).

Organizational Barriers and Workplace Invisibility

White women’s needs have in fact often differed from the needs of marginalized groups such as women of color. Whereas many white feminists desired the right to work, women of color had always worked and instead were more concerned with access to improved working conditions and greater opportunities (Holvino, 2010).

Unfortunately, most American businesses and their organizational systems are not designed for heterogeneity, but rather for homogeneity. (Betters- Reed & Moore, 1992, p. 40). Unsurprisingly, this lens of homogeneity largely neglects to explore intersectional experiences. Women of color, who belong to more than one ‘minority’ group, become intersectionally invisible (Purdie-Vaughns & Eibach, 2008). As such, their input on workplace structures and processes has been minimal or negligible.

Women of color often grapple with conflicting aspects of their identities. As Karambayya noted (1997, p. 893), they are often faced with explicit or implicit choices between expressing their interests in terms of their gender or in terms of their race, knowing that conflicts between the two sets of interests hold them to a much higher standard. According to Washington and Roberts (2019), they are often left out of the informal networks that propel most high potentials forward in their careers. (p. 3). The underrepresentation of women of color in professional occupations persists and contributes to this uneven support (Wingfield, 2020).

Partly due to a modern prejudice known as aversive racism, well-meaning white individuals endorse egalitarian values but discriminate in subtle, rationalizable ways, often unconsciously (Dovidio & Gaertner, 2000). This disconnect is evident in the differing priorities between women of color and white employees regarding effective allyship. According to McKinsey & Lean In (2021) findings in Women in the Workplace, white employees do not fully understand what allyship is and the authors conclude that there is a notable disconnect between the allyship actions women of color say are most meaningful and the actions white employees prioritize.

Additionally, in times of crisis, research shows women and women of color are more likely to be chosen to lead (Jang & Bailes, 2025; Ryan & Haslam, 2007). For members of underrepresented groups, such as women of color, climbing the corporate ladder with hopes of career advancement also comes with a ‘risk tax’. Not performing well might mean there is no second chance, while performing well could mean additional pressure to continue to prove oneself (Oakes, 2022).

Exploring Good Management for Women of Color

Corporate America has learned that to train its future leaders, it must provide leadership models. However, many models do not fit the needs of a diverse corporate America" (Chin et al., 2007, p. 236). The moral and economic rationale for effectively supporting women of color is unambiguous. Women of color are projected to become the majority of the U.S. female workforce by 2060 (Pace, 2018).

Further, hiring, promoting, and retaining women of color is good for business. A 2020 McKinsey study (cited by Lytle, 2022) found that companies with ethnically diverse executive teams were 36% more likely to have above-average profits than non-diverse teams, and that feelings of belonging and belief in their ability to achieve their long-term career goals are strong and positive retention factors. (Alter, 2018).

As the literature highlights, there is no blanket interpretation of such complex issues. This study aims more modestly to provide initial material to sustain further research by asking women of color workers what good management looks, sounds, and feels like, acknowledging that the demographic is not homogeneous.

Research Design and Methodology

Study Purpose and Research Questions

This research aims to explore the characteristics, behaviors, and communication styles that women of color in Corporate America expect and consider essential for effective management. From the previous review of the literature, this researcher developed a survey containing the following questions: What do women of color envision good management to look, feel, and sound like? Additionally, what key elements do they believe should be included in a leadership framework tailored to their experiences?

While there is an increasing body of scholarly work focusing on what is necessary for women of color to advance into senior leadership positions, there remains a relative lack of research on how effective leadership is in their daily work environments.

Research Design

This study employs a qualitative phenomenological design to explore the perspectives and lived experiences of women of color regarding good management. The subjective nature of the question lends itself to a qualitative approach following an initial, in-depth exploration into participants’ experiences, perceptions, and ideals.

Sampling and Participants

A purposive sampling process was used, leveraging a convenience sample recommended by individuals known to the researcher according to the research objective: what does good management look, feel and sound like for women of color?; What do women of color believe a leadership framework for women of color should entail?

The potential participants were contacted by email explaining the research purpose and demographic criteria for participation: They needed to identify as women of color, be knowledge workers working for a U.S. organization on a full-time basis; be at least 19 years of age; have at least 1 year of full time work experience and either reporting directly to a manager at the time of participation in the study or have reported directly to a manager in the past.

Sample Size

Eight participants met the criteria, completed a demographic questionnaire, and signed a consent form. They represented diverse industries, including public relations, communications, human resources, and sales.

Collection and Analysis of Data

Administration

The interview script was specifically designed to address the two research questions. Eight interviews, lasting approximately 30–60 minutes each, were conducted via recorded Zoom video calls. The researcher ensured the interview data was confidential and the recording stored securely.

Data Analysis

Once interviews were completed, audio files were transcribed and uploaded for analysis in NVivo, a qualitative data analysis software. The data was coded by categorizing similar responses to find emergent themes. To address researcher bias in the coding process, participant file names were anonymized.

Results

Participants represented a range of ethnicities (3 Mexican American or Hispanic, 3 Black American, and 2 Asian American and had an average of 8 years of experience reporting to direct managers (range: 4–20 years). They reported having an average of 5 direct managers over the course of their careers (range: 3–10).

Research Question 1: The Experience of Good Management

Data analysis for this question drew from participants’ responses to interview questions focusing on their best managerial experiences.

What Good Management Looks Like for Women of Color

The most common theme encapsulating what good management looks like for women of color was advocacy and the creation of opportunities, which came up 27 times in the interviews.

Participants valued managers who proactively advocated for them to support their engagement and career trajectories. The absence of consistent advocacy resulted in adverse effects.

The next most common themes that emerged were being authentic and genuine, which came up 9 times. Managers being “real” and avoiding “corporate talk” was validated, allowing women of color to maintain their voice and identity in the workplace.

Accountability, competence, and reliability came up nine times in the results, demonstrating that responsibility and skill were also highly regarded.

What Good Management Sounds Like for Women of Color

The most common theme that emerged regarding what good management sounds like for women of color came up 26 times in the results. Balanced feedback increased confidence and allowed respondents to pursue their strengths without fear of failure. Conversely, a lack of evolving coaching was described as feeling “grown out of my manager.”

Managers believing in their employees’ potential came up 11 times in the results. Acknowledgement of work and effort, consistent and explicit support, increased confidence, and enabled risk-taking. Tones described as “friendly,” “very conversational, very real” appeared in 11 instances, demonstrating the value of clear expectations and of openly sharing relevant information about the business.

What Good Management Feels Like for Women of Color

The most common theme that emerged regarding what good management feels like for women of color was being seen as a whole person, which came up 32 times in the results. Emotionally intelligent and relationship-driven managers, who took a genuine interest in their employees as people first, left a positive impact on the respondents. A respondent summed up: having a good balance of both being inclusive, being mindful of people first get the job done.

Feeling trusted and valued came up 17 times in the results. This manifested when managers relied on them with larger assignments and avoided constant checking in. Trust was also reflected in how feedback was shared.

Participants appreciated managers who were flexible, understanding, and who created a safe space to make mistakes and correct as they went along.

Elements of a Framework for Leading Women of Color

Research Question 2 asked what women of color believe a leadership framework for women of color should entail.

The most common characteristic of a good leader for women of color that emerged in this study was the ability to create a safe and compassionate space. This came up 25 times in the results, highlighting the need for a secure environment.

The next most prevalent characteristic of a good leader for women of color, which came up 13 times in the results, was being smart and competent in their overall job responsibilities.

Another significant characteristic of a good leader that emerged from the interviews was someone to be learned from. It came up 11 times in the results. Similarly, a manager who is present, listens, and takes action came up 11 times in the results.

Advocacy, creating opportunities and removing barriers, and allowing room for errors were also items that appeared 9 times in the results, while continuous learning and self-improvement were mentioned 7 times. A manager who takes feedback well, is open to constructive criticism, recognizes where they might be limited in their expertise, and builds confidence and trust.

Summary

Regarding managerial expectations, the data analysis identified clear, well-defined key themes common to all participants: advocacy, creating opportunities, authenticity and accountability, competence, reliability, and transparency.

On an individual level, feedbacks focused on development, respectful support, being recognized as a whole person, trust, and opportunities for improvement.

Research question 2 further identified themes including creating a safe, compassionate environment; learning from capable, knowledgeable leaders; advocating for employees; creating opportunities; and removing barriers.

Given the chance, participants showed a strong willingness to contribute positively to their work environment.

Discussion and Conclusion

The results of this study offer valuable insights into what women of color knowledge workers in corporate America experience and identify as characteristics of good management.

Key Findings

The interview data revealed four primary findings: women of color seek greater professional and personal visibility in the workplace through managerial support; they value learning and growth opportunities provided by managers; and they experience increased empowerment when trusted by their managers. Several participants indicated that clarity in expectations and a defined understanding of success motivated their commitment to the company, as Stead (2001) already pointed out.

A second finding highlighted value opportunities for learning and growth through balanced feedback, sharing insights into the actual effectiveness of the employee performance, suggestions for improvement, and the preference for managers who are highly competent, results-oriented, experts in their field, and who practice continuous self-learning (Holvino, 2010).

A third finding that surfaced from the results is the importance of gaining their managers’ trust. Consequently, being free to make mistakes and knowing they will continue to be supported made the participants feel more engaged in their work as noted earlier by Alter (2018, p. 2)

Participants also valued managers who demonstrated vulnerability and authenticity by sharing their own challenges. As one respondent offered: self-awareness, honesty, and willingness to admit when they made a mistake or when they made a bad call contribute to trust and mutual support.

Having a shared identity didn’t seem to be a critical criterion for identifying good managers. While respondents shared that they might appreciate having at least one identity in common with their manager, such as gender, this was neither a requirement nor a criterion against which they judged the effectiveness of their own managers.

It might, in part, be due to a lack of experience with managers who matched their identities. While there was no emergent theme around the necessity of a direct identity-match for women of color to experience good management, these responses did further highlight the much-researched need for more women of color in leadership

Implications of This Research

What women of color expect from an effective leader on a day-to-day basis is a relatively under-researched topic. From a larger perspective, this research limited scope aimed to add to the dialogue around this topic, as women of color as a population are on the rise in the U.S., and this will likely be reflected in the workforce (Pace, 2018).

Women of color have historically been unheard and unseen in corporate America, or intersectionality invisible. The proven link between ethnic diversity in executive teams and organizational objectives makes understanding how to support and retain this population a business imperative. As mentioned earlier, managers account for at least 70% of the variance in employee engagement, and 50% of employees who leave do so because of their manager (Beck & Harter, 2015).

Recommendations for Practice

A finding recurring in most interviews suggest that advocacy and allyship may be a promising first step to a better integration of women of color in the larger workforce. Managers would benefit from revisiting their definitions of allyship and recognizing that there may be a disconnect between what they deem to be beneficial advocacy and what women of color actually perceive as impactful advocacy.

Organizations that want to create supportive and inclusive environments for women of color should consider creating supportive and inclusive structures and policies. Acknowledging that intentionality without concrete action does not suffice to counteract the effect of aversive racism. Such curriculum, part of leadership development programs may better equip leaders having to manage diverse populations. It might include how to engage in productive dialogue to understand the needs of their employees, and consider their personal individuality in addition to their work responsibilities.

Study Limitations

This study has several limitations

First, the survey utilized a small sample of eight participants, limiting the generalizability of the findings.

Additionally, although interviewees represented several ethnicities to provide a broader view of women of color, the experiences of women of color as a whole cannot be homogenized.

Additionally, this researcher’s own biases and experiences as a woman of color knowledge worker in Corporate America may have influenced the observation, thematic analysis, and literature emphasized in this study.

Suggestions for Additional Research

While this study provided accurate findings on an under-researched topic, a larger, more diverse sample is needed. Future research on this topic might further specify demographics to gain a deeper understanding of how women of color across different ethnicities experience effective management.

Additionally, exploring discrepancies in management practices across different corporate industries could be valuable, and comparing the experiences of women of color who share varying aspects of identity with their managers versus those who do not will help understand any potential impact on perceived managerial effectiveness and career outcomes.

Beyond the direct implication of this research, one outstanding question remains: if leaders better understand and are equipped to manage, coach, and hear women of color more effectively, how do women of color then participate in and benefit from the opportunities this would create? What would women of color need to unlearn or be prepared to tap into?