Gendered Innovation. A qualitative study investigating gender diversity within innovation.

Abstract

Despite the increasing interest in how individuals and organisations interact in research on innovation, there has been little focus on how these interactions create and maintain specific gender dynamics throughout the innovation process. This paper investigates the social construction of the organisational ideal of an innovator through a qualitative case study at a large for-profit organisation. The data is based on 18 interviews as well as observations in order to capture gendered practices within innovation. Two main findings, being competent and being social, are found to be of importance for a worker to be successful in their job. The paper further explores the complexities of navigating organisational life as an innovation worker by highlighting the gendered implications of meritocracy and the assumption that people have equal opportunities, which we refer to as gender neutral assumptions. Moreover, it elaborates on how inclusive and excluding practices shape a gendered ideal. This study contributes towards the understanding of gendered innovation by highlighting the ever-changing and complex nature of how the ‘doings’ and ‘undoings’ of femininities and masculinities are formed and reshaped through innovation practices.