MIASU Research Seminar – 26 November – Saranzaya Manalsuren

Gendering Regimes in a Changing Society: A Qualitative Study of Women Managers in Post-Socialist Mongolia

Saranzaya Manalsuren (London South Bank University)

This research discusses the rapidly changing nature of Mongolian society and the implications for women managers. By employing Acker’s Inequality Regime theory, we demonstrate how Mongolian women’s employment identities are being (re)constructed through intersectional forces at the macro level. Competing and converging forces— traditional revivalism, socialist legacies, and free-market ideologies—shape the ideals of Mongolian women in post-socialist and neo-liberal contexts. Our research illustrates how inequality regimes adapt, adjust, and shapeshift to fit changing contexts. Through in-depth interviews with forty-one women managers, we examine their navigation of organisations characterised by deeply ingrained gendered cultures, processes, and practices (inequality regimes). This research uncovers the stark contrasts between the lived experiences of women and men in post-socialist, neo-liberal Mongolian organisations, particularly regarding management and leadership. Theoretically, this article extends Acker’s inequality regime theory to transitional peripheries, contributing to the limited scholarship in this area.