The impact of menopause on women leaders in Higher Education: A Strengths Approach

A qualitative, embedded case study that used a Strengths Approach (McCashen, 2017) theoretical and methodological framework is presented. The study explores the instance and impacts of menopause symptoms on the well-being and success of a small group of women leaders (including the author) in a regional Australian university setting. Menopause occurs at the age when executive leadership career opportunities are at a peak for women in the Higher Education sector, yet it remains a largely hidden, ‘taboo’ subject in the academic workplace. Literature reveals not only significant medical impacts on menopausal women but also broader social and work related impacts on women, their colleagues and employers. Strengths-based case study research was used as a collaborative rather than expert-led approach. Multiple stakeholder perspectives were examined with participants reflecting on their ‘lived experiences’ and recording the rich contexts in which they were embedded. Data collection methods for the case study, included informal qualitative face-to-face interviews and conversational electronic semi-structured interviews. Thematic and strengths-based analysis was used iteratively to reveal pertinent themes, strengths and solutions arising from the stakeholder data. Significant menopausal symptoms and impacts were experienced by the academic leaders. Symptoms included menopausal insomnia, vasomotor symptoms of hot flushes and night sweats, fatigue, anxiety, poor concentration, memory loss and anxiety. There was a significant relationship between symptoms and expressed negative impacts on work performance. Participants recorded feeling stressed, over worked, missing deadlines, increasing their use of sick leave, feeling a lack of capacity/energy for work tasks and lacked confidence or were overlooked in applying for promotions or new roles. Positive strategies that assisted with menopause included supervisor awareness of menopause impacts, a newly introduced leave category for menopause, and acknowledgement of menopause as a limiting equal employment factor in the promotions process. These small scale case study findings have understandable limitations in that results are not easily replicable or suitable to make universal conclusions or recommendations. Nevertheless, this contextual, small scale study generated in-depth and insightful individualised responses that contribute to increased understanding of the impacts of menopause in the workplace.