Abstract

Purpose – This article analyses the ways the textual materials of job
advertisements do the gendering for prospective expert positions and create a space
for ambiquity/non-ambiquity in the gender labelling of this expertise. Expert positions
are almost always openly announced and are important to organizations because
they very often lead to higher managerial positions. By gendering the
prospective positions, the job advertisements bring forth repertoires
strengthening the gendering of work and gendered expert employee positions.

Design/methodology/approach – This study draws on qualitative
textual and visual data of open job advertisements for expert positions. The
materials of the study are gathered from open job advertisements in two
countries with rather similar labour market structures in relation to gender
positions but differing  as regards their
gender equality.

Findings – The analyses show that the gendering of expert work takes
place in the job advertisements by rendering subtly gendered articulations, yet
allowing for interpretative repertoires appear. The analysis reveals some
differences in the formulations of the advertisements for expert jobs in the
two countries. It also shows that in general the requirements for an ideal
expert candidate are coated with superlatives that are gendered in rather
stereotypical ways, and that the ideal candidates for highly expert jobs are
extremely flexible and follows the ideal of an adaptable and plastic employee,
willing to work their utmost. The article contributes to the ‘doing gender’ literature
by adding an analysis of the textual gendering of ideal candidates for
positions of expertise.

Research limitations/implications – The research materials do not expose
all the issues pertinent to questions of the ideal gendered candidate. For
instance, questions of ethnicity in relation to the definition of the ideal
candidate cannot be studied with the data used for this study. Being an
exploratory study, the results do not aim for generalisable results concerning
job advertisements for expert positions.

Originality/value – This article contributes to the
‘doing gender’ and ‘gendering’ literature by addressing the question of how and
in what ways gender is defined and done for an expert positions prior the
candidates are chosen to those jobs. The article offers new insights into the
global construction of gendered expert jobs advertisements by addressing the
topic with data from two countries. The article further contributes to understanding
the gendered shaping of expertise in the management literature.

Keywords – Job advertisements, ideal candidacy, doing gender, expert position,
Finland, Estonia