Rodrigues, Filipa RochaHummer, Eva-Maria2025-09-022025-01-302024-12-15http://hdl.handle.net/10362/187367Women are underrepresented in leadership roles in Germany's consulting industry. This thesis examines the factors influencing their pursuit of these roles across career stages through qualitative interviews with 40 women from various consulting firms, using the GIOIA methodology. Four dimensions emerged: societal factors, individual drivers, organizational context, and relational influence. Early-career leadership access depends on elite education and financial support, while mid-career aspirations decline due to firm-specific flexibility barriers. Gendered networking norms and a scarcity of female role models hinder leadership development and expectations. These findings reveal barriers to gender parity and provide a foundation for driving change.engWomen in leadershipConsulting firmsCareer stagesLeadership pursuitQualitative researchGIOIA methodologymaster thesis203990722