Bangladesh has faced a progressive change in female labour force participation which has undoubtedly boosted the economy of Bangladesh along with social reform. The female labour force activity rate rose from 26 percent in 2003 to 36 percent in 2016 due to rapid industrialization, especially in export-leading garment industry initiatives, and micro financing in farming in women-led micro businesses Nevertheless, there exists significant complexity and inequality of gender equality by retaining cultural roles and poor institutional support and workplace leadership. Role of Gender in Decision Making: In making decisions, gender remains influential, and people have not been equal in getting excellent professional surrounds. The life of the professional women in Bangladesh is far from being easy as they are exposed to myriad of hurdles that hinders them from the right career opportunities. Patriarchal norms influencing child bearing and rearing, as well as domestic work assign those responsibilities to women and hinder their employment opportunities. The cultural mandate to automatically consider family chores as a priority leads to role conflict so many women either resign from their employment or are reluctant to climb the corporate ladder. These constraints are anyhow more understandable especially in dual income earner households where women lacks the support of their husbands in doing household chores. Challenges presented by these women are further exacerbated by workplace environments in Bangladesh. While flexible work arrangements and family friendly policies are being adopted there is still little evidence of these practices in the private sector. Strict working schedules, shortage of accessible child care facilities and brief maternity leave options stay a barrier to many women to enjoy a work life balance. In these circumstances, there is much office flexibility that increases professional womens turnover after they have children. Also recruiting, selection, training, promotion, attacking, and rewarding discrimination on the basis of gender is prevalent. There is increased employment of women in areas such as manufacturing and health care but few women are seen or get employed in management positions. These barriers resize the women from practicing their rights of promotion to better and higher paying jobs thus widening the gap of gender wage discrimination.

Thus, a number of Bangladeshi women continue to want to have a professional career partly due to personal reward and partly to external pressure and/or incentives. Middle-class women benefit most from employment because personal remunerative and ambition are motivators which ensure women have more control over their social and economic existence. These achievements in landing a successful career increases their decision making authority within the household, which gives them the recognition and self-approval that they seek in life. With regard to women engagement in career social support also influences the support of their families. Research shows that encouragement from ones spouse and equality in tasks around the house decrease the levels of stress and allow women to work. Mortality In-folks help women and other relatives encourage female education and productivity through child minding. In addition, workplace flexibility and supportive organizational policies mean higher job satisfaction and employees turnover. Flexible working and working from home, choice of timings, and adequate childcare services enable women to balance work and family well and hence perform better and remain more committed at work. However, women still do not get these provisions and work under restricted circumstances in relatively small organizations and employments that are not formally recognized. 

The purpose of this research is to understand the antecedents of career success of professional women in Bangladesh by examining the role of intrinsic enhancer of career success including the self-made motivation along with extrinsic enablers including family support and workforce flexibility. It also explores the impact of cultural realities and societal expectations on womens careers and life, thus computing guided routes in achieve of gender equality and inclusive economic development. Knowledge of these dynamics is the key to finding ways to help women overcome barriers to their professional success. In this way, this research aims to contribute to the efforts for promoting womens rights and improving their role in the context of Bangladeshs changing economy with regard to personal self-interests, family structures and roles, and institutions.

Objective of the study

The objective of this study is to identify the primary motivators driving professional women in Bangladesh towards career growth. 

Specific aims include

1. Understanding personal, social, and economic drivers of professional success.
2. To analyze the role of family and workplace support in fostering career growth.

The desire to be financially independent continues to be the driving force for women at workplaces in Bangladesh. According to the research evidence, when women are empowered economically, they have the ability to make decisions and this has positive impact, on their position in the house hold and in the society. Studies by Hashemi et al. (2001) also substantiate the findings that women mainly through employment or microfinance empower themselves with economic resources to enable them to have say in the decisions affecting their households (Kabeer, 2011). 

A positive impact on the sources of income and available employment opportunities increases womens activity in the sphere of public life, as well as improves their individual well-being. Internationally, power and achievement and career satisfaction can also be other important motives. It was pointed out in a World Bank report that women who work for pay are more satisfied in their jobs because have an assurance of their finances, and can arrange for their work and home chores efficiently. The funds they provide improve their status and disrupt traditional gender roles to participate actively in decision making in a household (World Bank, 2016). 

Generally, family support is important, for women in particular, in order to meet the demands of both paid work and family obligations. Jaga and Bagraim (2011) conducted a study which observed that support from family cuts across stress and improves job satisfaction for working women. This is especially significant in the context of Bangladesh as conservational influence puts women in a compromising position as caregivers. Families that equally share responsibilities of care-giving enable women to achieve their career aspirations more than those families that separate the provisions. But also evidence shows that both in terms of child care provision and income support there are differences in the degree of family support offered to women. As pointed out by Khan in his 2016 study, the position of career advancement is also benefited by married women when their husband is ready to support them and participate in house chores. 

On the other hand, restructuring where women are mostly assigned the major responsibility of caring for children hinders them from gaining promotions because they cannot avail themselves of advanced job positions as often as men while child care facilities remain scarce. The women in workforce partly seek employment with flexible work conditions and family friendly policies. Research shows that organizations providing short working hours, opportunities to work from home, and special policy on maternity leave provide better conditions for womens career development. Says Lewis and den Dulk, (2011) such policies do not only improve work to other life, but also lessen stress and thus the level of productivity and job satisfaction. However these benefits, it finds that large number of private sector organisations in Bangladesh have no or weak working women friendly policies. This is according to a study on Womens work-life balance (Tasnim et al., 2020) the way in which women are barred from accessing quality childcare as the working environment does not provide flexibility or even has inflexible working schedules that do not allow women to continue pursuit of their careers. 

Family supportive supervisors moderate again because they enable flexibility that in turn helps women effectively balance demands on their time (Susanto et al., 2018). Besides encouragement through motivation, women in Bangladesh experience barriers in their career advancement; these barriers include long working hours; poor-equipped child care services; and culture norms that justify gender role stereotyping. 

Hosain, (2016) stated that owing to the absence of structures that accommodate two worked marriages such ladies refer work related stress or burnout. Those workplace environments that fail to allow working mothers needs act as a hindrance to talent development and career growth. Unfavorable cultural perceptions continue to be a problem. Sexism is another issue that affect women at workplace, where women are expected to leave work to attend to their families than practice their career. This keep they confined within a narrow.  Leadership roles and full participation in economic activities. Even in the last couple of years women are still not given their due respect in workplace and as a result gender biasness in workplaces is prevailed.

Research Design and Method

This paper uses a qualitative research approach to establish the multifaceted nature of working professional female employees perception towards career completeness and its effects on productivity in Bangladesh. It is through thematic analysis that the research seeks to identify the complexities of the barriers and resources that define womens careers. 

Study Population 

The study subjects are therefore 30 professional women between the ages of 26 and 40 from sectors such as public, private and self-employed sectors in Dhaka. These participants are middle-class highly educated women and men in paid work who juggle multiple responsibilities in paid and unpaid work. 

Example and Method of Sampling

 In this study, purposive sampling techniques were adopted to guarantee the participants heterogeneity. This was useful in the sense that women who have tried to balance between work and home in their careers have been included, this enriched the study.

Data Sources

 Data were collected through culturally sensitive semi structured interviews which allowed participants give detailed life histories. In order to address the research questions, specific semantic categories were revealed, to which open-ended questions referred as it allowed the participants to reveal the issues of receiving support from families, social pressure, and organizational policies in detail. 

Method of Data Collection

 All the interviews were structured in such a way that they involved one respondent and the researcher. Candidates were told about the nature of the study and were asked to remain anonymous. With participants permission, some of the interviews were audio-taped and later asked to be written down. Furthermore literature review through secondary data from journals and other publications was used to enhance the findings of the study. 

Data Analysis and Tools

 Semantically, the interviews were analyzed utilizing thematic analysis, as explained by Braun and Clarke in 2006. These formed the basis for data coding in order to explore major themes in relation to support systems, role management and barriers and challenges constituted by the participants. To systematically arrange and categorise the data obtained, Excel was used for coding and results representation.

The findings from this study provide valuable insights into the duality of career and personal responsibilities experienced by women in Bangladesh. The results reveal that familial support, particularly from husbands and mothers, plays a pivotal role in advancing womens careers. 

Notably, 40% of the participants credited their husbands as the primary facilitators of their career development, while 30% highlighted their mothers support. These findings align with existing literature, such as Silbersteins, (1992) work, which demonstrates that husbands involvement in household duties positively impacts womens professional growth. However, as some respondents indicated, this support-while appreciated-remains the exception rather than the norm, reflecting deep-rooted gender expectations.

Background of Respondents

Fig. 2:  Different Profession of Respondents.

From Fig. 2 showed that out of the 30 respondents, 57 percent doing government job, and 33 percent were doing private job. From this, 10 percent were doing their own business.

Descriptive Analysis

A semi-structured, open-ended questionnaire was used for the interviews with the respondents (see appendix). Below are analyses of the respondents responses: This study finds out that the support from husbands and mothers is crucial in helping women to establish professional careers. Several participants pointed out that while understanding spouses contributed to participants career success, the supportive spouses also helped in some of the household chores. The results provide empirical support to the previous research which has highlighted the importance of family support in reducing work to family conflict (Ibid.). However, some of respondents stated that caring support is useful but still not typical that demonstrates gender stereotype attitudes. 

On the same note, there are societal pressures on women in the workplace expected to be professional achieving ladies as well as caregivers to their families. Both of these pressures serve to prolong the restrictions on the manifestation of female gender roles, and therefore prevent most women from achieving economic independence. The author points out that there are no effective institutional support frameworks including childcare facilities at work, and flexible working hours or even long parental leave.

Factor of Success

As emerging from Fig. 3, 0% of the respondents define success in terms of balancing between their family and work obligations, 47% perceive success in balancing between family and work, 13% define success as being a successful mother, 10% give paramount importance to their career achievement, and 20% agrees that success can only be achieved by working in a preferable job. As per few responses received they have stated that their family is the most important thing in their life. They think that any women are successful when she could establish her as a successful mother. They also think that an educated mother can impart good stock to a nation and for that they have to be success full mother also.

Fig. 3: Factors of Success.

47% of the respondents find their success in balancing between work life and family life. But the number is high. While most number of women discussed success, some of them discussed about being not too successful. They think if they get better position in the organization or get a better job with a raise in their salary, then they would think themselves as successful. One of the respondent who is self-employed responded it as like staircase, literally. Yet another woman by profession, and a banker at that, claimed that Success is having what is planned for. What we require is small wins accompanied by little strides.

Finally, success is closer to the overall decency of life, rather than attaining a prior set goal or dream all people are mortal. One said that she believes that she is successful because she has got good grade then landed herself a government job as an officer. She said, Success can only be achieved for him if he occupies an influential position within the organization. In order to be able to make clear cut actions for the growth of the company. What she means here, she wants to be more powerful in the organization in order to be considered a successful person. Another respondent said, success is attaining her goal. Likewise, 20% of respondents responded that, success in life can be attained only through engagement in a preferable job. Lastly, doing something and being happy go hand in hand. Success comes with happiness. Looking at the thirty respondent most of them believe that getting a job and taking financial responsibility is a big job and not so easy to accomplish. They are also bearing financial responsibility with the assistance of the jobs which they are offered. That is why, to their mind, they are successful. Those who don‘t believe that they cannot classify himself as being successful, they believe that they are lacking because they dont have the right income, or a good job. As for them, bank job, government job and MNC job are good jobs.

Primary Supporters in Career Growth

Several respondents noted that support from family members, particularly husbands, was crucial in enabling them to pursue their careers while managing household duties.

Fig. 4: Helping Hand to Raise the Career in Womans Lives.

Fig. 5 showed 70% women said family is the most helpful supporter of their career (including parents and husbands) among them 30% said about their mother and 40% mentioned their beloved husband, 20% claimed they themselves are their most staunch supporter. 10% cited friends, relatives or other people.

Fig. 5: Primary Supporters in Career Growth.

Regarding career support respondents discussed several attitude or opinions. Some attributed it all to determination and commitment, whereas others pointed out that relatives or friends assisted them sometimes. But most respondents identified their mother as the main source in their careers choice and direction, more so, a higher percentage said their husband was responsible for their success. Some participants took an opportunity to narrate personal incidences. One said that her uncle got her a bank job immediately after her ‘O level, she was both working and doing her postgraduate level. One of the respondents got her dream job at an MNC when her senior friend forwarded her CV to the concerned company. One self-employed participant mentioned that she did not get any support and established her own clothing business after the graduation. Some described themselves as very self-motivated, and several others stated: 

‘My husband is incredibly / totally supportive. A participant noted her husband celebrates her successes in her career and another pointed out that her husbands family has other educated women. Com-parable conclusions can be made with Silbersteins (1992) where a third of women admitted that the husbands contribution to the house chores and child care assisted them in their careers. More interestingly, none of the men in that study pointed to household work done by their wives as assisting their careers. Several participants in this study appreciated their husbands support but one of the participants said that such support should be a rule more than a luck.

Workplace Challenges and Childcare Concerns

Regarding the gathered personal workplace challenges, transportation problems, long working hours, and little room for promotion ranking as considerable obstacles; many respondents cited safety concerns during transport. Due to child care most participants pointed to the needed importance of improvement in child care support 60% of the married mothers said that lack of workplace child care as one of the major hurdles that limit work life balance. Such results are consistent with other research describing that lack of proper child care and nonflexible work schedules constrain womens career advancement (Doble and Supriya, 2010). Female respondents in public sectors revealed more independence than the male respondents where flexibility was highlighted as a factor that ensures female employees balance between the two roles. On the other hand, candidates who were working in private organizations and or MNCs complained of tight working schedules that hardly allowed time for self and or family. This difference shows how necessary it is to have an organisational culture regarding work-life balance compatibility. 

Career Influencers and Individual Goal 

Most participants expressed the idea that womens reasons for choosing careers are not only financial; they focused on identity, contribution and recognition. Half of the participants when asked the meaning of the word success; said it was a balance between work and home responsibilities. Some residents nominated career accomplishment and personal content as yardsticks to lameness. These ideas are an accurate portrayal of womens career advancement aspirations as always being contextual by family and individual stipulations. Notably though, though financial independence was mentioned more often than not as a reason, financial independence empowering women with the ability to influence family decisions. However, women also remained economically productive but still the major burden of home work was upon them and that also suggests that economic productivity of women does not necessarily lead to fair distribution of household work. 

Transportation and Safety 

The examination of the interviews highlights a number of significant difficulties that Bangladeshi women have when juggling two careers. Significant concerns were transportation and safety, with 93% of respondents mentioning problems getting to and from work, particularly at night. Concerns about safety were voiced by a lot of women, which makes it difficult for them to work late hours or make long commutes for work.

Fig. 6: Challenges at Workplace.

A working woman who frequently returns home late shared her concerns: “At night after I get home I am torn whether I should use public transport or rather take a walk. Both deliveries feel the same as the other due to the current status quo. The Bangladesh Banks directive to avoid having women at the office after hours has gone some way to easing the situation. “It has become easy for women in the banking sector since the circular was issued,” said a banker. Nevertheless, issues to do with work schedule remain an issue of concern. This means that if I need to be in another location by a certain time, I always ensure that I discharge my duties meeting that specific time. But while others remember early to work, no one remembers the extra effort put in to attend the early meetings - its irritating,” another banker added. Promotions which are generally an important aspect of human resource management are not public friendly with 13% of the respondents disclosing their ex-periences on discrimination on promotions with many people still shy to talk about it.

Childcare and household responsibilities 

Childcare and household responsibilities were identified as major challenges, particularly for women with young children. Respondents emphasized the need for better childcare support at the workplace, as 60% of married women with children expressed difficulties in managing their dual roles due to the lack of such facilities. This finding aligns with previous studies, which have shown that child-rearing responsibilities are a significant factor in work-life imbalance for women (Schneider & Waite, 2005).

Fig. 7 showed that, 27% of the women said that time management is the main problem. 50% cites child-rearing and 13% says problems with social rules and expectations.

Fig. 7: Challenges at Home.

The cost of childcare is one of the largest expenses that dual-career families have to encounter. Hertz (1986) it is listed as one among the major budget line items, and according to Schneider and Waite (2005) families with greater disposable income often see higher costs as related to quality or convenience. Among all the participants of this study, majority incorporated financial matters in childcare choices. The five families that made a choice of expensive childcare wanted quality and did not mind paying for it. One couple have accepted that the money was spent on childcare rather than a mortgage as they consider the importance of the “deluxe experience” for their children. Even the participants also agreed that its right to pay extra for babysitting just to get a quality service. A woman who has hired a full-time nanny said its expensive, but if one has to work and take care of children, its necessary. Which some families opted for much cheaper forms of childcare like daycare centers or giving birth to another child and move to home daycare. They also revealed social attitudes towards working life for women. In many cultures, teaching is regarded as a profession which would forever remain a womans preserve a typical womanish job. These included one respondent, a primary school teacher who said, her father advised her to take up the job, but believed he would not have approved the choice of a career in journalism. One woman said her mother-in-law agreed to accept her working because being a teacher is good for the society. On the other hand, an engineer who participated in the study said that, after marriage, she curtailed her field work because her parents in-law did not like her to be out in the field.

Implications for Policy and Practice

The research emphasizes the necessity of organisational changes towards gender equality in workplaces. A possibility to work from home, childcare offices in the working place, and long parental vacations are greatly needed to make working environment friendlier for women with professional careers. Also, due to the recent changes trying to advocate for more males and females to have the same burden of providing care. Managers also need to address the idea of families that have two working partners and adopt policies that address practice, work-life balance. Such changes may be spearheaded by through public private partnership through encouraging businessmen to support or lobby for such polices.

The evidence presented underscores the value of family schemata, covering policies at the workplace and organizational culture for womens career advancement. Solving these questions, it is possible to use measures within the framework of institutional work and cultural transformations that will allow increasing the share of women in various spheres of life. Subsequent studies could also examine the persistence of policy strategies targeting the problem of career interruptions for women. Moreover, expanding the research beyond women and mothers to involve other partners, including men and other members of dual-career families, could be useful to get a more whole picture of how these families manage these difficulties.

Findings 

This paper discussed career and family conflict of the professional women of Bangladesh and provided understanding of the enablers and barriers for career advancement. 

Role of Familial Support

Sign significant support was received from husbands and mother was crucial in the promotion of the careers among women. 40% of participants used their husbands as the most influential supporters and 30% mentioned their mother. But, it is still partial, and is still rooted with traditional male and female role assignments. 

Workplace Challenges and Childcare Concerns

 Some of the issues reported were long working hours the few promotional opportunities for employees and lack of good childcare services. Such factors as safety risks especially at night made women to be locked down from performing late shifts thus limiting their promotion. The participants from sectors in the public health sector stated that they had more flexibility compared to those in private contexts or multinational organizations. 

Career Motivation and Success Perception

 Success was defined by participants in different ways, 47% of participants defined success as work family balance the other 20% defined success as being employed in a desirable job. Freedom to control finances was seen as a reason for the change, allowing women determine domestic choices although it did not bring changes in sharing of domestic work. 

Impact of Social Norms and Gender Stereotypes

Women were expected to be professionals as well as caretakers, this put social pressure on women to go to work while creating great challenges when looking for work. Due to lack of receptiveness of most organiz-ations to dual-career families, there was imbalance between work-family conflicts.

Work-Life Balance and Institutional Support: 

Although there was strong feeling with regards to flexible working arrangements among the different participants few organizations offered such facilities. 50% of married parents and 60% of married mothers pointed to the lack of reasonably priced, good quality child care services as the factors that prevented their careers from advancing further.

Recommendation

Implementation of the Family-Friendly Workplace Policies

Introduce Flexible Work Hours: Remind employers to let employees have a flexible schedule for work, or permit the option to telecommute when possible. Certain policy measures like tax free or tax exemptions for organizations that is willing to implement these practices can fast track the change. 

Promote Maternity and Paternity Leave: Call for extension of the presently allowed maternity leave to development of paternity leave policies in an organiz-ation. This can begin with pilot in the public and the larger private sector organizations.

Strengthening Childcare Support Systems

Encourage On-Site Childcare in Workplaces:

Employers should be encouraged to develop inexpensive childcare centers at the offices through provision of subsidies or tax credit. 

Collaboration with Local Daycare Providers: Many community daycare centers can be contracted by employers for providing feasible and cheap childcare services thus cutting the operational costs of an employer, yet helping the employees. 

Enhancing Workplace Safety and Transport Infrastructure for Women

Improved Safe Transport Solutions: Organizations can offer transport reimburses or arrange safe transport means for workers who work beyond normal business hours. More specific, extending women-only buses or ride-sharing options will also help to enhance safety during the phenomena.

Night-Shift Regulations: Implement and expand Bangladesh Banks circular of banning working late night for the female employees particularly in the banking sector for their protection. 

Cultural Shifts towards Shared Responsibilities

Public Awareness Campaigns on Gender Equality: Organise the media, churches and the so called non-governmental organizations championing the cause of women, children and other vulnerable groups in the society to ensure that men embrace the culture of participating fully in care giving and performing Other domestic chores.

Government and NGO Collaboration: There are several ways through, NGOs can embark on partnership with government; ministries of education, social welfare and other related departments to conduct awareness workshop and gender sensitive programs among women and the girls in urban and rural areas. 

Encouraging Female Leadership and Skill Development

Womens Leadership Programs: Roll out leadership, negotiation and career development training for women particularly the garment and service industries. 

Mentorship Networks: Establish mentorship pro-grams in organization and other professional bodies to help women to deal with difficulties in their careers. 

Policy Advocacy and Corporate Accountability 

 Promote Diversity through Corporate Reporting: It is also being suggested that companies should be required to release reports on gender diversity and inclusion which would set up the framework in compliance with the SDGs devised for Bangladesh. 

Incentives for Gender-Sensitive Policies: The authorities can encourage the organizations adopting gender progressive policies by public appreciation and rewards.

Future-Focused Research and Policy Feedback Loops

Data-Driven Policy Adjustments: Provide a feedback collection structure for women workers in all sectors so that the policies are regularly sampled to ensure that they are relevant.

Encourage Actionable Research: Encourage co-operation with universities and research institutes on the analysis of policy effects on womens promotion, which would enhance subsequent policy revision. All of these recommendations should correspond to socio-economic realities of Bangladesh, building up from the existing infrastructure and policy frame work and aimed at the achieving progressive yet sustainable changes.

To sum up this research offers important information about family, cultural and organizational factors for professional careers of women in Bangladesh. Despite appreciable spouses and mothers playing an important part of helping women to rise up the career ladder, cultures and traditions are likely to hinder their progress. Barriers like poorly organized formal child care, safety risks during instances of daily transport and decisive organizational culture work to exclude and suppress women at the work environment. This research indicates that the changes in order to formulate a cent percent criteria of gender equality need the political diplomacy of families, organizations, and policymakers. Flexible working, available childcare provisions, and notable advertising of equal responsibilities within a household are ways towards building inclusive workplaces. As the process of economic growth in Bangladesh goes on, helping women to cope with these problems will be productive to increase their status and at the same time will contribute into the overall development of Bangladeshi economy and society. Future research could compare current experiences of dual-career families with those growing into the future and assess the results of new policies that have recently been introduced to support gender equity, thus deepening the development of gender-sensitive progress.

The author is grateful to the faculty of Business Administration, Dhaka University, Dhaka, Bangladesh and others who directly or indirectly contribute to conduct this study as well. Last but not the least, Author also acknowledge anonymous reviewers and the journal editor for their thoughtful suggestions and comments which helps to improve the manuscript. 

The author declares that there are no conflicts of interest related to this research. All opinions, findings, and conclusions expressed in this article are solely from the author presented with complete transparency and impartiality.