Empowering Female Managers: A Cross‐Sector Comparison of Perceived Inclusion and Internal Networks

ABSTRACT Objective Organizational inclusion is essential for female employees who consistently encounter challenges while advancing workplace hierarchies, but its roles have partially been explored. The objective of this study is to empirically examine the effects of internal networks on perceived inclusion and test the degree to which these networks impact self‐competency via perceived inclusion. Methods Leveraging a wave of 2018 data from the Korean Women Manager Panel, we test several hypotheses and compare the for‐profit and public sectors using structural equation modeling. Results The findings show that perceived inclusion is essential in directly influencing female employees’ self‐competency and offsetting the negative impacts of interpersonal and group networks on self‐competency in the for‐profit sector. However, the effects are either marginal or absent in the public sector. Our analysis finds that only vertical interpersonal relationships with superiors and mentors indirectly impact self‐competency. Conclusion This study suggests that the role of perceived inclusion may vary depending on the sector, and vertical relationships are more critical for female public employees to enhance their competencies.