THE "IDEAL" MANAGER PROFILE: A LONGITUDINAL STUDY IN HIGHER EDUCATION

The Management role has undergone several changes over time, with different requirements for those wishing to occupy this position. The evolution of research in the field, changes in the curricula of management courses, and the demands posed by new scenarios and organizational structures, among other factors, call for a new definition of the roles and functions of the manager. In addition to these changes, societal transformations regarding gender equality opportunities have contributed to the feminization of the role, thus implying a reflection on the impact of these changing roles on the manager's profile. This study is based on a case study that aims to respond to this need by proposing to identify the profiles of managers over time in Portuguese society. Additionally, it aims to study the role of gender as a moderating/mediating variable, using a sample consisting of management students from a public university. For this purpose, a self- administered questionnaire was used to collect data at three different times (pre-2008; 2013-14; 2023), containing a list of personal and professional attributes for the identification of the ideal manager profile. It is expected that the results will show different profiles over time, account for the influence of the above mentioned societal changes on the profiles of the ideal manager, as well as identifying the effect of gender on the definition of these profiles.