Moreover, the male dominated networks within the accounting firms are often not inclusive of women unless they take on the subordinate ‘hand maiden’ role. Women tend not to
participate in the networking and social opportunities as their male counterparts, such as
corporate golf days, sporting events, drinks after work and so on. This lack of female participation in the male dominated networks predisposes their reduced value in future promotion
to senior management positions (see Anderson-Gough et al., 2005). These networking
opportunities are pervasive in the informal promotion track that is often not accessible or
even evident to women.