Editorial
Sometimes I wonder how different our society would be if there were more women leaders at the highest levels of business and government. Perhaps there would be fewer articles in the media about a political candidate’s identity and more discussion about their qualifications. Maybe women CEOs wouldn’t leave their jobs at more than twice the rate of men senior executives. And perhaps more companies would benefit from higher financial performance and stronger employee engagement.
The fact is, women are great leaders, but they are still underrepresented at the executive level. Many women, especially culturally diverse women, fail to reach their full potential because of gender bias, a lack of leadership support, or difficulty balancing work and their personal lives. The lack of gender parity is a missed opportunity for organizations and senior leadership.
However, they also have the power to change the status quo. For women to reach the levels where decisions are made and feel comfortable in those spaces, business culture must be reimagined and the stereotype of leadership must be expanded.
Women Make Great Leaders, But Their Skills Can Be Overlooked
Women tend to have a more collaborative, relational management style, which doesn’t look like traditional top-down leadership. While the ability to connect with other people and cultivate strong relationships isn’t an innate quality, women have historically been socialized to value communication and collaboration. It follows that these soft skills would give any leader an edge in the modern workplace. In one large study by Leadership Circle, women leaders were shown to be more effective than their male counterparts across every management and age level.
Despite their quantifiable leadership success, women worldwide are woefully underrepresented in positions of power. According to Catalyst, women only accounted for 31% of senior leadership positions globally. Those results were echoed by a McKinsey study, which found that women represented just one in four C-suite leaders. Women executives with culturally diverse identities were even scarcer, filling only one out of every 16 executive roles.
A recent study by Deloitte highlighted several reasons for the gender gap, reflecting what many working women already know: The workplace remains unfriendly to women’s issues and concerns. Microaggressions are common, with 43% of women facing non-inclusive or discriminatory behaviors — including harassment. Professional women, especially those from underrepresented backgrounds, are frequently overlooked for promotion, because they don’t “look like” leaders. Many women in the survey reported rising stress levels due to the challenges of balancing domestic responsibilities while advancing their career. In addition, fewer than half of the women surveyed said they felt supported by their employer or direct supervisor.
Related Article: Why Women May Not Want to Advance Their Careers Within Your Organization
How Organizations Can Nurture, Promote and Retain Talented Women Leaders
Forward-thinking organizations can gain a competitive advantage by moving more women into leadership roles. But promoting women leaders isn’t enough. Organizations have to address the underlying stressors that make women opt out of management roles, quit leadership or leave the workplace entirely. The following four strategies are powerful ways to develop and retain women leaders.
Identify and Develop Emerging Leaders
When looking for leadership potential, it’s important to weigh results and skills rather than “going with your gut,” which can introduce unconscious bias. Looking at performance metrics is a good start, but it’s crucial to also consider soft skills like communication, collaboration and cultural intelligence. Ask top contributors what they want from their careers, and look for ways to align their personal goals with organizational objectives. Career conversations should happen regularly, with managers providing regular feedback and coaching.
Promote Formal and Informal Mentorship
Mentorship matters, especially for women and employees from marginalized communities, who might have less access to career role models. To capitalize on the benefits of mentoring, many organizations have formal programs that match experienced managers with emerging leaders. Even without a company-sponsored program, leaders should make mentoring a priority. Distinct from coaching, mentorship focuses on long-term professional goals rather than role-related performance. When you mentor emerging leaders, you increase their chances of success and their feelings of belonging and inclusion, leading to greater productivity and engagement.
Related Article: 4 Ways to Nurture a Diverse Internal Talent Pipeline
Cultivate Psychological Safety
All employees should feel empowered to ask for what they need to succeed in their role, without stigma or fear of retaliation. To ensure the long-term success of women leaders, organizations have to foster a culture of psychological safety, where women feel safe to discuss their personal challenges and get the support they need. Leaders can set the tone by being open to accommodations such as mental health support, hybrid or remote work, safety measures while traveling, or flexible schedules.
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Destigmatize Women’s Health Issues
Women often work through significant discomfort and pain related to reproductive health, yet they are reluctant to discuss these challenges at work. When managers have trusted relationships with their team members, transparent communication about health is easier. Menopause in particular affects women in leadership roles, because its onset coincides with the peak of career achievement — usually occurring in women aged 40-50. By normalizing conversations about this natural part of aging, organizations can promote psychological safety, decrease bias and ensure the long-term productivity of their women leaders.
Move Past the Status Quo
Organizations that can get women into the leadership pipeline and ensure they stay there will have a competitive edge, both in financial performance and in employee engagement. Yet there is another crucial advantage to promoting women, especially women from underrepresented communities: the power of representation. When people see their identity represented in leadership, they believe there is a path to success for them. Recruiting a diverse pool of job candidates becomes easier, and once they are hired, retention improves. If a Black or a Latina professional sees someone like herself in a position of influence, she will feel a sense of belonging that inspires her to do her best work.
Rather than accepting the status quo when it comes to women leaders, organizations can act intentionally to identify, nurture and sustain talented professionals. Individuals benefit from professional development initiatives, but organizations profit even more from the talents and expertise of women leaders who are encouraged to blossom and grow.
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