5 Ways Women in Leadership Benefit Businesses

The world's most prominent leaders show the importance of honesty, courage, impact, and decisive action in leadership. Oprah Winfrey

An important note at the beginning of this article: not all women are great at leadership, and not all men are great at leadership either. The secret to success is diversity in all areas, including gender and culture. Organisations with diverse teams can fully benefit from varied skill sets, backgrounds, experiences and strengths.

This International Women's Day, we want to shine the spotlight on women in leadership. What makes her a successful leader, and how does she benefit businesses as a whole?

By having a closer look at some common traits of women’s leadership, this IWD we want to highlight the benefits women bring to these roles. Here's 5 key ways having women in leadership positions benefits organisations:

1. Uniting Diversity

Women leaders are well known for focusing on people’s commonalities rather than their differences.

In this way, they are able to unite people who are on the surface very different, whether in terms of culture or function or background, to pull together towards a common goal.

2. Work-Life Balance

Women in leadership positions tend to create workplaces where work-life balance is easier to achieve, including offering flexible work arrangements, family-friendly benefits, and otherwise acknowledging that employees’ non-work lives are important and should be respected.

A culture of work-life balance helps employees feel like they are not just cogs in a machine. This in turn promotes happier, healthier workplaces, prevents burnout, and increases employee retention.

3. Interpersonal Relationships

Women leaders in general to seek to build professional relationships with colleagues by engaging in rapport – conversation in which they check-in and connect. It is well known that employees respond well to a leader who is personally invested in them. This focus on interpersonal relationships gives rise to workplaces where employees feel heard and valued, and where they are much more likely to build healthy collaborative professional relationships as well.

4. Culture of Accountability

A culture of accountability is one in which people take responsibility for their mistakes, are acknowledged for their efforts and successes, and do not seek to undermine others.

As women’s leadership is inclined to focus on interpersonal relationships this fosters both honesty and transparency within the organisation.

When people are invested in each other, they are more likely to want to hold themselves and others to high standards. A culture of accountability also fosters respect for others.

5. Foster Collaboration

One of the greatest benefits of having women in leadership positions is that they foster greater collaboration.

Because women tend to be relationship focused, they are often able to draw in stakeholders from many different areas to work toward a common goal. Add in the tendency of women leaders to unite diverse groups around common goals and values, and it becomes clear that women leaders value and encourage collaboration.

When people collaborate, they invest in each other. And when people feel invested in, they have higher morale, are more productive, and are more likely to stay and grow within the organisation.

Most importantly, greater collaboration makes the best use of the organisation’s most valuable resource – its people.

Leadership is not about being in charge. Leadership is about taking care of those in your charge. Simon Sinek

Over to You

Successful women leaders are everywhere you look. From the CEO of an expanding company to running a home and organising family routines; women have a leading place in our community.

A successful leader believes in herself and confidently moves forward towards not only her goals, but the ultimate success of the organisation as a whole. She utilises her talents and skills to capture the imagination and win the hearts and minds of those around her.

Now it's time to consider your own leadership. Ask yourself:

• What are your leadership strengths?

• Do you have the talents and skills to move forward with certainty, while capturing the imagination and winning the hearts and minds of those around you?

• How can you continuously develop and grow these skills?

Your Next Step

Would you like to learn more about how to foster your leadership skills and confidently move forward each day?

Join us for an online introductory coaching strategy session where we can develop a plan together and get on track towards your ultimate success.

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