Changes Start From Within
“In the future, there will be no female leaders, there will be just leaders,” remarked Sheryl Sandberg, the COO of Facebook. Sandberg had been through several daunting scuffles before becoming known for what she is today.
“If a woman and a man work full time and have a child, the woman does twice the amount of housework than the man”. And such was the case with Sandberg, who recalls juggling between duties tied to families and work. But amongst countless limiting factors, she broke stereotypes and achieved something commendable in a “male-dominated” field.
Her motive was to empower women around the world and pursue their dreams, just like she did. Figures like Sandberg are inspirations for every woman in all stages of their career. Having greater female representation, in leadership roles impacts various levels, starting at our home and the global community eventually.
The power of having a role model is essential as millennials come forward. Hence, to help more hidden Sandbergs rise, the necessity of having more female leaders is Vital. Two-thirds of Americans believe it’s highly important for them to push off their careers with women in leadership positions, who will serve as role models.
Additionally, when women join the workforce, there is a significant increase in the gender ratio. As of now, the data reports 66% of employees in most workforces are male in the United States. If this is the case in developed countries like the USA, it becomes difficult to inquisite the data in underdeveloped countries. But, the effects of equalizing the gender ratio are relentless. Correspondingly, when women join the workforce, motivated by their female leaders in their respective fields, helps close the gender gap.
Studies indicate that closing the gender gap could potentially result in a 35% average increase in the Global GDP. Or to put this in simple terms, a country with such an increase could improve its economic growth, and even compete with the fastest-developing countries.
Moreover, having heterogenous groups in decision-making (including races, and ethnicities) offers companies multiple perspectives, that boost ideation and give birth to innovative ideas. Congruent with perspectives, women have not only proven themselves to be hardworking, but also drive their company to the pinnacle.
According to a study, having a gender-diverse executive board correlates to a higher margin of profit and stronger revenue growth. For instance, Sandberg, an epitome of this, went on to create an advertising strategy for Facebook that finally allowed the company to bring its revenue into a positive margin.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the results of modeling all potential scenarios of having greater female representation in leadership roles, have a far-reaching impact than what we could ever conceptualize. But to achieve this profound change, we as a community should embrace both changes and other perspectives, as the change starts from within.