Women: The Additive That Boosts Business Success By Patricia Jones, CEO, Women’s Leadership Institute
I
recently made a presentation to a group of auto dealer executives who were interested in learning how to increase the numbers of women employed throughout the company’s enterprise. The motives were honest and pure: the CEO had become enlightened about the value of gender diversity. The company had little of it; he wanted more of it. He knew the why; he wanted to know the how. He wanted managers to be ready and willing to change the long-standing traditions of doing business a certain way—a way that had long excluded women. As each of the men introduced themselves, several mentioned that they had a specific motivation for their newfound engagement in women’s leadership: they had daughters. While having daughters seems to click on a lightbulb for many men, there are many additional reasons to commit to greater gender diversity and to elevating women in business. Currently, women are plentiful in entry and office positions, but intentionally building the pipeline for women in leadership within companies is becoming the winning way for successful organizations. For instance, it is widely recognized that women make or highly influence more than 80 percent of consumer decisions. (Having a steeped career in market research, I believe that number is even higher.) To ignore the massive influence of women who decide what and where to purchase products and services is to do so at your own peril. The business case for at least 30 percent women in senior level positions is widely considered best practice, especially if companies want to increase ROI, improve retention levels, and enhance employee morale. Moreover, women in leadership attract other female talent.
22 Southern Utah Business Magazine :: Spring 2022
