With demands for a fairer society and a continued focus on economic priorities, have you noticed a cultural shift in how we do business?   

Traditionally, successful business leadership has more often than not been defined by ambitious, strong and confident men who take calculated risks and who tend naturally to prefer those in their own image. Now, more than ever, we need more women in business (and in politics!), empowered with similar qualities, to bring the female perspective to boardroom tables.  

However, having strong and confident female leadership isn’t just about equality – it’s also extremely good business sense.   Companies across all sectors with the highest number of women in the board room significantly and consistently outperform those without female representation – by 40% in terms of return on equity and by 56% in terms of operating results according to McKinsey.

But sadly, there are some attitudes that still need to be brought into the 21st century. This isn’t going to happen unless those women with the necessary qualities, personality and self-belief push themselves forward. (Even in the PR sector, where 63% of the workforce are women, shockingly, only 13% of board positions are held by women!)

Natural strengths of female leadership are becoming more important to business.  For example, women’s ability and innate desire to connect with others offers many opportunities, as today’s effective leadership is as much about collaboration as it is about competition.

I often sense that too many business women play down their own achievements, preferring to demonstrate rather than assert competence.  We tend to keep our feet too firmly on the ground, avoiding risk and staying within our comfort zones. Research has shown that the issues identified as holding women back include self-confidence, the need to balance childcare with work priorities and an ambivalence to networking. 

I do believe it is up to those women already in business management to help others to become more confident about themselves and exploit their business potential.  We also need to encourage the next generation of women to have greater aspirations and more confidence to succeed in their chosen career paths.

Today, flexible working and a better work-life balance seem to be two of the main reasons women start businesses and digital technology is providing opportunities we’ve not had before. The boundaries between home and work are blurring.  Innovations such as the Cloud allow us to access information and software almost anywhere – liberating everyone to work in a flexible manner.    

Not so long ago, I heard someone say:  “Work will become what you do, not where you go.” So, whereas in the past, women with families have had to choose to work long hours away from the home to the detriment of a fulfilled family life, or perhaps take a lower skilled part-time role, technology is now changing to help remove a significant barrier to career progression.  We know the UK is missing out by not having more women in business management.

Now is the time for women to become their own agents of change, but we need to drive this change from within!