Women's participation in the workforce was hit hard during the pandemic, affecting organizations across the nation and reducing female representation in leadership positions. When women at the top leave, everybody loses out, according to a March 8 report from the Harvard Business Review.
Here are four ways female leaders make a difference in the workplace:
- In one study of 5,000 companies, 55 percent of female leaders were seen as being both wise and compassionate, compared to 27 percent of male leaders.
- In a McKinsey report, female leaders and managers were seen to provide employees with 12 percent more emotional support, 5 percent more action to prevent burnout and 7 percent more well-being checks than men.
- Another study showed that employee performance and engagement were higher for both male and female staff when a female led them. Female leaders created an average 5.2 percent increase in engagement and 5.8 percent increase in performance for staff as compared to male leaders leading male staff.
- Eighteen percent of staff disengage from male leaders, as opposed to 11 percent of staff for female leaders.