Even today only 10% of Fortune 500 companies are run by women CEOs. However, several studies have shown that female CEOs have unique traits that help in making profound changes to grow business. Studies have shown that women tend to lead in a more transformational, inclusive, and participative manner. So, in this article, we will learn about the unique traits of female CEOs that benefit companies and improve culture.
A 2008 Pew Research study found that participants rated women higher than men in the top eight leadership traits, including honesty and intelligence, by a five-to-one ratio. One research also suggests that it’s harder for women to climb the corporate ladder, making them more resilient and authentic.
Unique Traits of Female CEOs
Female CEOs often have a special mix of qualities that help them succeed in leadership. They usually excel at communicating, working collaboratively, and being emotionally intelligent. They’re skilled at building strong relationships, creating a positive workplace, and motivating their teams to reach shared goals. We have mentioned below the unique traits of female CEOs that make them stand out.
1. Entrepreneurial Spirit
Women are known for pushing creative boundaries and innovating to grow personally and professionally. Women in leadership aren’t afraid to dream big. They focus on achieving those dreams and reaching even greater heights, including launching their businesses. In 2022, women made up 47% of new business owners, according to Gusto. Additionally, one-third of women-owned businesses in 2023 had a community service focus, compared to just 19% of businesses led by men.
Lauren Bronson Petrous, founder and CEO of Boundless & Co., says, “What makes female leaders stand out is their ability to combine vulnerability and courage. They go into entrepreneurship not just to succeed, but to challenge norms and lift others.”
2. Humility
Women tend to shy away from boasting, which is why humility is often seen as a key leadership trait. Even Jim Collins, the author of Good to Great, highlighted humility and determination as common qualities among successful CEOs. When challenges arise, humble leaders are quick to admit mistakes and take responsibility, showing that it’s okay to be human and imperfect.
Women are often praised for creating inclusive, supportive, and motivating environments for their teams. They focus on providing career growth opportunities for their employees, celebrating others’ successes, and checking in on the well-being of those around them. This combination of traits is incredibly valuable as it helps develop the skills of their teams and fosters a healthy, high-performing work culture.
3. Empathy
Empathy is often seen as a quality more common in women. Although it’s considered a soft skill, it plays a vital role in leadership by fostering cooperation and commitment at work. You’ve likely heard the saying, “A rising tide lifts all boats.” Empathy is a great leadership trait because it helps employees and customers feel heard. When people feel listened to by their leader, they’re more open to ideas and more willing to collaborate.
This creates a positive, productive environment where work gets done more effectively. Employees with empathetic leaders are 76% more engaged and 61% more innovative, according to Catalyst.
4. Authenticity
Women sometimes leave the workforce to focus on family because of issues like limited parental leave, high childcare costs, and other factors. When they return, they bring valuable qualities like authenticity with them.
Jennifer Knowles and Lisa Mainiero used the Kaleidoscope Career Model to study women who stepped out of the workforce and later came back. Their research found that these women were more focused on authentic business practices and often outperformed men in these areas. Authenticity helps build self-awareness, which encourages others to develop their skills and focus on purpose over ego.
5. Resilience
According to many types of research, female CEOs are more likely to take risks and come back stronger during difficult times compared to their counterparts male CEOs. Women are more likely to look for solutions and take less time to overcome any adversity showing true resilience. One of the reasons behind this trait is claimed to be the struggles and hardships faced by women to reach the top executive position.
They have more pressure to prove themselves worthy when thousands of eyes are on them with the prejudice of women being weaker. Even some researchers have found that women never set a goal to become a CEO even after having evident potential.
Female CEOs Help Improve Work Culture
Female CEOs make a big impact in the workplace by reducing gender stereotypes in the language used by teams and employees. In two studies with 699 participants, organizational psychologist Anita Williams Woolley, PhD, and her team looked at small working groups and found that the number of women in a group was closely linked to the group’s ability to work well together and solve problems.
Groups with more women showed better balance in taking turns during conversations, which helped members listen to each other and make the most of everyone’s knowledge and skills.
A 2022 study led by social psychologist Mansi P. Joshi, PhD, found that just having a female leader instead of a male leader made people expect fairer treatment, along with higher salary and status. Female leaders helped build trust in organizations, whether in male-dominated or female-dominated industries and at all levels of the organizational hierarchy.
