Slowly but steadily: the path of female leadership in Italy is still in progress. In the space of the “anchor”, the requests for change are moving towards gender equality and equal access to development opportunities: the “broken step” for women towards top positions, the “brokeng rung” of the last McKinsey and Girls’ relationship in Tech Repairing the broken rung on the career ladder for women in technical roles, is not only repairable. But it can become a virtuous ladder for everyone. The most heterogeneous companies, the study shows, are 48% more likely to outperform than the least gender-diverse companies.
Consob data, updated as of October 15, 2021, indicate that in Italy the presence of women in the composition of the administrative and control bodies of listed companies has reached 40.8%. A result accelerated by the gender quotas provided for by the Golfo Mosca law and which ignites the focus on another evidence: women hold the position of CEO in 16 companies. In addition to the favorable legislative framework, cultural change is the pivot of the revolution in female leadership.
Impervious path, tenacious gait
As emerges from the Harvard Business Review studies by Zenger Folkman, a leadership development consultancy firm, women bring to the table skills that reach the highest scores in the evaluation of leadership effectiveness: self-awareness, emotional intelligence, skills social, listening skills, relationship orientation.
Women know their skills well and are not afraid to take them to the top: according to the report “Women in Leadership: Unequal Access on the Journey to the Top” by SHRM – Human Resource Management Society, they are more likely (55%) to aspire to a higher level role than their male colleagues (42%) because they think they would be good at it. This means, according to the data, that instead of encouraging women to emulate men, the best way to increase female representation in leadership roles is to select leaders based on skills.
In climbing to the top, self-awareness is not lacking. But a supporting structural system: only 61% of women, compared to 71% of men, say they feel encouraged by their manager in their professional growth. And, even as the rise begins, men are more likely to feel included and taken seriously as leaders. The same does not happen for women, especially for those of color: the higher they go, the greater the disillusionment about equal access to the top. However, the change can be made concrete, following precise lines of action that indicate the trajectory.