Six Skills For Women Leaders To Help Them Grow Their Organisation

More women should be trained for leadership positions. Before we get into the solutions of how this can be achieved, let’s address the important question of why. Why do we need more women leaders on the table? 

If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that leadership is both sustainable and successful if one of the engines driving it is empathy. Leaders such as Jacinda Ardern, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, have each shown us the impact an empathic leadership can have on the world. While this is not to say that men are not or cannot be empathetic, admittedly, women do have this skill in sharper focus.

Women leaders do give space for feelings thoughts and experiences in the workplace, championing inclusion and nurturing diversity in all forms. Instead of shutting down this part of us—who hasn’t heard a derogatory remark against feelings in the office—I highly recommend that women should double down on this skill and leverage it more and more. A workforce that feels heard, is also a happier and more productive workforce. 

But, getting to a leadership position is in itself an underrated skill, and, as we prepare to celebrate another International Women’s Day on March 8. Several years ago, when I was trying to make my way up, someone gave me a very valuable piece of advice, suggesting that I understand the gender differences in leadership effectiveness (what it takes to perform well) and gender differences in leadership emergence (what it takes to make it to the top). Performing well is important, but knowing how to make it to the top is also important. 

Here is my take on six skills for women leaders to grow.

Strategic thinking: Ability to plan for the future

Being visionary and having the ability to provide strategic direction for the development of new products and processes to drive operational excellence, are must-have qualities for all leaders. Organizations should enable their high-potential women leaders in improving their capability to formulate strategies for their functions. Being visionary also strengthens your storytelling ability, which makes you stand out.

Influencing: Ability to gain support for your ideas

As one moves up the ladder, influencing others becomes an important skill. It’s why Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People, continues to be on bookshelves, almost a century after being first published. Learn how to make others believe in your strategies. This will push stakeholders to take action that will boost shared interests and business goals

Learn how to make a compelling case 

The common ">boardroom perception is that women are high on emotions. We have already discussed why that’s an advantage, but effective pitches—whether to clients, investors, bosses or colleagues—mean learning how to make an argument using data and logical rationale. These are skills (not talents), and can be learnt if enough time is invested.

Innovation: Ability to convert problems to ideas 

Another perception that people carry about women is that they are not good at creating solutions, or do not have the ability to create ‘disruptive’ solutions. I would argue that it’s in fact, the other way around. Women are highly creative and can contribute significantly to a company’s innovation agenda. Innovation comes both with practice and a space to be creative.

Organizations should upskill women to improve their capability in creating novel solutions with measurable value, experimenting with new ways to solve work problems and seizing opportunities that result in unique solutions.

Networking: Ability to make connections and build relationships

Networking is often discounted as a work skill, as it requires an investment of time and results are more long-term than quick. Women, especially, overlook it more, as they struggle to find time to network while balancing family time. However, organizations must empower and encourage women to network. Strategic networking creates opportunities for broader professional exposure, having more meaningful conversations, and building more authentic engagement. A large network is of value not just to the individual, but also to the organization.

In the initial few decades of welcoming women into the workforce, the conversation was largely about having more women employees. But, we have grown beyond that, especially in the last decade, when many of India’s leading businesses have either been started or helmed by women. The question is how do we get that percentage to grow? 

In addition to these skills, which all organisations should aim to equip their women leaders with, individuals and companies should also look at instituting mentorship programmes for women that help them progress faster.

At last, I would say and I sincerely hope, one day, that we reach a stage where the word “LEADER” becomes a gender-neutral word and we never have to add “women” as a prefix.

Views expressed are the author's own. 

Shweta Srivastava is a Chief Experience Officer at TATA CLIQ

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