Women make better corporate leaders

Women’s abilities to take fair decisions make them better corporate leaders than men, according to a new study.

The study found that women are more likely to consider the rights of others and to take a cooperative approach to decision-making, which ultimately results in better performance for their companies.

The research, which surveyed more than 600 board directors, revealed that male directors, who made up 75 per cent of the survey sample, prefer to make decisions using rules, regulations and traditional ways of doing business and getting along.

In comparison, female directors felt less constrained by these parameters, BusinessNewsDaily reported.

“Our findings show that having women on the board is no longer just the right thing, but also the smart thing to do,” said Chris Bart, study co-author and professor of strategic management at McMaster University, Canada.

The research also discovered that female corporate directors are significantly more inclined to take the interests of multiple stakeholders into account in order to arrive at a fair and moral decision.

In addition, women tend to use cooperation, collaboration and consensus-building more often, and more effectively, in order to make sound decisions.

“Women seem to be predisposed to be more inquisitive and to see more possible
solutions,” said Gregory McQueen, one of the study’s co-authors from McMaster.

“At the board level, where directors are compelled to act in the best interest of the corporation while taking the viewpoints of multiple stakeholders into account, this quality makes them more effective corporate directors,” McQueen said.