Women at Work: Leadership actions that actually advance women

By DR. AMY NARISHKIN
For the Illinois Business Journal

A hard-driving CEO recently asked me a deceptively simple question: “How can I be a better ally for the women on my leadership team?”

It’s a question more leaders are asking—and not because they need convincing that advancing women is the “right thing to do.” They’re asking because they’re realizing there’s a performance opportunity.

Why advancing women is a business decision

Consider Reykjavik Energy, the parent company of Iceland’s largest power provider. After the 2008 financial crash forced the organization to lay off nearly one-third of its workforce, leadership used the restructuring as an opportunity to become fully gender-equal.

By what CEO Bjarni Bjarnason called “putting the gender glasses on before taking every single decision,” the company increased the proportion of women in management from 29 percent to 49 percent in five years.

During the same period, the adjusted gender pay gap shrank from 8.4 percent to 2.1 percent and now stands at 0.2 percent—in favor of women (The Guardian, 2018).

The outcomes weren’t symbolic. Bjarnason reports more open discussions, higher productivity, greater job satisfaction, improved decision-making, higher morale, and a far better atmosphere.

In other words: Better leadership, better execution, better results.

This is what many CEOs miss. Gender equity initiatives aren’t about lowering standards or privileging one group over another. They’re about removing blind spots that quietly limit performance.

Why good men still miss their role

In a Forbes interview, Michelle King asked Mike Gamson, senior vice president of LinkedIn Global Solutions, why so many men remain unaware of their role in advancing women at work.

Gamson’s answer was candid: Leaders naturally surround themselves with people who look, think, and operate like they do. When that happens at the top, exposure to new perspectives—and emerging opportunities—shrinks.

This isn’t malicious. It’s human. But left unexamined, it creates systems where talented women stall, disengage, or quietly exit.

Servant leadership doesn’t mean abandoning authority. It means using authority with awareness and intentionality.

What effective allies actually do

Allyship isn’t a title. It’s a series of small, repeatable leadership behaviors.

Mentor—don’t avoid.

Rachel Thomas of LeanIn.org and TaskRabbit CEO Stacy Brown-Philpot put it bluntly in The Wall Street Journal: “Don’t avoid women, mentor them.”

Mentorship matters because access matters. Mentors help women navigate informal power structures, advocate for high-visibility assignments, and get their names mentioned in rooms they’re not yet in. Promotions don’t come only from performance; they come from sponsorship and visibility.

Normalize access.

If dinner feels uncomfortable, meet for breakfast or coffee. Don’t avoid one-to-one meetings with women; that creates unequal access by default. When men have informal time with leaders and women don’t, opportunity quietly skews.

Ask instead of assuming.

Ask women what support would actually help them advance. One may want coaching on pitching to clients. Another may need political guidance navigating her department. Another may be close to leaving because evening events conflict with caregiving responsibilities. These conversations typically require less than an hour a month—and prevent costly turnover.

Know the data—inside and outside your organization.

Understand your company’s pay gaps, promotion rates, and attrition patterns. Address inequities when compensation and bonuses are discussed. Awareness without action breeds cynicism; action without data misses the mark.

Use your own experience as a bridge.

You may not share a woman’s experience of bias—but you likely remember a time you were sidelined, underestimated, or excluded. Sharing those stories builds empathy and opens the door to real dialogue rather than defensiveness.

Name what you notice.

Gamson notes that systems often tip unconsciously in favor of white men. Naming that out loud—calmly and constructively—isn’t political; it’s leadership. When leaders name patterns and wonder who’s missing in the room that a decision impacts, legitimizes conversations others may be afraid to start.

A word about compliments

One practical area where leaders often stumble is feedback. Compliment women on their work, not their appearance. Even well-intended comments about looks can undermine credibility or create discomfort.

If you’re unsure how any feedback landed, ask: “What was the impact of what I just said?” Then listen—without defending your intent. Also, if a woman minimizes her reaction, understand that historically marginalized employees often downplay discomfort to protect themselves. Trust is built over time, through consistent respect, understanding and follow-through.

The real leadership opportunity

Achieving equity and a sense of belonging at work isn’t a side initiative—it’s a leadership capability. Organizations that foster employee safety and engagement through cultural intelligence don’t just retain talent; they unlock better thinking, stronger collaboration, and sustained performance.

For CEOs who aspire to servant leadership, allyship isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being curious enough to notice, humble enough to ask, and courageous enough to act—one conversation at a time.

If you’re a senior leader who wants to strengthen trust, retention, and performance by improving how conversations happen on your leadership team, I invite you to connect with me in my work as an executive coach and cultural intelligence strategist.

 

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Dr. Amy Narishkin works with organizations and their leaders who want to be confident communicators so that they can attract and retain diverse talent. To read her blog or request executive coaching, visit www.EmpoweringPartners.com.