Impact of Women Leaders in Finance

Written by Alina Markutsya ( ‘27), Edited by Jessica Hua (‘26)

In 2024, women occupy about 33% of executive finance positions and only 9% of chief executive operating roles. These numbers are consistently growing as company culture and performance has positively correlated with women-led investment firms. Years of studies have analyzed the effect of female leaders on team dynamics, workplace culture, and long-term market performance.

Women leaders are more likely to foster psychologically safe environments for team input and create “brave spaces”–a community where employees have enough trust in one another to raise red flags and provide honest feedback without fear of repercussions. With typically higher emotional intelligence (EQ) scores, women may recognize team stress points sooner and better match tasks to team members' strengths, increasing productivity and workplace culture.

Senior executives of financial institutions have an important role to play–instill confidence that each employee's work is valuable and motivate them to challenge themselves. Women leaders received higher scores in their ability to “connect and relate to others,” demonstrating their awareness of team members’ needs. Firms with a larger proportion of women in senior finance roles produce a better workplace culture. By providing more mental health resources for employees, a higher frequency of check-ins, and more team-bonding activities, employees feel they are valued and have a stronger sense of belonging.

Companies with a leadership team consisting of at least 30% women are overperforming firms without gender diversity in the market. With a more risk-averse, forward-thinking strategy, gender-diverse companies have higher returns with lower volatility. This different approach to investing emphasizes sustainable growth over quick wins.

Young women entering the finance industry now have role models demonstrating that success doesn't require sacrificing empathy for earnings. As more firms recognize that diversity breeds excellence, this transformation will help to reshape the entirety of the financial industry.