Why Women Are Poised to Seize 2022
By Deb Boelkes
February 7, 2022
As the travel and hospitality business grows more complex, our employees are struggling with increased stress, anxiety, and outright trauma due to the ongoing pandemic. Vaccine and other mandates, worker shortages, and supply chain issues — combined with increasing customer fears and occasional abusive behaviors — all add up to an evolving business environment that women’s natural skills and abilities are perfectly suited to navigate.
If organizations are to survive and thrive, leaders must not only create a workplace that offers psychological safety, they must transform scattered remote workers into collaborative teams and simultaneously balance multiple shifting deadlines and here-to-fore unheard of challenges.
Bottom line: Women tend to do all these things very well. We have the communication skills, the emotional intelligence, and the agility to meet such challenges. We’re therefore perfectly poised to step into executive leadership.
Here are five reasons why women are uniquely positioned to lead and succeed in 2022 and beyond:
1. WOMEN ARE STELLAR COLLABORATORS.
The problems we face in today’s business world are more complex than ever. This means more diverse perspectives are needed in the executive suite to solve them. In times of uncertainty, when no one really knows the answers, women instinctively realize that working together with others to solve problems is far more powerful than taking an egocentric, lone wolf approach. This makes us perfectly suited to lead organizations.
2. OUR NATURAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS SERVE COMPANIES WELL IN HARD TIMES.
In times of crisis, a communication void generates anxiety and erodes trust. This is the last thing employees need in already tense times. Senior leaders today must be highly visible — sharing information, reassuring, showing empathy and compassion, and reinforcing a sense of camaraderie. Women’s gift for communication — and good listening — is invaluable in terms of keeping people calm and focused.
In my book, “Women on Top: What’s Keeping You From Executive Leadership?,” Linda Rutherford, senior vice president and chief communications officer for Southwest Airlines, shared this: “Culturally, as an organization, we’re big about physical touch and in-person meetings. Obviously, that wasn’t possible for several months. We had to pivot to How can we do things ‘The Southwest Way’ but in digital platforms? It’s everything from creating clever backgrounds when you get into a meeting, to setting the right mood, and finding new ways to keep the culture alive.” Women are masters at this.
3. WE’RE GIVERS.
Women are natural nurturers. We understand the power of giving, whether that means giving of our time, energy and emotional bandwidth to help someone solve a problem; serving as a mentor; or just finding ways to lift people up. All of these are valuable gifts, especially in tough times like right now when so many people are struggling with personal issues and emotional health. It’s worth noting that when employees feel cared about and invested in by their leaders, a company’s retention, morale and productivity all improve.
WOMEN FIND STRENGTH IN FLEXIBILITY.
During the pandemic, some leaders learned to their detriment that a rigid my way or the highway approach was no longer a sign of strength, but a rapid route to failure. Meanwhile, women proved the value of their ability to rethink, regroup and adapt at a moment’s notice. Women instinctively know how to navigate around unexpected roadblocks — while keeping the team on board and the destination in mind. Adaptability, resilience, flexibility and agility — all female strengths — are needed at the top more than ever.
5. WE’RE WORLD-CLASS MULTITASKERS.
It’s not always easy, but women are adept at keeping numerous balls in the air. Throughout the pandemic, women have interfaced with clients, run meetings, balanced budgets, created content, addressed supply problems, mediated employee disputes, hired new talent, and so much more, all from our kitchen tables. Meanwhile, we’ve managed children’s virtual education, cared for parents, and kept households from falling apart. This extraordinary experience proves we’re capable of leading multiple systems, goals and teams — precisely what’s needed in the C-suite.
Throughout history, women’s innate qualities have enabled them to navigate hard times, learn what they can from them, and successfully move forward. What makes right now different is the fact that we don’t have to return to the old status quo. Rather, we’re perfectly positioned to break through the barriers and actively shape the future of travel and hospitality from the top.