Why you need a woman co-founder in a startup

In the progressive Indian business ecosystem, a surging number of corporate leaders and business consultants are swearing by a new strategy to serve the bottom line of an organisation: putting women in charge. This is a strategy that supersedes any growth hack that has been in practice all these years.

Certain distinctive characteristics that are more prominent in women, such as empathy, intuition, and optimism, greatly contribute towards accomplishing organisational goals and building a solid workplace relationship. Women are considered to be more emotionally intelligent, passionate, and helpful, all traits that aid in creating a healthy professional relationship and a comprehensive workforce. Consequently, women can significantly contribute to any workforce.

Let’s look at some facts and numbers. There have been innumerable studies conducted till date, examining the subject of ‘gender diversity in the workplace.’ Such studies have successfully established that gender diversity is directly proportional to the financial success of an organisation. Men and women with equal footing in senior positions accelerate the growth of an organisation. According to a survey commissioned by McKinsey and Company, European firms with the highest proportion of women in power saw their stock value climb by 64 percent over two years, compared with an average of 47 percent. Similarly, as per a study conducted by Pepperdine University, even Fortune 500 companies that endorsed gender equality in the workplace were calculated with 34 percent higher revenues and profit margins as compared to industry medians.

Organisations today greatly benefit from gender equality within the workplace. Female co-founders and female employees are experts at creating and maintaining a healthy balance between work and life. Women outshine men in this; right from taking care of family to maintaining excellence in performance in the office. Women master the art of balancing job and family very well and they understand the need for extracurricular activities to stay productive and creative. Additionally, women have introduced policies such as flexible timings to allow today’s employees to maintain a good work-life balance.

Furthermore, many experts state that women are better communicators, owing to their capacity to respond more effectively to visual, verbal and emotional factors than men. Endowed with better communication and networking skills, women leaders can encourage collaboration and group work, while many male leaders find it difficult to handle emotions at work and prefer to give directives and motivate employees by sharing competitive stories with team members. On the contrary, a female leader is more likely to listen to the team members carefully, share ideas and give advice to encourage team work, while maintaining professionalism.

Other traits that are prominent in female entrepreneurs are sensitivity and intuition. These traits along with emotional intelligence give women the ability to build a well-rounded workforce. They are better equipped to translate verbal cues and body language, making them effective problem-solvers in sticky situations. WOn the other hand, men may lack understanding of unspoken cues. The traits of being sensitive and emotional have been perceived as absolutely unfit for a professional set-up have now turned into strengths. Women team leaders and bosses are able to address and resolve any workplace conflicts before they crop up.

In the present day workplace, communication and collaboration are extremely important. A woman’s ability to create a collaborative work force and her ability to decode emotions of co-workers or subordinates create the prime building blocks for any startup. With effective collaboration and communication, strong relationships are built both inside and outside the organisation, ultimately leading to an extremely successful business. Overall, women bring several valuable traits that complement their male counterparts’. If men and women were to combine their skills together, then any organisation would become unstoppable. So, don’t keep a woman from moving forward; she may be the best part of your organisation!

(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.)