Why Balanced Leadership Is a Win for Everyone

As many organizations pull back on diversity efforts, the urgency to prioritize inclusive leadership continues to grow. Athena Founder and CEO Coco Brown delves into how striving for balanced leadership isn’t just a win for organizations—it’s a win for our economy, our communities, and our future.

February 3, 2025

By Coco Brown – Founder and CEO, Athena Alliance

 

Some of the world’s most celebrated companies are quietly pulling back on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts—a retreat that’s as glaring as it is troubling. While others hesitate, industry leaders like Costco, Apple, Microsoft, and Etsy are proving that inclusion isn’t just a moral stance—it’s a business-critical strategy. These companies are doubling down on DEI, showing that commitment to diverse leadership drives innovation and resilience in a rapidly evolving world.

As these shifts unfold, the need to champion inclusive leadership has never been more urgent. Public dialogues around the balance of masculine and feminine qualities in leadership only add to the complexity, revealing deep tensions around what traits are truly valued in those who lead. These conversations reveal a pressing need to move beyond outdated notions of leadership traits tied to gender and focus instead on the diverse skills tied to excellence required to lead in today’s world.

Leadership Is Not Either-Or 

One recurring debate in leadership is the framing of “masculine” versus “feminine” qualities—discipline, decisiveness, and competitiveness on one side, and empathy, collaboration, and intuition on the other. Viewing these traits as mutually exclusive or inherently tied to gender is a reductive view that no longer serves modern leadership.

The most effective leaders harness both sets of traits, applying them situationally and contextually. In a rapidly changing, interconnected world, empathy and collaboration are as critical as decisiveness and discipline. Organizations that celebrate and cultivate this balance—regardless of whether the traits are seen as “masculine” or “feminine”—will lead the way forward. This balanced approach to leadership is also key to addressing the disparities in representation, demonstrating how diverse perspectives and skills are essential to progress.

Why Representation at the Top Matters 

At Athena, we believe in a leadership model that reflects society as a whole—one in which businesses embrace the full spectrum of human talent and perspectives. In 2025, leadership roles remain disproportionately filled by a narrow demographic. Breaking this down highlights the extent of the issue:

Funding Disparities

  • All-Male Teams: Secured 72.1% of total venture capital (VC) funding in 2023.
  • Mixed-Gender Teams: Raised 26.1% of total VC funding.
  • All-Female Teams: Obtained just 1.8% of total VC funding (Carta).

CEO Roles

  • Fortune 500 Companies: As of 2024, 52 companies in the Fortune 500 are led by female CEOs, accounting for 10.4% of the total (Wikipedia).
  • S&P 500 Companies: In 2023, 33 companies in the S&P 500 had female CEOs, representing 6.6% of the total (Morningstar).

Board Representation

  • Private Equity (PE) and Venture-Backed Boards: Women occupy a significantly smaller share of board seats compared to men. 
  • For example, while PE has not been specifically studied, as of 2022, women hold 16% of board seats among the most heavily funded private U.S.-based companies, and nearly a third (32%) of these companies still have all-male boards (Crunchbase).

Executive Roles

  • Senior Vice President (SVP) Roles: Women’s representation increased from 23% in 2015 to 29% in 2024; just 6% in 9 years.
  • C-suite Positions: Grew from 17% in 2015 to 29% in 2024; just 11% in 9 years.
  • Senior Manager/Director Roles: Increased from 32% in 2015 to 37% in 2024; just 5% in 9 years.

 

The representation of women in each of these areas is not low because women don’t want to lead or aren’t pursuing these opportunities. As evidenced by how much push we have seen over the last decade, women want to lead. And yet, the pace of progress remains slow. 

While women have surpassed 30% representation in ONE dimension of business leadership, it took nearly a decade to achieve this. At the current rate, achieving parity could take another 10 years—if progress is sustained.

The case for increasing representation isn’t about fairness—it’s about recognizing the pivotal role women play in the economy and society. Women are not only key drivers of economic activity but are also poised to control a significant share of wealth in the coming decade. Over the next 10 years, $30 trillion in generational wealth will transfer to Gen X and Millennials, with women inheriting the majority (McKinsey).

Women are already making major financial and life decisions. 96% will be the primary financial decision-makers for their families at some point in their lives (Prudential Research), and 54% are primary breadwinners in their households. They’re also surpassing men in educational attainment, earning 57.7% of bachelor’s degrees, 61.4% of master’s degrees, and 55.2% of doctorate degrees (National Center for Education Statistics).

These statistics highlight why focusing on advancing women leaders, specifically, is both timely and essential—and why Athena is doing just that. It’s not about excluding others; it’s about ensuring that businesses and leadership structures reflect the realities of the modern world. When women are locked out of power and opportunity, companies fail to leverage the skills and perspectives of a group that wields significant influence over the economy and society and miss out on ideas and solutions that could set them apart. 

Progress Through Opportunity 

As DEI efforts face scrutiny, it’s critical to focus on what these initiatives really aim to achieve: leveling the playing field and unlocking human potential. However, the terminology itself—DEI—has become reductive and warrants reevaluation. To drive meaningful change, we must shift the conversation and language to reflect the broader goals of inclusion and opportunity, emphasizing that DEI is rooted in fostering understanding and redesigning biased systems—not in rigid mandates or superficial quotas.

Contrary to criticism, initiatives focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion are not about excluding one group to advance another. They are about creating systems where everyone has access to the same opportunities, without compromising qualifications or standards. Inclusive leadership doesn’t lower the bar; it raises it by ensuring that the most talented individuals—even those previously locked out of systems not designed with them in mind—can fully contribute and thrive. This approach isn’t just about fairness—it’s essential for organizational success. Studies like Accenture’s reveal that $3.7 trillion is lost globally each year due to the absence of inclusive work cultures, with exclusion driving higher attrition, legal risks, and lower profits.

At Athena, we recognize that addressing these challenges requires more than good intentions—it demands action and infrastructure that foster meaningful inclusion. This means refocusing our commitment to providing opportunities and resources that foster inclusive leadership and broaden representation within senior ranks to accurately reflect society’s diverse demographics. We foster inclusive leadership by building pathways for women, equipping them with the tools, knowledge, and networks needed to thrive in leadership roles. We offer scholarships to women of diverse backgrounds, ensuring access to our community and resources regardless of financial barriers. Additionally, we offer a peer group specifically for Black women leaders, providing a supportive space to connect, share experiences, and thrive. By building pathways for underrepresented leaders, we ensure that organizations can tap into the broadest pool of talent possible and create solutions that benefit everyone. This commitment directly supports a vision for balanced leadership, where inclusion serves as the foundation for innovation and progress.

A Vision for Balanced Leadership 

Together, we have the opportunity to redefine leadership as a reflection of the diversity and complexity of the world we live in. With an unprecedented $30 trillion in generational wealth set to transfer largely into the hands of women in the coming decade, this moment offers a pivotal opportunity to reshape leadership and economic decision-making. By fostering inclusive leadership that empowers women to fully step into these roles, we can unlock new avenues for innovation, drive economic growth, and strengthen the fabric of society.

Leadership that embraces this transformative moment and values the richness of diverse perspectives isn’t just a win for organizations—it’s a win for our economy, our communities, and our future.

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