Europe needs more women in power. This is Jean-Claude Juncker’s message, the newly elected President of the European Commission. Mr Juncker has been quite adamant in his appeal to national governments to appoint more women as commissioners. His spokesperson has expressed the fear that the new EU Commission might have even fewer women than the previous one, where out of 28 Commissioners only nine were women. Apparently, a team of commissioners formed almost entirely of men might constitute a barrier for Mr Juncker to efficiently fulfil his agenda in the next five years.
Mr Juncker probably advocates not only for gender balance but also for gender justice. Whereas the former represents an equal representation of men and women in decision-making positions, especially in terms of equal value and treatment, gender justice goes beyond simple representation, focusing on fair methods to empower women. In Europe, the percentage of women on top company boards is ca. 20%, almost on the same level as the US. However, this is a ghastly figure when we compare it to the 80% representing men. The EU has previously considered introducing gender quota in leadership positions, but the opinions are divided on whether compulsory quotas will increase women’s prospects of acceding to the top.
Improving the public perceptions of women is an important step in acknowledging them professionally, be it in corporate leadership or political positions of power. There are mainly two aspects to take into account in the process of empowering women. First, the way women define themselves plays a fundamental role in how they present themselves professionally. Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO, rightly noticed that women tend to play down their abilities, skills and experience, and regard success as circumstantial, attributing it mainly to external factors. Men are inclined to do exactly the opposite – overestimate their competence and attribute success to themselves. This is an area where women need more incentives for enhancing self-confidence and improving active coping skills. Second, it is important to change the way women are defined by others. Female qualities such as intuition, empathy, listening, compassion, need for affiliation should be encouraged professionally and not considered a weakness. Increasing women’s self-esteem and self-confidence would only contribute to effective leadership. It is not a zero-sum game where a win for women is a loss for men. Competition is healthy, but so is cooperation and efficiency.
For the moment, only Italy, Belgium and Bulgaria seem to appreciate the value of effective cooperation and fair game. Italy might nominate Federica Mogherini, Belgium, Marianne Thyssen, and Bulgaria might renew the mandate of Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva. If national governments acknowledge that progress is the goal of an effective European leadership, they should not waste any female talent in achieving it.
The Gordian Knot 