McKinsey reports that companies in the top 25 percent for gender diversity are 15 percent more likely to have financial returns above their respective national industry medians. According to a report by Catalyst, businesses with the most females had, on average, 42 percent greater return on sales, 53 percent better return on equity and 66 percent greater return on invested capital.
Entrepreneur.com offers additional reasons why placing more women on B2B sales teams is a sound strategy:
Female reps outperform men. Gartner CEB reports that women are achieving quota at a higher rate than men — 70 percent for women versus 67 percent for men.
And, companies with sales teams comprised of 45 percent or more women achieved a 15-times-higher average in sales revenue, compared with companies with less than 20 percent of women in sales positions.
Women are proven leaders. According to research by Zenger Folkman, women surveyed outscored men in all but 1 of 16 identified leadership competencies. In fact, the report points out, “two of the traits where women outscored men to the highest degree — taking initiative and driving for results — have long been thought of as particularly male strengths.”
More women are becoming B2B buyers.
A recent survey of 200 B2B companies by A.T. Kearney found that nearly half of them report an increase in female decision-makers among their B2B customers.
Author
Get our newsletter and digital focus reports
Stay current on learning and development trends, best practices, research, new products and technologies, case studies and much more.
